Completed Through the storm (Tazrae)

[Marino Oceangem]

11th of Summer, 520 A.V. (Evening)

The first signs of the storm came after he’d passed Sharktooth point. From what had been breeze, the wind picked up a lot more force behind it. His sails loose, Marino was almost tripping over the other passengers on board as he hurried to pull the sails tight. As it currently stood, the wind was tossing the poor Seasilk out towards the open sea where the waves were already starting to give some rough attention of their own. Thankfully Shoal was among those he’d picked up for the trip, and stepped up to help him with the sails as Marino ran over to the wheel. It jerked, fighting with him as he struggled to right the casinor. Shoal was yelling something about the sails, but Marino could make out what he said over the sudden roar of the sea even though the deck wasn’t that long.

Perhaps sensing his distress, his other passenger Buraga called out. “Sails almost done, be ready for a beam reach.” Marino nodded, setting his feet at an angle and heaving on the wheel. The Seasilk protested, creaking under the strain. Slowly it turned back towards the coast, and then towards the channel as Marino found it easier to adjust. Breathing hard, he took a moment to squint up at the sky, wondering where this gale had come from. Then a wave crashed starboard side, and Marino had to go back to paying attention to where they were going. Ahead, opening between the island and mainland loomed an he steered straight for its center. He didn’t want to get bounced prematurely onto the coastline, and didn’t think he was skilled enough to thread it close. Shoal might have been, but in a emergency like this, Marino didn’t want anyone steering the Seasilk besides him.

“Doesn’t look good, we need to get to cover.” Buraga said from where he stood near the stern. Marino nodded, tongue poking out of the corner of his mouth as he stared forward, concentrated on the point he’d picked out. In the distance, the island was starting to loom closer and passed that, there would be the security of the shore. He just had to get them there. He repeated that to himself over and over till the words started to lose all meaning. Then he repeated them some more, eventually starting to mumble them aloud. He stopped when Buraga turned and gave him a strange look. Promptly he resumed the mantra in his head.

The passage was close now, and fortunately they were all whole, if a little battered from the constant fight with the sea. He held his breath as they weaved across the narrowest part of their journey, not allowing himself to gulp down a breath until they were well past it into the sheltered harbor beyond. Though sheltered was loosely applicable in this situation as the waves still nipped at their heels as the wind dragged them along at a unsteady clip. Distinctly desiring to go ahead and get ashore before this got any worse, Marino brought them in much faster than he anticipated. He barely had the time to yell, “Brace!” before they slid up towards the shore. As soon as the bottom caught, all aboard jerked forward. Marino’s chest slammed into the wheel but managed to keep his feet by clinging onto the wheel.

Looking around, slightly dazed Marino saw that the Buraga and Shoal were managing themselves better than he had. They had already recovered. Shoal was bringing down the sails while shouting out what to do with the lines. That snapped him out of it, and he ran over to help. Dragging up the sail covers from below, he hurriedly secured them while Shoal and Buraga hopped over the side.

Following suit, Marino splashed down behind the Seasilk and promptly started pushing on the casinor. The familiar figure of Stu quickly joined them from further up the beach, and together they pushed the casinor up onto the sand a ways before breaking away towards Syka. Casting a quick glance up at the tumultuous sky, Marino quickly decided this was a good idea and took off after them. He followed them all the way up to the commons before he started slowing down considerably. The arch of his side ached something fierce and he couldn't suck in air fast enough as he did the slowest jog up the cobblestone path they had taken behind the commons.

Fortunately the path was straight so he didn't have any trouble taking it all the way up to the shelter as the wind picked up. Marino felt a strong sense of relief upon seeing the caves, and ended up walking the rest of the way inside. Coming in, he paused beside Stu to lean on his knees and catch his breath. Almost as an afterthought, he realized he’d left his pack.

[Tazrae]

Tazrae had just got done feeding her two guests a lunch of sandwiches and fruit when Randal Zor appeared. She smiled politely, offered him a bite to eat as well since she'd only just started putting things away - which he accepted - and asked about life. "How are you doing?" She inquired, piling a large sandwich on a plate and handing it to him. She'd made the tower of deliciousness from sliced barbequed pork and an assortment of cheese she'd purchased from Juli that James had brought from Riverfall.

Randal spoke around the sandwich he was busy shoving in his mouth like he had no time at all. The man hadn't even sat down when he entered the kitchen. "Fine fine... good. I just dropped by to warn you that Uta thinks there's a storm's coming and this one might be a big blow. I'm at your place first because I wanted to make sure you had time to clear off your deck and secured all the storm shutters before you head to the Storm Shelter. Do you know where it is?" He asked, raising an eyebrow and taking another bite. The lean man was a picture, hip all cocked and leaning against the door frame, obviously enjoying the sandwich she'd just hastily slapped together for him.

