Open [Surya Plaza] A Night of Entertainment

[Azira]

19th Spring 516AV, Night
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Try as she might to be open-minded, Azira still found the city strange. There was no getting around the fact that these people were almost always on the go and there was no end to their activities. When sensible people ought to be in bed, the city was still bustling and the same would be true come the morning, despite the fact that by rights, plenty of people should be in bed following the late activity. It was still a reasonable hour in the eyes of the huntress although she was somewhat weary after her day's work. The Inarta was more than willing to be an observer of the night's activities.

As she'd returned from her hunt, she'd noticed the growing excitement in the Surya Plaza and had promised herself that she would return to see what the fuss was about. She'd dropped in to The Jugged Hare to report on how her hunt had gone and had deposited her gear in her room. She'd stripped off her hunting vinati and bryda and changed into the clothing more typical of Lhavit, complete with a cloak rather than a katinu before she set out for the Plaza. The journey to it from her rented accommodation in Solar Winds wasn't typically a long one, but this evening quite a crowd seemed to be drawn to whatever was going on there tonight. The chatter around her was faster than she was comfortable with and she only caught a word here and there. There were two words repeated over and over again that suggested they were the name of something: Spinning Glimmers. The Inarta had no idea what it meant but she guessed that it was some form of entertainment rather than a new establishment. She had keen eyes and had reason to pass through the Plaza on a regular basis, but she had seen nothing to suggest that a new business would be opening. Entertainment was likely in Lhavit at night, she'd found. The denizens appeared to appreciate a performance.

The Plaza had gathered quite a crowd and Azira made a face as she saw all the people who towered over her diminutive figure. If she wanted to see what was going on then she was going to have to do quite a bit of pushing and shoving. What weariness her body had accumulated during the day pushed to the forefront, making itself known and urging her to return to her room rather than going through such a gathering. The Inarta woman's curiosity was strong, particularly given the size of the crowd that had gathered and the shocked delight that those present seemed to be experiencing. There was also the fact that Azira could see figures appearing above everybody near the centre. It meant that they were reaching quite some height if the tiny redhead could see them, even if it was only the briefest of glimpses. Either those ahead could fly, which seemed highly unlikely, or else they were being thrown in to the air. She'd heard of such things, acrobatics it was called, but she'd never seen such a display. Her interest well and truly piqued, there was no chance that she was going to back away now. This was a challenge and one to which she'd willing rise.

The young woman dove in to the packed bodies, causing surprise, dismay and even anger where she passed. She offered apologies in the native Common tongue, saying sorry so often that her tone became flat, leaving it doubtful that anyone would believe that she was being sincere. The Lhavitians were not a confrontational bunch in her experience, not like the citizens of Wind Reach, but that didn't mean that the crowd didn't push back against such forceful intrusion. It was a struggle as she tried to wedge her shoulder between the solid bodies. Her elbows were kept pointing out to drive anyone away but they took quite a bashing with those with whom she came in to contact. She would probably be covered with bruises by the end of all of this and purely because she was small. Azira envied some of the taller, broad shouldered men around her who would probably have no bother forcing their way through this group, but she was floundering. She wished that there was an Ethaefal around so she could slip in to the bubble of space that they allowed them. There had to be some in this mass of humanity but she couldn't tell where they were. She wished for Alses so that she had the space and had someone that she knew. If only she had a companion, everything would be so much easier.

Nari | Common

Template courtesy of Khara

[Halin'a]

