Open Changing Hands

[Tanell]

The explanation, while not entirely clear, managed to bring to mind the equivalent word in her native tongue. The spirit, the essence of a person, the soul. She tucked the common word away in her mind, noting its use for later.

"What kind of magic can create the basis of life? A- a soul?" She questioned, unsure of the concept. She was following well enough, though. Or so she thought. His magic, which he went on to explain, was called Animation, and it allowed him to create souls for his golems.

She could understand this, it was no different than drawing the energy of the gods to oneself as she did when meditating or getting ready to do a reading. That was magic, as she understood it, no different from his.

"I think the gods must help you, to lend you the magic you use. Isn't it their energy that fuels the world and everything in it? If you use their energy, than I think they must help you." She tried to explain her reasoning, but without the knowledge of all the words, this was the best she could offer.

It took her only a moment to change her focus, the extended contact having allowed her to press the music to the back of her mind, she delved back into it now, seeking the sound of his mind. It was different now, bolder, confident, the sounds dancing,

"Woodwinds, pan flutes, gentle but assured. Comfort perhaps, and the lit of curiosity. Perhaps the - forgive me, I don't know the common word, it is short, pronounced, rapid notes of music- it sounds, to me, like excitement."

She couldn't help but smile at his amazement, a gentle blush touched her cheeks. It wasn't often people looked at her as though she were an exciting new discovery, she wasn't quite sure what to make of it.

"I have heard some, seen some even met one briefly many years ago, but one person does not make an entire race, and I have been told nothing more than what I am sure people say of Konti. That they are strange fish people with stranger magic. They are so busy at the port, I have not managed to find a time to meet them. I would not distract them when they are working."

Kaik yelped, having mistaken her as sipping the tea, and Tanell moved to help, perhaps to find him some cool water, but before she could, he began talking.

"Shall we um...start this divining?" He asked, changing the subject, likely out of embarrassment, although she could not fault him that.

He wanted her to read cards for him now, not a strange turn of events, but it did cause her some pause. While she had told him she could, she looked now a the cards with disinclination to use them. The interruption of his arrival had served to break her necessary bonding with the cards, and her steadfast dislike of the deck had returned with a vengeance.

She felt so whiny, reluctant to use the new cards solely because they weren't the old cards. Still, she was unable to shake the feeling. He had paid her to do the reading, though, and she would not go back on her word.

So instead of making a face like a petulant child, she inclined her head, attempting to subdue the resentment she felt towards the cards once more so that she could move forward with her work.

"I mentioned before that the cards are new, I was actually reading about them when you stumbled across my home. Perhaps you would allow me a few minutes, just to get a feel for the intention of the cards?"

If nothing else, she needed to know what the symbols of the cards meant, they were different than the ones from home, and she should at least have the knowledge of what they meant before she jumped into a reading. She could guess fairly enough on the imagery, that was most of the reading anyway, but not knowing the basis of the cards was a poor place to begin.

She had no choice really, despite any disagreement or argument her companion might articulate, so she picked her book back up, with the intent to skim briefly the symbolism of the cards.

She found her place quickly enough. ...interact with it. After you are done, return to the book, yes, well she would have to do that later. Tarot is a combination of structure and art that.... She knew that too, she had just said as much. Ah, here, this was what she was looking for, The Minor Arcana has four suits named wands, cups, swords, and pentacles. Each suit is associated with an element. Wands, she continued reading, having found the meat of the subject in question, she carefully tucked each detail in place in her mind. Wands are associated with fire, representing passion, activities, and projects. Cups are associated with water, representing relationships emotions and creativity. Swords are associated with air and represent challenges/problems, thoughts, and the intellect. Pentacles are associated with earth and represent resources, physical things, and the body. She glanced across the table, judging how the chimes affected Kaik, she thought she might squeeze in a few more details before she began.

"Nearly ready, I am sorry to keep you waiting." She spoke thinking the words might soothe any growing annoyance. The tarot seemed to be numbered in the same way, so she skipped the information detailing that for now, she would read it closely later. She flipped ahead one page, and then another. She was looking for the spreads. When she found them, she was pleased to find they would allow for a simple three card spread.