The Founder kept wolfing down the sandwich as he spoke. Tazrae nodded that she did indeed know where the cave they called The Storm Shelter was. "How does Uta know there's a storm coming?" She asked curiously, glancing around to note her pup was sleeping soundly in the corner after a busy morning beach excursion.

Randal swallowed a large bite, paused before taking another, and finally spoke.

"Animals are all acting weird, especially the birds. She says last time they acted like this we had a huge wind storm and that we should all get to the storm shelter. It looks clear enough now, but she thinks by tonight the winds will pick up and that means the waves will be high. They might already be feeling it out to sea, but here we have time. I wouldn't wait for dark though. I'd get your stuff in order and head for the shelter as soon as you can. There's things to be set up there too." He added, beckoning around her as he polished off his meal. "Remove your pictures from the walls or anything that can be broken by falling or shaken off. The winds can really blow. Cover anything that might get wet. You have a wooden roof, but a shutter might blow off or open and wind might get in. Just secure the place well." He added, then pushed off the doorframe where he was leaning.

"I have to go warn the others. If I don't see you at the shelter by this late afternoon I'll be back." He said thoughtfully and nodded taking the plate and sitting it by the side of her sink. "Thanks for the sandwich. I haven't eaten breakfast yet. It's much appreciated." He added, then with a wink, left Tazrae alone to work on the Inn.

The first thing she did was hurry down the hallway, check to see if her guests were in, and gave them a warning too long with directions to the storm shelter and instructions to be there by early evening. Then, doing as Randal had suggested, Tazrae spent the next few hours moving furniture in from the decks, securing flowering plants, and closing the shutters on her windows. Though they had no glass in them, the Innkeeper couldn't help but think of the openings as windows. Then, into a spare room, she herded her ten chickens, leaving them to roost about, knowing there was no hoping they wouldn't leave droppings everywhere. But they gave her eggs and without them, the guests would be hard-pressed to have fresh breakfast fixings.

Then, checking the time, Tazrae decided she had time to make the little honeycakes that would keep hunger at bay for hours. Tazrae took down her recipe book, flipped to the page, and read the recipe.

Getting out multiple loaf pans, Tazrae mentally tripled the recipe, knowing that would make her six cakes in loaf pans she could slice for people to tied hunger over until the morning. Someone might have soup or stew for others to eat, but she didn't want to come without bearing any offerings. So, she greased and flowered the loaf pans, added wood to the fire to bring it up to temperature, and pulled out her large mesh screener. It would work as a sifter no worries, so she dumped her carefully measured flour, baking soda, backing powder, salt, precious cinnamon, cloves and grated a nutmeg into the screened mesh strainer. She let that rest over the open mouth of a big bowl. Then she got out her whisk, broke six eggs into the bowl, added sugar and honey in accordance to the recipe. Then she used the whisk and blended the ingredients together until she was thinking they were well and combined. Then she split a vanilla bean, scraped the flavorful seeds out, and added those to the pot. She added in oil as well, then whisked the whole thing again to combine.

She set the whisk aside, pulled out a wooden spoon, and carefully began to sift the Ingredients hanging over the second bowl into the wet ones. She did this by holding the strainer over the wet ingredients and tapping it on the side of her hand so it would slowly empty out. She paused periodically, hanging the shifter over the extra bowl, and used the spoon to whip the ingredients together incorporating the liquid with the dry until she had a nice smooth batter.

Then, laying out the prepared loaf pans, Tazrae carefully divided the loaf pans, laying them carefully on the counter. She poured batter into them, making each one equal. Then she sat aside her dirty bowl after scraping it clean of the batter. Picking up each loaf pan individually, she dropped each one sharply on the counter to release any air pockets out of the batter and placed them all in her hot oven to bake.

Quickly, since the half out it would take the cakes to bake would pass rapidly, Tazrae cleaned the dishes, and packed her backpack for a little bit of an overnight stay at the shelter. She attached a bedroll, blanket, clean tarp, extra pillow and a rain slicker to her backpack. When the loaves of honeycake were cool, she freed them from their pans, wrapped them in linen cloth, and added them to a small crate she had leftover from having things shipped in from Riverfall. She added a few supplies for Creature. A leash, collar, and some dried meat went into the crate for him as well as some fresh banana leaves of the smaller sort she could use to pick up any of his accidents. When all was well, she set off for the storm shelter knowing her two guests had already headed that direction hours ago with Creature in tow.