As always, the night and accompanying change to his more ethereal form brought renewed energy to Halin'a, and this night he found himself in the Surya Plaze, drawn by the crowd and the promise of entertainment. He had not been in Lhavit long - only six days, as a matter of fact - but already he could tell that this was a city that loved to be entertained, and he was looking forward to exploring everything it had to offer. Tonight's entertainment, it seemed, was a performance by the Spinning Glimmers; Halin'a had heard of the troupe, had heard that they could dance in the air, and he was eager to see just what was meant by the rumors he'd heard. He wasn't the only one looking forward to the performance if the rapidly-growing crowd was any indication. He'd heard many things about the Spinning Glimmers, including their proficiency in using fire in their acts, and he was always intrigued by magic. As he started working his way through the crowd, Halin'a made sure to keep one eye on his money pouch hanging from his belt; this was prime territory for a cutpurse, and while Halin'a wasn't stupid enough to carry all of his money on him, he was carrying enough that he was cautious. It was as he was nearing the middle of the distance he needed to cover to reach the front of the crowd that he spotted a flash of brilliant red hair; attention caught like a magpie's by a shiny object, he paused to focus in on it, and noticed that the hair belonged to a rather diminutive woman; no more than five feet, if Halin'a was any judge. He wondered if she was one of the Wind Eagle riders, but his thoughts were distracted when he saw how she was struggling to make her way through the crowd; he winced in sympathy when he noticed how hard she was having to work to shove her way through, and he changed his own course, angling so that he would intercept her. "Pardon me," he says, raising his voice to be heard above the crowd. "If you'd like, I could help you make your way to the front; might save you a few bruises." He hoped he didn't come off as intimidating; he knew that his size and ethereal appearance was both a blessing and a curse. He'd met more than one person who'd treated him with caution for being so otherworldly during the night, and some people seemed to think that someone as tall as he was - at over six feet - was someone looking for trouble, regardless of how nonthreatening he tried to appear. On the other hand, his size was very useful for carving paths through crowds; so long as he carried himself with confidence, people tended to just move out of his way.

[Azira]

OOCStill open, just thought I'd move things along

If Lhavit was as open to violent behaviour as Wind Reach was then Azira would definitely have started a fight. She didn't think it'd help matters in terms of getting through the gathering but at least it would have let her blow off some steam. It would be highly satisfy to smash her fist up in to someone's face, catch them off guard and send them staggering back but in this city, it wasn't going to happen, not even if she just happened to feel like doing it. The huntress wondered if the Shinya would decide to reprimand her for trying to shove her way in to the crowd but what else could she do? She couldn't just ask them to move out of her way and expect them to politely step aside. The folks here might be nice but there was no way they'd give up a good view so someone else could have it. They were nice but nobody was that nice, especially if they were confronted by a grumpy little redhead who sounded like she'd rather bite their heads off than ask them to politely step aside.

A gout of flame flashed in to the air, earning gasps and even a few screams as the display took place before them. Azira couldn't really see it but she could observe enough to come to the conclusion that it was controlled, something done for entertainment. She couldn't see enough to tell exactly what was going on though, which was annoying and she had no idea how close to the front she'd have to get to be in with a shot of seeing anything at all. She needed to find an easy way through and they weren't just going to part, not willingly at least and it would take a miracle to let her get to where she wanted. Miracles didn't happen though so it would just have to be grim determination. She threw her shoulder in to those in front of her but it continued to be a struggle as she found that she couldn't force her way in very far, as if she was going against the current. Then something in the press of bodies seemed to change. There was a rippling, a sudden movement as people tried to move away from something. Her gaze turned to the direction from which everyone was trying to get away. Her eyes travelled upwards to the full height of the approaching figure: an Ethaefal.

Where the celestial being walked, the crowd allowed him his space and Azira fought a grin as she saw exactly what she'd been hoping for. If he came close enough then she could get in to that bubble of space and work her way to the front. Although she couldn't work out why he was cutting sideways through everybody rather than moving to the front. She couldn't tell where he was heading in truth but she'd take her chances. Better to skirt the edge of this guy's space than continue bashing in to this wall of bodies. She'd just have to give one last push to break through those pushing back to get away from him. Except that he was coming right towards her, right towards her and he was looking at her. He wasn't simply moving through the crowd. For some reason that the Inarta couldn't fathom, he was walking towards her. She tensed, ready to make a run for it because she couldn't believe that this stranger could be approaching her for a good reason.