Perfect. She turned her attention back to Kaik, a smile turning up the corners of her mouth. "I'm ready to begin now, what is your question?" As she spoke, she reached for the cards she had pushed away before, the familiarity of doing a reading for someone pushing away the anxiety of learning new cards, new meanings, and new suits. She was working, doing what she loved, and that was all there was to it.

[Kaik Leyr]

OOCIt's a short post, but I'm hoping you don't mind.

The thought that the gods were helping him was hilarious. Kaik knew that he was among the minority that disliked the gods, so he tried to respect others opinions. Still he could not help but open his mouth.

“Is it really their energy that fuels this world? Or is it this world that fuels their energy? Either way, even if they’re helping me it’s probably only to further their own personal agenda...sorry if you took offense.”

He smiled as he listened to Tanell’s description of himself. “Heh, yeah...that sounds like me at the moment.” Kaik looked down at Arya and then back to Tanell,”Does she have any kind of...sound?”

The young animator assumed the divining would begin immediately, but there was a pause. He could see the look of hesitation as she eyed the cards. Thinking silence was the best answer he looked around the room waiting for her to finish. When she did speak again it only meant he would wait a few more chimes.

“Oh...of course, go ahead.” There was no impatience in the boy at first, since he felt it was his fault she was not prepared.

Somewhat bored he decided to ‘play’ with Arya. He put his arms under the doll’s arms so he could almost control their movement. An assortment of actions occurred from silently clapping to punching the air. Throwing Lina up into the air was also considered, but discarded for how badly that may turn out.

Her words rungs out again only to tell him that indeed he had to wait some more, but he appreciated the apology. “It’s fine. Take your time.”

Done playing he resorted to tasting the tea once again. It had cooled down and tasted delicious, much like the tea Maeki served to him. “Hmm, it’s nice.” He took another sip.

It was unexpected that he would have to asked the cards the question. He assumed that the cards would tell his future, so he had to take a short moment to think of a question. Kaik noted how happy she seemed to look. “My question is....who am I? Is that um...an appropriate question?”

He watched the cards anxiously, unsure of what kind of answer they would tell.

Boxcode by Yra

[Tanell]

He was reluctant to accept her ideas of the gods, but she would not hold that against him, nor his comment of the agenda's of the gods. Perhaps he was correct, the hands of the gods moved only in their own seekings. Tanell still believed that they did so for the good of their followers.

She merely smiled, letting his disbelief slide past without comment. It was not her place to make him believe, his gods would continue to watch out for him. He moved forward, asking after the sounds of Arya. It hadn't occurred to Tanell that they might bake a sound, so she assumed the music was all the mind of Kaik.

"My apologies, I hadn't considered that they might sound at all, I just assumed that you were the only one I heard." She considered a moment the music that drifted through her mind, but even on the closer inspection, it was obvious that the sounds she heard all came from the same mind, Kaik's. "I can only hear you, nothing from your companions, golems, they are silent."

She nodded as he noted a question for her, it would do just fine.

She shuffled the cards in her hands, falling into the quiet of meditation although it was far more difficult to do so now, with cards moving and the man's question to focus on. Yet, she took the time to still her breaths, finding an in and out that she timed the shuffling of her cards against. It took her longer to find the calm place in herself where she often traveled before a divining, the shimmering chavena a flicker of thought away, but she sought that tranquility before each reading, allowing her mind to find the energy around her and the energy she sought to read for, infusing both into her actions, shaping the lay of the cards.

Unconsciously she reached to her goddess, Avalis, seeking her hands to guide her.

"Mother I seek you, as I often am wont to do. I plead for your guidance as I walk the path that will show me what I ask. Lend my your sight so that I might do as this man asks me too. May we always find what we seek, mother." The words were spoken, although with no change in her position, eyes closed with the cards moving between her hands. They were an echo to the words she had spoken only a bell earlier, seeking once more the guidance to read the cards.

Ticks passed, her movement continued on, her breathing steady. She was waiting for the right moment, when the cards were ready. It was nothing grandiose, no fanfare, nor signal of any kind, rather just a feeling of completion that halted her movements.