When she arrived, she stopped by the kitchen area, leaving five of the linen-wrapped honeycake loaves for the group. She held one back and looked around for a place to set up camp for the night. Also into the crate went extra supplies and a few more sandwiches she made for anyone who might be hungry later on. The walk over had been blustery and her hair was damp from the rain that had begun to slowly fall. The cavern was already packed. There were people and livestock everywhere. Even Lars had brought some of the ashta into the cavern in an isolated section he had roped off. Chickens, goats, even pigs were roaming about.

Creature was delighted. Tazrae carefully put him on his leash to keep him out of trouble - especially with the small elephants - and off they went to find a home for the night.

Bewildered, Tazrae looked around and saw James. He smiled at her, beckoned, and pointed down one offshoot. “Head down that way, Taz. There are small more private offshoot caves to either side of the corridor… just keep going. Pick one… drop off your stuff, and come back for firewood.” He instructed. Tazrae nodded, headed in the direction James pointed and began peering into the offshoot caverns. Many were full, but the first one she came to that was unoccupied and looked roomie, she turned into. This new little cave was spacious, already had a fire pit, and the stone floor was padded with sand someone had hauled in from the beach. She liked the area because it had a grate over the fire they could cook on, and ample room to lay out bedrolls around the right side of the fire.

Tazrae laid down her backpack, set the crate next to the fire pit, and hurried back the way she’d come to gather firewood. She took two generous armfuls, laid them out of the way of the firepit back in her little offshoot cave, and began working on making the fire. It didn’t take her long because she slipped a candle out of her survival pack, lit it on one of the main fires in the main cavern, and carried it carefully back in a third trip so she could use the burning wick to ignite the little triangle of wood she’d made. To his credit, the overgrown pup stayed by her side the entire time, only disobeying when his puppy nature took hold of him. There were, after all, bugs in the caves to chase and whisps of smoke and even the shadows cast by his mistress' own form.

By the time anyone joined her, the fire would be crackling and Tazrae would be stretched out on her bedroll, head next to the fire, on her stomach watching the flames. Creature would be asleep at her feet, unsure of the crackling campfire. Her chin would be propped in her hands and she’d have a stiff worried smile on her lips.

Word Count: 1686

[Marino Oceangem]

The scene in the main cavern was a little too hectic to gather all at once. As he caught his breath by Stu, a chicken wandered over, pecking the ground around his foot. Marino brushed the animal off, and took a good look at his surroundings. Besides chickens, there were goats, pigs, and even those strange Ashta he’d seen at the sawmill. How Lars brought them all the way here was a testament to his skill. The ashta seemed to minding themselves well enough in their enclosure at least. Looking beyond that, he noticed that it seemed that all of Syka had made it into the shelter, given how packed it was inside of this cavern. Among the sea of faces, there was James who was busy directing people on where they could go and what they should do. Unfortunately he didn’t notice Tazrae among those assembled around him, and Stu had disappeared off into to somewhere while he was looking around.

Lacking a better option, he decided to approach James, stepping forward as he finished talking with a man Marino didn’t recognize. Marino raised a hand. “Do you know if Tazrae made it safe?” He asked, a bit of worry seeping into his voice. James flashed him a reassuring smile, and put a hand on his shoulder while gesturing with the other down a branching tunnel in the cavern. “You’ll find her down that way.”

Sweet relief flooded through him at the news as he made his way down the path. Thank Laviku she was safe. He had been really worried for her. How much so was just now sinking in as he looked for her in each cavern he passed. It felt like the search had stretched on forever when he finally poked his head into a cave and saw Tazrae. From the look of things, she’d got caught by some of the rain outside, but she looked whole, if a little anxious. Marino immediately went to her, wordlessly burying her in a hug, paying no mind to how he must appear after his frantic trek.

Between jumping into the sea and running across the beach, he was a mess. His white isuas shirt and breeches where soaked through, while his hair was plastered to his head. All the sand he’d kicked up in his run was caked on his feet, and lower legs. His skin had a flush to it on his upper chest and face that deepened the color of his sun kissed skin. At least he had caught his breath, though a sheen of sweat still glistened across his skin in the firelight.

“I’m so glad you are safe.” Marino said finally, after he’d got a good look at her. “That storm was so abrupt, I was worried you might not have made it here yet.” Slowly, he let go and took a seat beside her. “Were you able to secure the Inn before you left?” Looking around, he noticed that she seemed she’d come prepared, which he took as a good sign. The pup creature was there too, seemingly unconcerned by the whole affair. That brought a strained smile out of him, despite his other worries. He rubbed his hands together and moved closer to the fire, trying to dry off a little bit as he spoke with Tazrae. A light smattering of goosebumps had raised across the flesh of his forearms so he rubbed some life into those too. Silently, he hoped Syka would weather this storm in one piece.