He was tall, quite tall, her head bending back so that she could get a look at him, and he was intimidating and he really did seem to be coming towards her. He merely confirmed her suspicion when he spoke to her, but his words weren't any sort of threat to her. On the contrary, he was offering to help her through to the front. She knew that she was small but was she really so obviously pathetic? The huntress scowled, her wariness of the Eth forgotten. A path between them had opened up as the crowd pressed away and Azira took full advantage of it to step in to his space where their height difference became even more stark. An onlooker would probably find it comical.

"I will go with you. Why are you helping? What do you want?" she asked haltingly in the Common Tongue, her golden eyes narrowed in mistrust. It was too strange that a man would help her out of the blue like this and she wanted to know his reasons. She stood as far away from him as the crowd allowed, which was little more than a foot. If he was expecting fear then he wasn't going to get it. She might question his motives but she wasn't afraid of him just because he towered over her; she'd dealt with worse than him before. "You're an Ethaefal, yes? Shall we amble?" The redhead regurgitated the phrase that she'd learned from Alses, deciding to adopt the female Eth's way of talking as best as she could. Maybe all Ethaefal talked that way, she didn't have a clue because she'd only ever met one before.

Nari | Common

Template courtesy of Khara

[Halin'a]

OOCSounds good to me Halin'a liked this redhead, he decides; she has fire to match her hair. "I'm helping because no one should have to miss out on a show like what is promised," he says, inclining his head before beginning to make his way towards the front, clearing a path for the woman behind him. "I don't want anything more than to watch the show; if you'd like company, I would be agreeable to that. And yes," he adds, remembering her last question, "I am an Ethaefal; a son of Leth, to be precise." The pair continue making their way to the front of the crowd, the rest of the audience for the show parting way for Halin'a; occasionally he has to reach out and touch a shoulder, but generally when the person realizes what he wants, they step aside without too much trouble. A couple actually stare at him, slack-jawed, which the Ethaefal finds amusing, even if it makes him a bit uncomfortable; Ethaefal aren't terribly uncommon here in Lhavit, so he sees no reason for his appearance to be so awe-inspiring and worthy of ogling(at least in Zeltiva, where Ethaefal were a fairly rare sight, and an Ethaefal with his profession even more so, the staring had been understandable), but he'd long ago given up on understanding what exactly went through some mortals' heads sometimes. As they reach the front of the crowd, Halin'a slows, giving the woman time to catch up to walk by his side. "I'm sorry, I didn't introduce myself," he apologizes, holding out a hand. "I'm Halin'a. May I ask your name?" There is another blast of fire then, and Halin'a is distracted by the performance; there are indeed acrobatics, and one of the women seems to actually be dancing with the fire she creates herself. Halin'a has heard of this magic - something starting with an 'r', if he wasn't mistaken - and while he'd never had any real desire to learn it himself, he could certainly appreciate the effort and discipline that would go into not only mastering this art of magic, but of learning to incorporate it into a dance sequence as well.

[Azira]

The redhead might distrust his motives, but that didn't mean she wouldn't use his presence to her advantage. His presence was indeed an advantageous one as he could make the crowd part with the ease of a hot knife going through butter. His reason seemed innocuous enough although she was still somewhat suspicious. If he had adopted the Lhavitian mentality then it wouldn't be altogether strange seeing as they were all so nice, but at the same time, it put her on edge. She couldn't help holding on to her mistrust of others because she knew that the most innocent of things could have a nasty motivation behind them. It was too early to determine which category this Ethaefal fell in to, the nice or the seemingly nice, but she would keep him at a distance for now. She didn't know if she wanted his company but then there was no harm in having him around.

"It makes no difference to me," she told him in Common with a shrug. "I only want to see the show, I do not know what it will be like. I have heard nothing. I do not care who is with me." The huntress knew she was being somewhat rude, considering the trouble that the man seemed to be going to in order for her to see the show. As far as she was concerned, she didn't owe him a thing. He could help a stranger if he so desired but that didn't obligate her to be courteous to him.