She lay the cards, one for past, one for present, and one for future, face down between the two of them. Opening her eyes to meet Kaik's in excitement, although whether he shaired the feeling was drowned out by the sound of fear from his mind. It was, she assumed, something more mild than outright fear, circumstances lending to nerves rather than terror. Perhaps he had never had cards read for him before.

"Three cards," She informed him, "One for the past, the present, and the future." She gestured to each in turn. "The present card should represent who you are now, and where in life you find yourself."

She turned over first the middle card, the present. Who he was in this moment. The ace of cups was the card. Creativity, potential, new beginnings, relationships. "The Ace of Cups, a card of water. It says you are beginning a journey, before you lay paths to many places, in both relationships and trade you have great potential. You have come to a time where there is much before you, much you can do." She spoke both of the reading and the feeling she received from the card, "Where there are beginnings, we also see endings, things to be left behind. See the expressions of the fish? There is fear and joy in journeying forward, in leaving the past behind."

She slid the card closer to him, allowing him to see more clearly the card, to feel the mood it set. He might notice the way her hand hovered protectively, similarly to how she had hid them away on the approach to the table. She did so without malice, simply seeking to protect the cards from mayhem and conflicting energies.

oocI figured a chance to respond to the reading as she goes along might be warranted. If you disagree, or just want the rest of the reading in the same post, shoot me a PM.

[Kaik Leyr]

‘Who am I?’ It was a question that had stayed with Kaik ever since he took his first life. He was scared to know that what Mellisa said may hold true.

Admiration was the first thing he felt as he watched Tanell shuffle the cards. The calm focus she wore seemed impressive to Kaik. There seemed a similarity between the two, their dedication to their work.

Once again foreign words spilled from the Konti, but Kaik simply listened hoping to make sense of the words without success.

She opened her eyes, which meant to Kaik that she was done preparing. Three cards were set on table and were followed by an explanation. There was fear in letting another know of his past, but he hoped the cards would tell him more than what Tanell could learn from them.

The middle card was flipped first, a supposed representation of the present.

The ace of cups...it seems somewhat accurate, I guess. Losing my job and losing a friend...in a sense I suppose there is much I can do from here on.

His eyes studied the cards until Tanell talked about the expression of the fish. He could not see the expression, only emotionless black eyes. Still he could relate to what she said. Leaving behind Ellen was not something he could do, no matter how happy it could make him.

The card was brought closer to him, so he took the chance to see anything he could not see before. It was not difficult to notice how Tanell’s hand seemed to hover over the card almost protectively. Curiosity begged him to ask, “Um...why is your hand above the card?”

A sense of uncertainty was what he felt from the card. The fish looked as if they were flying into the vast sky. “These cards seem quite...mysterious? It’s kind of amazing how they all have meaning just through an image.”

He took a sip of his tea. “Please continue.”

Only two cards lefts and Kaik could not tell which one would prove more worse for him.

Boxcode by Yra

[Tanell]

"Ah, I'm sorry. I guess I'm just very protective of my cards. I hope I haven't offended you." Her response was hesitant at first as she considered her motive, realized or not. Her apology, however, was sincere, and she was surprised to note that she was indeed protective, even of the cards she had been so reluctant to use. "In my understanding, my dealings with the world, I believe that each person has their own energy, given to them by the connections they form to the world. The energy is what fuels each person, their thoughts, actions, and dreams. It is what I draw on to read the fortunes, my own energy, and the feel of the energy of the person I am reading for." She paused, a tentative look gauging his response to her explanation. "Over time, my energy will fill the cards, and they will respond to my intent as easily as my body answers my commands to move or be still. But if that energy, or whatever you may call it, was to be added to by each person I read for, through the touching of the cards. The cards would respond less willingly, confused by the multitudes of energy." Her explanation was carefully altered as she spoke, leaving out her usual explanation of the gods hand in the matter. He, she had learned, was not a fan of the gods, any of them if she understood his words, so she did not press them upon him again.