[Tazrae]

Tazrae was a people manager. It was part of her job. But Marino took her completely by surprise when he came rushing in and grabbed her up for a soggy hug. She laughed, but it was a nervous laugh, because he seemed so worried. It made her think immediately that the storm would be worse than Randal had said it would be.

“Why wouldn’t I be safe? Randal came and warned everyone early this morning one would be coming in. I had plenty of time to pack up the Inn, throw closed the storm shutters, and bake honeycakes to come here with.” She said, gesturing to the cake pan sitting in the little wooden crate off to the side. “I made six of them… the other five are in the kitchen area for anyone who wants some. I thought I might see you and that you’d like a treat.” She added, settling back down on her comfortable bedroll beside him.

“The Inn will be fine. Randal made storm shutters for all the not-window windows.” She added, then elaborated. “I spent the morning moving the deck furniture into the main gathering room and tying down or putting away anything that could be damaged.” She said, taking a moment to stick out an arm and flex the muscles there. “It was quite a workout.” She added with a laugh. “But I also had time to do some other stuff and I had to get done.” She added, smiling. “Storms are scary… we never had many in Riverfall that I can remember. Just the Djed Storm of 512….” She trailed off.

Then she seemed to sniff the air, wrinkle her nose, and then laughed a little.

“Marino, don’t take this the wrong way but…. “ Tazrae half laughed half wrinkled her nose a second time. “You stink and you are covered in sand!” She added, reaching out to poke at his salty wet clothes, her smile padding the rudeness of her words. “I brought a blanket. Why don’t we head to the main chamber and we take a chime or two for you to rinse off in the fresh water. I can borrow a bucket from the kitchen and someone there will have soap.” She added. “We can wash out your clothes and stake them over the fire and they will be dry in a bell or so. Meantime, you can borrow the blanket.” She said, noticing he was here with nothing else but himself.

“Did you leave spare clothes somewhere? You don’t have your backpack. Uta told us never to go anywhere without it. Does that mean everything isn’t okay?” She said suddenly, standing up and looking around abruptly. “Did the other Svefra come in? Or are they all out to sea?” She asked, starting to look more and more worried as she looked around… expecting more people to arrive. When none came, she turned back to him.

“You didn’t get as early of a warning as I did, did you? I bet you were out to sea or something… because everyone around the settlement knew as soon as the Founders knew or shortly thereafter. Did you even get a chance to put your ship in someplace safe?” She asked, suddenly realizing she was bombarding him with questions that were actually none of her business.

The Innkeeper had to take a moment, take a breath, and tell herself he was in the shelter and would be fine. Just to have something to do, Tazrae moved the sleeping dog off the corner of her neatly folded blanket and held it up to indicate he could use it if he wanted too.

Word Count: 610

[Marino Oceangem]

It felt good to hold Tazrae, but he soon realized he was making a mess. Reluctantly he extracted himself while he listened intently to Tazrae’s side of things. Apparently much had happened while he had been out to sea. It relieved him to hear the settlement had been given an early warning, and helped explain how so many people were already there when he had arrived. Why Stuvantis was there waiting for them on the beach. He would have to do nice for that man for coming all the way out there for them. His list of favors to pay back was growing longer with every passing day but he didn’t mind. That was a part of being in the community. It was a good feeling to tie himself to these people.

At the mention of something to eat, his stomach rumbled and he went over to the crate. “I was surprised when I saw everyone already inside, but what you say makes sense. I am glad it is so.” He said, picking out a piece and taking a bite. He nodded as he chewed upon hearing that her Inn had been secured. The same could be said about the Seasilk, both of which he would just have to lean on the hopeful side of things till they got out on the other side of this storm. He would make an effort not to fret about such things, but it was going to be a long night all the same. “That’s good you got to prepare the Inn as well. This cake is really good by the way.” He said before taking another bite.

He promptly swallowed that other piece of cake, and gave himself a sniff. An embarrassed grin flashed across his face. “I suppose it has been a long day.” He said, setting aside the remainder of the cake to strip off his shirt which clung to his skin still. Taking another sniff when he had it in his hands, he shook his head at himself, wondering just how he had missed that. “A good wash sounds like just what I need. I love the smell of the sea but even this is a bit much.” Marino joked as he stripped off his breeches next, wadding them up together with his shirt. He ran a hand through his still damp hair as Tazrae expressed her concerns.