"You are a son of Leth, what is the difference? Some Ethaefal follow Syna, while others follow Leth. You follow different gods, is that all?" she asked curiously, peering up in to the face of his divine form. Ethaefal were new to her, she hadn't come across them before coming to Lhavit, yet she didn't seem to be quite as awestruck as those around her. True, they all looked stunningly beautiful and could attain a great age, but that didn't mean that she had to walk around almost in fear of them. They were people who happened to come in a different shape, that was all. She'd been more reverent around Alses but then she had knocked her to the ground and had witnessed her do magic. Plus, of course she was a woman so Azira had found her ridiculously attractive. Not that this man wasn't attractive, it just wasn't as distracting because he was male. She could see past his looks and be her naturally caustic self.

They moved to the front and the Inarta was finally able to see what the Spinning Glimmers were. It was a truly fascinating display as she watched what they could do with their bodies, succeeding in pushing themselves past limits that Azira wouldn't have thought possible. It was like a graceful dance but yet it had more power in it as she could see the rippling movements of muscles in their arms and legs. Men and women moved around one another, doing cartwheels, flips, using one another to perform spectacular feats of balance and even to throw one another in the air. She watched open-mouthed as they twisted and writhed before her, feeling more than a spark of annoyance as her escort dragged her attention away for the banality of introductory niceties.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," she intoned with heavy sarcasm, her attention pulled away to the show once more as fire made an appearance. Her amber eyes were glued to the performance, the flames dancing with a mischievous, reflecting glint in her wide orbs as her pupils shrank in the face of so much bright light. She'd never seen anything like this. She had seen fire reimancy before and had only ever imagined that its purpose would be a destructive one. This was nothing like she would have imagined. This troupe had successfully turned it in to art. Such art it was! Everyone had their part and they worked together in perfect harmony, dangerous fire burning between them. If someone ended up in the wrong place at the wrong time, or one of the casters had a misstep then the whole thing could be disastrous. But they made no mistakes. A woman danced with fire, sending it looping around her body, always in motion and yet never burning herself in the process, something which Azira couldn't comprehend. How could she do this? How could she turn and flip and twist and dance while waving fire around the place without injury to herself or others. A globe of fire was sent upwards, splitting in to many smaller fragments before falling to the ground as the troupe wove and performed through it all. The flames could do no harm as someone had had the forethought to layer sand on the ground to instantly extinguish any errant embers. They stood at the very edge of the sandy circle, a thin layer of it crunching softly between the soles of her boots and the paving below.

She managed to tear her gaze away back to her companion to favour him with a wicked grin and a hiss of, "Reimancy." She glanced back to the show, not wanting to miss a moment but realising that she had to engage with this person beside her, much to her chagrin.

"I am Azira. I am Inarta," she supplied shortly before turning her gaze back to the Spinning Glimmers. "They are very, very good. There is a better word, many better words but I cannot think. They are too good for my words," she told him in an awed voice, her voice raised to be heard over the excitement of the crowd. There was a wealth of words that should could call up in Nari, but she didn't have their equivalents in Common. Stunning, spectacular, tremendous, awesome. She needed to work on her Common synonyms.

She didn't look at him as she spoke, but if it was made necessary or he said something of particular interest then she could pull herself away for a few moments.

Nari | Common

Template courtesy of Khara

[Halin'a]