His curiosity was noted further, not diminished by her explanation of the energies she believed existed, the cards a further source for his questions. "The cards have meaning in image, location in the spread, and the suits - like the suits of playing cards. The suit and number within the suit gives the base meaning of the card, the image is more or less communicative depending on the familiarity of the energies within the cards, and the location is simply contextual. When I read cards, I first read each one individually, giving them the full attention to meaning and feelings. After each is read, I can use the context and the answers each has portrayed to answer the inquiry put to them." That would have to do, beyond those words, she had really a scant bit more to say, even her native tongue could not help her explain the mystical connections and communications she had with the fortunetelling.

She tucked the card carefully back into place in the middle of the spread, turning over the next card, the past. "The Page of Pentacles, the element of earth. Youthful exuberance, the physical realm, the body. This is quite the card to take for initial values. In the past you were younger," She couldn't help the gentle laugh, what a fitting card. "But, of course, that is obvious, however I believe it means to say you had the energy and joy that befitted a child, acting in an all or nothing way. When you did something, you did so with your entire body and spirit. It is a mysterious card too, look here, the hidden faces, the sleeping dragon, there is something, perhaps more than one thing hiding in your past. Sleeping, laying in wait, perhaps to return, or to be exposed. You have a great many secrets in your past, not all of them good." As she read the card, her tone changed, becoming more serious as she moved away from the superficial readings of the card for the more serious feelings and images that were brought to her on closer examination.

She slid the card across to him once more, her hand hovering protectively for only a moment before she forced it back to her own side of the table. She could only hope he had listened and would not act against her explanation to touch the card. In the case that he did, she would say nothing, but instead she would have to cleanse the cards, a sad affair on such new friends.

She took hold of her tea instead, forgotten until it offered her a distraction from the nervous energy rising in her as she waited to hear the response to her newest recitation of what the cards spoke to her.

The tea was still warm, a better temperature for drinking, and she savored the flavor of the tea, she was quite fond of the Dawn blend, bot spicy and sweet with the heady flavor of fine brandy. She focused on the tea in her cup, her only attention still turned on the man while he processed her words was the involuntary accumulations of sounds that danced through her head.

[Kaik Leyr]

“Oh, no it’s fine. You don’t have to be sorry. I was just wondering why.” At least he learned the reason, but it seemed she had more to say.

The explanation seemed complex to Kaik and he could only guess that was how sounded like explaining magic to others. Slight confusion was scrawled over his face, but the desire to learn more burned in his eyes.

This energy she talks about...djed? Might be better to just shut my mouth for now.

When she continued her talk what he got from it was that touching the cards was a bad thing. Much like in animation, moving the objects during the process is a bad thing. Keeping note of that warning he kept his hands away from the cards.

“I’m impressed and...sorry. I thought little went behind your craft, but I was wrong. There seems like there’s...a lot of time and effort that goes into this. So I feel the need to say sorry.”

Her explanation of how she reads the cards confused him slightly, but he decided to just say, “Thank you for the explanation.”

The next card was to represent the past, The Page of Pentacles. At first glance the image looked like a mesh of creatures bundled together but it was in fact just one strange creature with some lady sitting on it.

When she first talked about the card Kaik was almost tempted to mock what she said.

’In the past you were younger.’ Of course I was!

He held in his words as Tanell quietly laughed herself. Understanding there had to be more about the card he listened attentively to the Konti as she continued her explanation. Glad Tanell understood what she said before was silly, he focused on the truth to what the card said.

Indeed he had in one point in his life been much too happy and joyful. It was also true there are many things in his past he kept secret about, but still there are few who know of his past. Though he would argue that all his secrets are no good, not just some.

The card was pushed toward him without Kaik’s notice. His mind was caught up with thoughts of his past. At first pleasant thoughts of his family and Ellen popped into his head, then they turned violent. Images of dead people flickered past him, those he killed, his family, then Ellen. His mind lingered on the thought of Ellen in her lifeless. The young Animator took a long breath and tried to push all his thoughts away.

To keep his mind off the memories, he asked a question, “So the lady on the creature...I don’t understand what her purpose is.”

He took a gulp of tea, another way to rid his past thoughts. “This will be the last card then. The future...correct?”

This was the card he was most anxious of and interested in.