Patting the air with his hands, he moved closer to ease her worry. “I think everyone made it inside. Shoal and Buraga were out there with me, fishing. We left early in the morning and only just came back when the wind started taking a nasty turn. They helped me beach the Seasilk and get her secured before we came to the shelter. Stuvantis was even out there to help, Laviku bless that man for his heart.” He then took the blanket from her, conceding the point that he might not want to traipse about the cavern in the buff. Wrapping it around himself, he added. “Though I really do need to get better at following Uta’s advice about the backpack. I now see why she said it was a good thing to have it ready to go at all times.”

Marino followed her out of the cavern and out into the main area. Holding the blanket wrapped around him with one hand, and his bundle of clothes in the other made this a tricky proposition. When they eventually made it there without him tripping, he considered that a win. Leaving behind the blanket, but taking the bundle of clothes with him, he stepped up to the freshwater pool. There, taking handfuls he started rinsing off the sand from his legs first before moving about the rest of his body. Then he gave his clothes a little rinse while he waited for Tazrae to come by with the soap.

[Tazrae]

The young Innkeeper was glad Marino was doing okay. Somewhere in between their meeting and today, she’d started thinking of him as the first friend she’d ever had. And it had worried her to no end when he hadn’t been in the storm shelter. Of course, the Svefra were crazy. Everyone knew that. And she wouldn’t have put it past him to be riding out the storm on his casinor absolutely in love with the rough sea and the wind and the waves. It was, in a way, a relief that he showed up crusted with salt and sand, obviously having thought better about riding out the storm. Maybe there were times they didn’t have a choice, but here in Syka… the ways they could deal with various situations were wide open with a lot of options. It was something Tazrae appreciated.

She took a moment – longer than any decent woman should – to hold him tight when he grabbed her as seemingly relieved as she was that the other was okay. She didn’t mind he was wet, dirty, and looked like he was just in from a battle. But he would mind several bells from now when his skin itched, the sand chafed, and the smell of dirty cloth got to him. She’d made the mistake of leaving salty clothing on once…. and the rash she’d gotten from the stiffly dried fabric had been harsh on her skin. So Tazrae made her suggestions, offered him food – which was as ingrained in her psyche as breathing - and suggested how to remedy his current situation.

They spoke briefly about preparations they’d both made, and she beamed at his compliment on the cake. “It’s a simple recipe. But its very hearty… good for sheltering from storms overnight.” She added, then moved on to follow him out of their claimed space and back to the main cavern. She left him at the pool, wading in, and went and borrowed soap from the kitchen. Rainmere was cooking, and the firedancer happily showed her where the soap was stored and told her to help herself to a couple of small bricks of it. Tazrae thanked her and returned to Marino, wading out to offer him one of the small bricks, and confiscating his clothing from him which she began to wash out herself.

Laundry she could do, and in fact did quite often, as part of her duties as an Innkeeper. So Tazrae waded in with a non-nonsense give-them-to-me gesture and set to work on Marino’s clothing so he could work on himself. She swiped the soap across each item, twisted, rolled the fabric together, gave them a good scrub fabric to fabric since she had no washboard, and then rinsed and repeated on each item until the pool around the garments ran clear. Then, without waiting for Marino, she headed back to their alcove, and draped the clothing about on various rocks where the heat would dry it quickly.

By then, Rainemere had rang the sharp dinner bell rescued from the Communal Kitchens and everyone was dining on tropical pork stew with breads spread thick with exotic fruit preserves. Tazrae collected a tray for their alcove with two bowls of the stew and a platter of the bread spread with the preserves. She’d also refilled their waterskins with fresh cold water, and had promised to drop by later to help with the cleanup after everyone had eaten.

When Marino returned, he’d find her with the provisions, relaxing on her bedroll, with Creature sound asleep at her back. His clothes were nicely drying, draped about on various rocks with a few scrounged sticks of firewood used for a drying rack after having been artistically arranged. She looked relaxed, nibbling on the stew and enjoying studying the fire. That same fire lit her hair and made it seem luminously golden instead of the warm honey it shown in the sunlight.

Blue eyes studied him and nodded her approval at his now clean skin. “You won’t itch now… and your clothes will be dry in just a few minutes. It’s actually pleasant in here. I’ve never been in a cave before, but its absolutely amazing.” She said quietly, then scooted over on her bedroll to make room for him to settle if he wanted too.

“How do the Svefra pass long nights of storms?” She asked, curious if there was any games the Svefra liked to play or if they shared stories or had traditions during storms.