"There are small differences," Halin'a says thoughtfully. "Mostly in appearance; the children of Leth reflect the colors of the night and the moon, and we change into our 'heavenly' forms while Leth has dominion of the sky. The children of Syna are the opposite, shining with the shades of the day, and they are more ethereal while Syna rules the skies." As far as personalities went, well, the personalities could be as diverse as the people themselves; there was no defining trait to mark a son of Leth from a son of Syna when they were in their ethereal forms. Every person was different, and that held just as true for an Ethaefal as any person of any other race. Azira's sarcasm was not lost on the Ethaefal, but all he did was smile; he'd learned long ago to let sarcasm roll off of him. Still, they both fell quiet as the Spinning Glimmers continued on with their act, and Halin'a had to admit that he was quite impressed with them. When Azira mentioned 'reimancy', the Ethaefal almost smacked himself; of course! Reimancy was the magic of manipulating elements, and potentially very dangerous. The Lethaefal's respect for the performers grew. Halin'a listened as Azira gave her name and race - 'Inarta' sounded familiar, and after a moment he placed why: They were the race who rode eagles. "Are you from Wind Reach?" he asks curiously. "How long have you been in Lhavit?" The Ethaefal's attention is split between the woman beside him and the performers as they continue in their routine; Halin'a could not blame Azira for being more interested in the performance before her than in making conversation with a man she barely knew. "Have you ever seen a performance like this?" he asks, awed. "I always imagined that reimancy would be used for only serious things, but this... This is beautiful."

[Azira]

Halin'a seemed quite forthcoming about information concerning his race and Azira was interested to hear of the difference. She contemplated what he said with interest, mentally comparing his with that of Alses. So she had had a chance to see both sides of the Ethaefal race now from the magnificent blondeness of Alses with her lilac tinged horns to this man with his silvery hair and pure white horns. Of course, he was still very beautiful but Azira found that she preferred the woman's colouring. What tripped her up was the mention of changing. Alses hadn't mentioned anything about changing, had she? He made it sound like they transformed physically depending on who had dominion in the sky. That made her peer at him sideways, wondering how different he would look in the day and how Alses must look at night. Surely it couldn't be too great a change. Then again, the huntress had seen Kelvic transformations and if she hadn't seen them for herself perhaps she wouldn't have believed that such an abrupt change was possible. Maybe Ethaefal looked very different when their deity was no longer in control and the change could be instantaneous.

"You said 'change' in to your heavenly form. What does an Ethaefal of Syna look like at night? What are you like in the day if you are not like this?" she asked, gesturing in a way that encompassed his total appearance. She continued to watch the show with a thoughtful expression on her face as she contemplated how the female Ethaefal she'd met at the beginning of the season must look right now. Could she be here, watching the Spinning Glimmers as Azira was right now? She found herself scanning the crowd but she didn't see any sign of the radiant woman. Not that she could keep her attention away from the performers for very long. They were too fascinating to look away from for long, especially considering how hopeless a search for Alses was in this crowd, assuming that she was here at all of course.

The young woman was incredibly glad that she'd bumped in to Halin'a. Not only had she gotten a chance to see this magnificent show of acrobatics and gotten a better view than she ever could have fought for by herself, but she was also learning things she wanted to know. Unlike Alses, Halin'a didn't seem to be quite as eager to find out about her--although that could change--and he seemed happy to field any questions she had about his race. It was a good way to bridge the gaps in her knowledge and it appeared that she still had quite a few. As she pondered what else she could ask, Halin'a started dropping his own questions.

"Yes, I am from Wind Reach. I have been in Lhavit since the winter season," she responded in Common without looking towards her companion. It was just too exhilarating to take her eyes off of it. She watched as a man did backflips through jets of flame which were conjured and fired towards the ground diagonally. There were gasps and she saw some people cover their eyes while continuing to peek from between their fingers. Azira wasn't even involved and yet her heart was thundering, the huntress riding a rush of adrenaline from an experience which was secondhand. It was as thrilling as the time she had pounced on a boar and stabbed it to death before it could kill her, as exciting as when a Wind Eagle pulled out of a dive at the last tick. The girl could hardly breathe and in her excitement, she found herself reaching over to tug at Halin'a's arm, bouncing a little on the spot.

"No, I never thought it be like this!" she gasped out. "No one is getting hurt. Nothing is being damaged. It is wonderful!" The Inarta had such a wide grin on her face that the corners of her mouth were starting to hurt but she didn't care; she was too caught up in the moment to notice much of anything. When things became a little less death defying, she did realise the grab she'd made for the large man and felt her face start to blaze.

"My apologies. I was... too excited," she explained without meeting his eye. She folded her arms across her chest in an effort to stop any more such attempts.