The cards seemed accurate so far. What will they say now?

Boxcode by Yra

[Tanell]

"The woman is the page, she is the harbinger of messages, the keeper of the path." She shrugged, she couldn't explain beyond that, she didn't know the cards well enough. It didn't matter, she got the feeling that he didn't really care, some combination of anxiety and happiness warred in her mind, the sounds of nervous excitement if she had to guess.

"The future card," She confirmed flipping it over for them to examine. "Oh, interesting." She murmured as the card was revealed, the King of Wands was a leader, prideful, and bold. Surrounded by lions, lit by a fiery cloak of light, this was a strong card. "Authority, confidence and strength, the King of Wands is a strong card, bold. He is fierce, and takes to his duties and his goals with confidence. If he is in your future, you must have power coming to you, something leads you to a bright future, burns away the shadows and worries that might hold you back." She paused to consider all three cards, allowing Kaik time to admire the new card if he so desired. She too admired the cards, feeling the flow of their context come together into a story, and an answer.

Secrets and hardships lie in your past, mysterious, hiding in visions of better places, brighter moments of your life. In this moment you are facing a number of choices as to where you will go in life, there are paths that will be hard and paths of ease. You hover, unsure of what path to take, something holds you back, something of your past you can't or won't leave behind. The future promises light, the purity of fire, and a path of ease, if only you can make it there. Power, courage, confidence, success, these are the things that await you should you choose the right path. Once you find it, you will traverse it with ease, if you find things are difficult, you may not be following the right path."

That was what the spread said, past, present, and future. So how did that answer his question? She sipped her tea again, trying to fit the pieces together into a person, a human, the one that sat before her, slightly awkward, shy perhaps, and toting creatures of his own creation.

Who was Kaik?

"You are a man with great potential, many paths lay before you leading you to the light, but something in your past holds you back, prevents you from finding your true potential. Cloaked in darkness, you have the opportunity to shed the weight of the dark and step into the light. Is that who you are? Sure, but more so than the options define you, the decision you make will define you. Will you cling to the shadows of your past, or will you burn brightly with new purpose?"

She lapsed into silence, surveying the man who was sitting across from her. He did not seem to be dark, not so much so as the cards implied, but then, she hardly knew him.

She might have feared him if he hadn't appeared in her home with bumbling apologies and gentle inquiries. If he had come in silent and shrouded, demanding a reading of cards, she would have asked him to leave at this moment. Services rendered, previously paid for, she would ask he take his leave.

Instead she sat, awaiting his response, because she knew there was a seed of light in him, potential, fire, coupled with passion beyond what most adults knew, the passion and exuberance of the young.

Would he visit her again?

Who would he be then?

[Kaik Leyr]

OOCThis will be my last post, most likely, so thanks for being my partner in this fun little thread.

Optimism turned into skepticism when the Konti talked of the new card. As much as he liked the thought of wielding power, Kaik prefered to stay realistic. There was no doubt in his mind that having a happy future was no possible.

Despite what he thought, he very much liked the art of the card. In the center there was a man who he thought looked similar to an Ethaefal, but kept his thought to himself. Instead he continued to analyze the card trying to understand how such a card could be chosen for his future.

“Well it’s...certainly a um...interesting card.”

With very little said Tanell formed all the cards meanings into one full speech. Much of what she said was accurate, but he still felt unsure of her prediction of the future. Kaik always assumed his future was nothing but darkness, especially with what he had done so far. It just seemed too simple.

Take the right path and you’re guaranteed a happy end. Get rid of the past and just move on. It seems too easy, yet there is so much more to it.

Without any thought on how to respond to what she said he decided to be quiet.

Is that the end of the reading? I should probably take my lea-

It had not been the end, there was much yet to be said from Tanell.

What she said seemed like advice and Kaik was unsure what to make of it all. Apparently the cards saw something in him that he himself could not see. So much has changed in him since his time with Ellen, but once again there would be another drastic change for him in the future. He simply had to make a choice to change.

To stay with Ellen or embrace a bright future? Of course I want to stay with her, but...Ellen always was the one to make the decisions. I knew, always knew, what she wanted for me. Why can’t she want me to stay behind?