“We had storms in Riverfall, but the whole city is built into the sides of cliffs or in stone buildings so it never really affected us much. Even the waterfall flooding didn’t cause much damage. We didn’t wait out storms much.” She added, then tilted her head.

“I did have a thought for a game we could play to pass the time though. Only if you want too.” She added, then grinned. “It’s a question game.” Tazrae’s idea of things were rather mild. She had no idea that what she’d overheard years ago being played by two young people was actually a round of truth or dare. “I ask you a question…. you must answer it truthfully. Then you get to ask me one… but it can’t be the same exact question. You have to wait a round if you want to use the question I used.” She said, taking a bite of stew and reaching forward to steal a slice of the thick bread. “It’s a way to get to know … something about each other.” She added, almost unnecessarily, as if somehow once she’d suggested the game she almost wanted to take it back. It sounded like a better idea in her mind than did once spoken. “I know it’s a simple game…. you can dress it up if you want… make it more challenging.” She added, having no idea how to actually do that.

“If you want to play… you can go first.” She said, looking thoughtfully at him as she finished her stew and set the bowl aside. “That was good. I wonder if I can track down whose recipe it is… and borrow it.” She added, having never had a tropical stew with pig and pineapple that actually tasted this good. It had a hint of soy and some sort of teriyaki… she wasn’t sure. The recipe was definitely worth knowing.

Word Count: 1067

[Marino Oceangem]

With something in his belly, Marino actually started to feel good about things as he began to rinse off in the cool water. He even relaxed a little. He turned to hear Tazrae walking up, and took the soap graciously. Then stared at her in confusion for the tick it took him to understand what he wanted. With a chastened grin, he handed the items over. “Thank you Tazrae, I won’t forget this.” Then still grinning, he waded out a little further to start scrubbing at himself. He spared no part its due as he considered it was all filthy after his hot day out to sea. Occasionally he glanced at Tazrae while she washed his garments but he studiously looked away afterward each time. Marino wasn’t sure how to feel about her washing his clothes. She definitely knew what she was doing though, and he was beyond thankful for her help. Left to his own devices, he would have probably chaffed the night away. Perhaps she knew that about him from his cousin’s stories. That he could be so foolishly stubborn about the silliest of things. It was with more than a passing fondness that he recalled that night they danced by the fire.

His mind stopped drifting when he heard the ding of a bell, and promptly noticed Tazrae was gone. Now alone, he got to washing the more uncomfortable bits before rinsing off one final time. There was some kind of activity going on further in the cavern, but he took the time to shake off what excess water he could before grabbing the blanket. Then slowly, he navigated his way back to their little nook. He found Tazrae there sitting by the fire with a plate of food, his clothing spread about the cavern. She looked almost like a different woman sitting there by the fire, with hair of spun gold.

Marino smiled. “Thanks again, I really should have thought to bring a spare shirt at least.” He said as he took a seat beside her, and took a look at the spread before them. Cautiously he took a bite of the stew before his expression brightened. It has a sweet, savory taste that was pleasant on the tongue. He took another mouthful before responding. “Sometimes with stories, sometimes with games of chance. It depends on how particularly rough it is. There was this game though when I was younger, but..” He chewed on the side of his check. “It was a foolish thing. We’d see who could swim to the furthest ship.” Marino admitted after a moment, looking down into his bowl of stew. His mothers had chewed his ear off after that one. “I’m not the boy I was.” He said gently. Then he tucked into his stew.

He listened to Tazrae speak of Riverfall briefly before suggesting a game they might play. It sounded interesting, though the truth part made him wonder what sort of questions Tazrae would be asking. Or he would for that matter. Marino took a slice of bread as he wrestled with that, thinking on what she added at the end. “Lets try a few questions, and once we’ve got a flow for the game, I can try to think of how to up the ante.” He grinned, and chewed over his first question for a tick. Well longer than a tick, because the first few questions that came to his mind didn’t seem very game. Gradually though, he came to one that did suit him. “Did you have any pets as a child?” Then as he listened to her answer, and the following question, he finished off the rest of his bread.

[Tazrae]

The fire crackled before them, throwing flickering lights all about the alcove they had settled into. Tazrae was starting to feel the weight of her exhaustion from the fight to secure the Inn from the weather that was threatening the settlement. Marino smelled so good beside her, fresh from his bath. The food smelled incredible too, but she was reaching the point where she was pleasantly full, so she only polished off the rest of the stew in her bowl and left the rest of the bread and stew for him. It was comfortable, here buried safely within stone, but not something she’d ever seen herself doing.