Nari | Common

Template courtesy of Khara

[Halin'a]

What does an Ethaefal of Syna look like at night? That was a fairly common question; unfortunately, Halin'a had a sneaking suspicion that Azira wouldn't much care for his answer. "Well," he starts, briefly distracted by one of the performers flipping by them, "it depends, honestly. Our 'mortal' seemings - the way we look when our god is not in the sky - are based on one of our past lives. For me, it's a human man. For others, it could be anyone of any race, though they will be the same gender as their Ethaefal seeming. A Synaborn Ethaefal could be a Symenestra or a Jamoura at night, or they could look like any other human being. There's no real way to tell, unless the Ethaefal tells you themselves. For Lethborn, it's the opposite; during the day, we are in our mortal seemings, and at night, we look like - well, sort of like myself." Halin'a chuckles at that, glancing at his companion as she's enraptured by the show; she doesn't seem terribly impressed with him for the moment, and most of her questions have been about Synaborn Ethaefal. So the first one she met was a child of Syna, Halin'a surmises. I wonder who? Halin'a had not met many Ethaefal in Lhavit, yet, and he knew of only one Synaborn - the one at The Scholar's Demise. Halin'a is intrigued to hear that Azira is, indeed, an Inarta from Wind Reach; he'd heard of them, and their home, but he'd never been able to actually speak with one before. "Do you truly ride eagles?" he asks eagerly. "I imagine flying must be a wonderful thing to experience." Before the Ethaefal can question Azira more, however, the woman is latching onto his arm with a supremely strong grip; not surprising, because Halin'a had learned not to underestimate the strength of any woman. It startles him, however, and he looks down in surprise, his expression turning a bit amused at her enthusiasm. Not that he can blame her, since he's just as excited by everything, but Halin'a tends to feel the age he doesn't look a lot of times, seeing others as children compared to him, even though he only looks to be in his mid-late twenties. "It's all right," he reassured her when Azira realized what she'd done; Halin'a thought that it was embarrassment that kept her from meeting his gaze, but the Ethaefal didn't push it. He let them lapse into silence for a moment, and then, in an effort to take Azira's mind off of what just happened, Halin'a casually asked, "So, do you come here often?" The oldest and cheesiest line in the book, and while Halin'a wasn't truly flirting with Azira, he did hope that maybe it would get a laugh from her.

[Azira]

The huntress didn't know what sort of answer she was expecting Halin'a to give, especially after she'd thought it through herself, but she was still taken aback. She found herself staring at him, trying to imagine him as a human but failing. Obviously he wouldn't have the horns or that hair colour, but would he look anything like he did now? Would there be any sort of resemblance to the person beside her during the day? Given the unnaturalness of his appearance for a mortal, she couldn't imagine that she'd recognise him in Syna's light at all. If they could literally have any appearance when they were mortal seeming, she'd never recognise Alses even if she was in this crowd. Azira found herself feeling both disappointment and intrigued. She knew that Halin'a's mortal seeming form was a human, but what form did Alses have? She wonder if it would be rude to ask the woman should she see her again.

"You do not like being near one another but... do you think other Ethaefal would say what their form was? If they were asked, I mean," she asked, hoping that he'd have some clue. Alses had explained that it was painful for Ethaefal to be near to one another because of their common loss, but he might know others all the same. It could be useful knowledge for the future if she came across any other members of the were-race. If he didn't know then she would just have to tread carefully if she interacted with them again.

She found herself laughing at the man's question. It was apparent that she wasn't the only one who'd had her curiosity piqued. "Have you never seen them here?" she asked, amused. She'd assumed that he was from Lhavit but if he didn't know about the Wind Eagles for sure then perhaps he was a blow in like herself. "We trade here. Endal fly here for trade. It is real. It is... better than words can say. Even in my own tongue, Nari, I could not do it." She shook her head in wonder as she considered how it might be possible to describe it but she came up with nothing. It was really something that you had to experience for yourself. Unless there was a way to transfer experiences from mind to mind, there would never be a way for her to provide anyone else with the wonders of flight.