“I suppose...everything ends with a choice, right?” he sighed. “To take the light or keep the dark….kinda funny way to put it heh.”

Despite the presence of another he could not help but oddly close his eyes. It was only for a chime, but it seemed to last quite longer. It helped him relax as he seriously thought of what he should do with his future. When the chime ended he took a final gulp of the tea, grateful of how pleasant it tasted.

“I don’t have the answer to what you ask, but...I know either way...I’m sure I’ll be happy with my choice.”

He stood up and took a bow. “Thank you, Tanell. I uh...appreciate you taking the time to help me despite how I er...stumbled into here. I’m glad to have met you and hope to perhaps...see you again?”

Taking the hands of his golems as well as making sure Lina was where she was, he pulled up his hood and walked to the entrance. Before he could grasp the knob he quickly turned around having forgotten to say one last important thing. “Goodbye, Tanell...I wish you the best,” he said with an honest smile. With that said he left the building.

Boxcode by Yra

[Tanell]

In the end, Kaik seemed resigned to his fate, although his dismissal of the subject of the cards spoke of his future happiness. She didn't push him, he seemed to have plenty to consider with the words she had already said.

She stood when he did, smiling kindly as he thanked her.

"It was a pleasure to have you visit, Kaik, I would be happy to have you back, on business or otherwise." She curtsied deeply in return, tipping her head with the motion.

She watched as he cloaked himself, pulling his hood back up and becoming once more the mysterious stranger that she would never had noticed if not for his entrance into her home. It was strange, watching him reassemble a facade after having gotten to know him so well through the cards.

Stony and silent, she thought that would be the end of their relationship, he would tuck back into his past and forget her words, but then he paused, turning just before the entrance to face her a last time.

"Goodbye, Tanell... I wish you the best." His smile light up his face even in the dark of his hood, and her return smile was one of pleasure at seeing that perhaps she was wrong, perhaps he would take the plunge and find the power that awaited him in the light.

"Goodbye, Kaik," She called after him, as he stepped out into the street and disappeared into the crowd. She turned back to face her home, the small mess of having company. She took Kaik's empty cup, and the jars of tea, tucking the tea away and stepping to the basin of water for washing. She rinsed the cup clean, scouring the cup clean with rough spongy moss from the mountainside. The dirty water was poured out over the garden plants, dampening the dirt only slightly, but it was better than wasting the liquid.

She refilled her own cup with still warm water from the kettle before setting it back beside the fire, to maintain a gentle heat until she was ready to have more, or until another guest arrived.

She shuffled things around, pushed the chair back flush against the table, until it was back to the same tidiness that had greeted the young man on his entrance to the house. Resettling herself at the table, she shuffled the cards, adding in the ones used for the reading one at a time.

Shuffling would remove the leftover energy, cleanse them of patterns or paths that belonged to Kaik, setting them back to the resting energy, her energy. She picked her book back up, flipping back to the second page and beginning to read again.

These new cards weren't so bad as she had thought they would be. In fact, she decided, she quite liked them.

[Brandon Blackwing]

TANELL

XP Award:

• Observation +5
• Rhetoric +4
• Socialization +5
• Brewing +1
• Philosophy +2
• Fortune telling +3
• Organization +1
  

Lore:

• Parting from an old Tarot deck
• Kaik: Master of Animated Dolls
• Tattoos: Artsy decorations of the skin
• Golems: not made by divine magic
• Tarot: the four suits of the Minor Arcana
  

KAIK LEYR

XP Award:

• Observation +3
• Socialization +5
• Negotiation +1
• Deduction +1
• Philosophy +1
  

Lore:

• Konti: Pale, fishlike, all-women folk of Mura
• Tanell: Can hear your feelings towards her as music
• Explaining Animation in layman’s terms
• Tanell’s reading
• Who I am according to the cards
  

Notes:
Well, this was a fun little thread. Keep up the good work.

Please edit or delete your request in the request thread.
Also don’t forget to track your new (and your old) xp and lore in your CS
Comments, questions or concerns regarding your grade? Why not send me a PM?

credit goes to Adelaide Sitai