His question caught her off guard and she looked thoughtfully into the embers of the fire, watching the light of the glowing wood race across the coals like a living thing. It was a hard question to answer, actually, though it wasn’t something she would have expected to find difficult. She glanced back at Creature and then shifted slightly so she met Marino’s eyes. “I didn’t, actually. I used to beg my parents to let me have a dog… any dog… and they said that dogs were not good with the amount of strangers that came through our Inn and that some people were allergic to them.” Tazrae said quietly.

At this point, Creature lifted his spotted head and whined softly. He shifted, wiggled, and stumbled to his feet from where he rested. He moved to Tazrae’s side, flopped down, and rolled. She put her hand on his stomach and began to rub it. The pup was instantly asleep again. A soft smile played across her lips as she watched him then returned her gaze to Marino. “It was fascinating to learn about your Tavans. I’ve never heard of such a thing. And to think most of the Svefra have them…. that’s something special.” She said thoughtfully.

“In Riverfall, we have a lot of courtyards we plant with vegetables and flowers. Our particular courtyard was full of things we decorated the guest rooms with and fed to the guests. It was my job to tend the flowers, herbs and vegetables from when I was very little. We had a pair of ground squirrels move into the courtyard one summer when I was eight. I kept them a secret for almost five years by never giving my mother a reason to tend to the courtyard. But when I was thirteen, she discovered them. I was in a lot of trouble for a long time for letting them stay and letting them eat a bit of our food and décor. My mother hired an Akalak to trap them. I wasn’t told. I’d been away at school that day when I got home, I found them dead in traps. It wasn’t a good death. I didn’t speak to my mother for a full year unless she spoke to me. And there were never any pets.” Tazrae said thoughtfully, stroking the pup’s awkwardly large head. Creature was growing in leaps and bounds, but none of his parts exactly matched the other between his oversized feet and his huge head.

She wanted to ask him the same question, but the rules prevented it. So instead, she looked thoughtful for a moment and was mindful of the fact they were sheltering from a storm in these caverns. “This isn’t my first storm, but its my first storm where I’ve taken shelter because I didn’t live in a building that was partially built into a stone cliff. I am not exactly afraid, but rather just concerned and worried for all those things that can’t shelter. I mean what do monkeys do when they can’t get out of the wind? What do parrots do? I saw all the livestock they’ve fitted into the shelter… and all of us. This is a big cavern. We’ll be safe.” She seemed to be voicing thoughts out loud, not really acknowledging how nervous she was actually feeling. Then she turned her head to study him. “What is the most frightening situation you’ve ever been in, Marino?” She asked, curious what sort of things were considered threatening to a Svefra.

[Marino Oceangem]

Marino picked at his stew while he thought. Riverfall sounded like a complicated place to him. A city led by men with mores far detached from his own. Talking with Tazrae had a way of making him realize how different the world was from on the sea. It was easy to forget here in Syka that customs could differ so significantly from land to land. He took in another spoonful of the rich stew while staring at the fire. Only for a few ticks before he looked away from the brightness and towards Tazrae.

“He’s a good pup” Marino said after a moment, glancing down at Creature. “Our tavans are so much like we are. They travel with their family, and their friendships last lifetimes.” It was hard to imagine growing up without them. Marino had shared so much with his tavan, as well as the one before when he was much younger. An otter with a penchant for stealing food off his plate. He’ll need to shared that with Tazrae sometime, but not now.

He looked a little pained hearing about her squirrels. It was sad to hear that she hadn’t been able to keep an animal companion for herself especially since he was pretty sure she didn’t have any siblings. Tazrae seemed like the kind of person that would have mentioned that already if she had. That must have made for a lonely childhood, and his heart went out to her. Marino hoped that there had been other children to play with.

Studying his bowl of stew, he took another bite and took his time chewing it while he thought about what the animals did in times like these. “They probably have some clever trick we don’t know about. Twist consistently surprises me.” The dolphin had a knack for that, and showing off his acrobatic prowess. He was the joy of Marino’s life.

When Tazrae asked her question, his mind went back to the night they’d shared not too long ago. It had been different than this one, with song, dance, and drink. Here the atmosphere was like they were all holding their collective breath, waiting for the storm to pass. He was glad he could spend this night in her company, as there was no place he would rather be right now.

“Aside from rogue djed storms?” Marino asked wryly before continuing. “I haven’t been truly afraid many times in my life, not for my own safety anyways. When I see a loved one in danger though, or I think something may have happened, my breath catches. My heart skips a beat when I see an Avikki on the rail of the Seasilk, and when a child takes a bad fall into the water. When I’m out there on my own though, with the wind in my hair, the sea coursing around me, I think I’m invincible.” He gave Tazrae a sidelong grin, and picked a pinch of bread off the platter.