The performance before them was growing all the more exciting and Azira wondered how much longer it could possibly go on for, but yet the troupe kept succeeding in pulling off new tricks. There were more death-defying leaps and jumps and twists, more fire than she could believe. They'd set some things on fire and they were being juggled around the group, the number of flaming objects growing and yet not one was dropped. They didn't only move them with about by hand either but also used their feet. Their abilities were truly amazing and the Inarta had to admire the amount of training they must do to master such skills. Not to mention the strength they must possess to be able to do what they did. She could never imagine being that strong, agile or flexible. It was truly an art that she was witnessing.

The performance was useful in keeping her attention away from Halin'a after she'd embarrassed herself, but when he asked his question, she found herself glancing at him in confusion. The significance of it was lost on her, the notion that it was a cheesy and clichéd way of flirting never even occurring to her. The young woman had had very little experience with flirtation and the few such interactions she'd been involved in had been with other Inarta; her race tended to be very obvious about their interest in one another. As a result, Azira was genuinely puzzled by his words, something which he might find amusing in itself although the humour of it would be unfathomable to her.

"Of course. It is the busiest place in Lhavit. Who does not come here often?" she countered, quirking an eyebrow as she gave him a sidelong look. She suddenly found herself questioning how bright her companion was. "Could you not think of a thing to to say that was better?" she asked with a snort, her expression clearly showing her amusement. Her look was a sly one as she waited for his response. She'd like to see what he had to say for himself after saying something so stupid.

Nari | Common

Template courtesy of Khara

[Halin'a]

Halin'a could feel his cheeks heating, the moonstone tones of his skin darkening under the new rush of blood. That had been a cheesy line, he knew - and Azira's smirk and ribbing were well-deserved; just because Halin'a worked in a brothel did not mean that he was very adept at flirting outside of his job - or at all. Halin'a knew the ins and outs of the bodies of many races, and could read body language and listen to instructions to bring great pleasure, but remove him from the private rooms of The Red Lantern, and he turned into a fumbling teenage boy. "Ah, yes?" he hazards, laughing a bit self-consciously. "I know, it was a silly question; I'm not very good at interacting with women, despite my choice of career." Halin'a shook his head at himself, his smile a bit self-deprecating, before he refocused on what Azira had said before. "I suppose it would depend on the Ethaefal, and how well you knew them," Halin'a said thoughtfully. "Most do not consider it a great secret, what their other form is, unless it is a form that the city regards as dangerous or worthy of caution, such as a Symenestra, perhaps. As for the Endal, no, I don't believe I've never seen them; I haven't been in Lhavit terribly long, and most of my time has been split between settling in and working. I do not have much time for sightseeing, and I'm afraid that I would not recognize an Inarta if I saw one, unless, perhaps, I saw one atop an eagle." He listened to the wistfulness in Azira's voice as she described how she could not put the sensation of flying into words, and his envy grew. "Even without description, it sounds wonderful," he says sincerely. "What are you doing in Lhavit, then? You sound as those you miss Wind Reach." Halin'a, like all Ethaefal, regardless of origin, could well understand homesickness. It ruled much of their lives, regardless of how long they existed on Mizahar's soil. Many could learn to live with it, but the loneliness was always there, in the back of their mind. Other Ethaefal could be a blessing or a curse; a shoulder to lean against and commiserate with, or a stark reminder of everything that they had lost. A nearby blast of fire drew Halin'a's attention away from the woman beside him and back toward the performance - the whole reason that he had come tonight. Unfortunately, as often happened, Halin'a had become distracted; a shortcoming he'd yet to correct in his sixty years on Mizahar. He watches the performance as he waits for Azira's answer, eyes tracing the paths that the performers follow, his curiosity growing as he watches them bend and flex in ways that he wasn't fully aware that the human body was capable of. What must it be like, the Ethaefal wonders, to fly and curve through the air like that?