“To answer your question though, it was the time my uncle got bitten by a shark. The moment’s leading up to the attack, nothing had been amiss. We were laughing, having fun in the water, and then he was just gone. Came up a tick later, then the blood started turning the water dark around him. I helped pull him onto the boat. Thought everything was going to be alright, but. You know how these things go.” He trailed off, looking back at the fire for a second before exhaling slowly. “Anyways, time for my question.”

“What was the first thing you ever loved?” He asked after waiting a tick.

[Tazrae]

She listened to the sound of his voice, the musings about wildlife and what animals did in a storm, and simply smiled. Marino was different than she was. Tazrae noted that fact outright. He was a hands-on type, someone who went and did something. She was glad he lived in a world that could indulge his personality. For her, she’d been a dreamer. She’d read and dreamed and used her imagination. She’d traveled far and wide in her mind while she’d made beds and did laundry and baked the bread.

Tazrae listened though. It was a thing she was good at. She truly heard Marino when he talked of the sea, and an Avikki arriving. She had no idea what an Avikki was, but she definitely would find out. The future Innkeeper would have asked Marino for clarification, but she already had shown herself to be painfully ignorant in his eyes. She didn’t want to add to that impression.

Marino was special. He cared when children got hurt, but in the end… he was all about the wind and the sea. And even if he hadn’t voiced it, Tazrae would have understood. In his Svefran element – the water – he felt powerful. She was glad… so very glad. And it was something to be admired, finding one’s element and thriving in it. Tazrae hoped someday she could say the same of her life.

She tilted her head sideways and bit her lip frowning at the shark story. Sharks scared her. She’d seen them cruising up and down the waves, feeding in the early morning and in the late afternoons. She’d even discovered things washed ashore that had bites out of them bigger than her whole body. That made her cautious to go swimming on her own. Someone, Mathias probably, had told her that sharks would swim in water just deep enough to cover them… so waist deep was not out of the question to be infested with the predators. The sailors aboard The Veronica had told her stories as well… stories that were laced with terror for someone who had never traveled and certainly had never experienced a ship breaker storm. Sharks ate people. Sharks ate everything. She could picture the blood in the water around Marino’s bitten Uncle.

“I’m sorry… I can’t imagine how horrible that must have been.” She whispered, knowing it sounded small and empty, but she didn’t know how else to react when someone was talking about someone dying. “Did he survive?” She wondered, voicing her curiosity aloud.

Marino spoke more of the attack before he got back to his question for her.

Tazrae thought it over a bit. “What was the first thing I ever loved?” She parroted back, taking a deep breath and suddenly not sure how to answer the question. The young woman glanced at Marino, nibbled her lower lip, and then took a deep breath. “Thing?” She seemed to be asking him a question that was not a question… more thinking the situation over in her mind.

“I told you about the courtyard I tended… the vegetables and flowers there? They were a source of comfort for me, something that made me feel powerful for the first time in my life. I know how that sounds, but when you have the ability to change things for another living being. even if its just a plant… you feel good about it. They were my solace during times I needed something more… more than the life I had. I mean, I love the standard things people are supposed to love - things like a long walk on a sunny day or watching sunsets over the Suvan - but when it comes to flowers … I have a special fondness for them. Not receiving cut ones, mind you… but growing them, cross breeding them… making the sick ones healthy again. I… plants and sound. I would like to say music too, but that’s not exactly true. I love sound.” She said, pausing, not sure if she was cheating at her own game giving him two answers.

“I love the sound of the wind through chimes. I love the tinkle of bells and the footfalls on wooden steps. I love the creaking of boats and the dancing of leaves teased by wind. I listen. I love sound. Sound and flowers. I think if I could sit still long enough, Marino, I could actually hear flowers grow… and then that would be it for me. Life would be perfect.” She said with a whimsical smile, the firelight painting her skin a burnished gold as she leaned over towards it smiling.

She was listening to the popping of the flames and the way the wood was burning down into coals. Fire was musical, whimsical, and even almost magical to her.

Tazrae turned and looked back at Marino. She looked thoughtful a moment then seemed to muse over what to ask him. “What’s something you’ve always wanted to do but haven’t either had the courage or opportunity to do yet?” She asked, a smile playing across her lips. She had no idea what his answer would be. In fact, she wasn’t sure she could answer such a question herself. But it felt like she needed to challenge him a bit and for certain the question was indeed a challenge.

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