The Community Pool fascinated Oralie immensely, for it fit so neatly into the area, yet it was so obviously manmade. Beautiful waterfalls cascaded into stone pools, and she couldn’t even begin to work out how it had been created. She smiled politely at Duncan when Tazrae introduced her, her keen eyes picking up something just a little off with where the man directed his line of sight.
“Oh, I like it a lot. Tazrae has shown me all around, it’s very beautiful.”
She glanced curiously at the Innkeeper when she responded to Duncan’s second question. She had no idea what spider monkeys were, but the man seemed to like them, or at least thought Oralie would. She watched him for a tick as he left them, before turning to follow Tazrae once more.
Her steps faltered when she noticed that Tazrae was leading her directly into the trees. Panic fluttered in her stomach, even as her mind told her not to be silly, that Tazrae was not about to lead her into danger. The Innkeeper had herself warned Oralie about venturing into the jungle unprepared, so why would she take such a risk? She took a tick to look at the path she was heading down. It appeared to be fairly well trodden, and they were close to the settlement. Mathais had told her that wildlife tended to stay away from the main part of the settlement so she steeled herself, her left palm glowing stronger than it normally did, and stepped after Tazrae.
She caught up just in time to hear her talk about the storm she had experienced. Oralie however, found herself concentrating more on her feet that Tazrae’s voice. Roots and small stones were appearing on the path more frequently the further they walked, and the last thing she wanted to do was trip. The foliage too was creeping in closer, narrowing their route. So focused on her steps was Oralie, that she nearly walked right into Tazrae when the Innkeeper stopped to look at her.
She blinked, nodding as she took in the information Tazrae was imparting. Her shoulders in particular were tense, and she shifted the backpack again to settle it more comfortably in order to loosen her joints. She stiffened again for a tick as the Innkeeper reached out to hold on to her. Oralie had rarely been touched by a person who had not wanted to hurt her, but she managed to relax, letting Tazrae show her how she was supposed to move. Oralie bounced once on the balls of her feet before setting off again, trying to keep her knees bendy and her spine loose. She knew she could do it if she tried, she was a cat for Mizahar’s sake. Cats were the bendiest things around. While she definitely immediately found it a little easier to move through the foliage, it was apparent that it would take her a while to master the particular way of walking required.
She was appreciative that Tazrae kept up the conversation as they went, allowing Oralie to keep her mind off of the fact that they were walking right into the jungle. She nodded at her back as she explained more about the Protea and the storm shelter. “He built your Inn? He’s very talented.”
Oralie looked upon the various wildlife Tazrae pointed out with a mixture of awe and fear. Snakes and spiders, while fascinating, looked incredibly deadly to her. She much preferred the snakes back at the Inn, safely inside their enclosures. The parrots caught her attention, her golden eyes tracking a particularly bright scarlet one through the treetops. She wondered just how many creatures were in here that she couldn’t see. She imagined it was a lot, for she could practically feel the place vibrating with life.
When Tazrae stopped again, Oralie came up next to her, blinking curiously at the clearing ahead. There were all sorts of contraptions made of what looked to be metal, many of them being taken over by vines. She turned her head to meet the other woman’s gaze. “To… play?”
Oralie had never gotten to be a child. Play was as foreign to her as flying was to a whale. She followed Tazrae over to one of the structures, watching her climb the ladder attached to the side. Before following, Oralie eased off her backpack, carefully leaning it against the structure in one of the less vine-covered spots. Hesitantly she made her way up the ladder and made it to the top in time to see Tazrae disappear down the shiny metal tube. Her voice floated up to her from below so soon after and Oralie struggled to believe she had travelled so fast.
She sat herself down at the top of the tube, steeling herself for whatever was about to happen. She pushed herself off as she had seen Tazrae do, and soon she was hurtling down the polished metal to be spit out the other end. Oralie sat there for several ticks, her eyes round and not saying a word. Eventually though, she blinked, and the blink was followed by a noise the Kelvic had never made before in her life. A giggle rose unexpectedly in her throat and burst from her mouth, the sound high-pitched and filled with glee. Delighted, she flicked her gaze to Tazrae before leaping up and moving back to the ladder to do it all over again.
Twice more Oralie threw herself down the shiny chute, unbridled joy glittering in her eyes. The fourth time she climbed the ladder, she found someone else sat on top of the tube. A small furry animal was watching her, dark eyes set in a white face. Oralie tilted her head curiously, and the animal imitated her. Was this one of the spider monkeys?
The animal flung itself off of the structure, and down onto a different one. It scampered onto a large frame that had what appeared to be seats hanging from it. It made an excitable sounding noise and dropped onto one of the seats, causing it to move back and forth a little. The monkey called again, tilting its head around to look at Oralie. She cast a glance at Tazrae before heading over slowly. The monkey jumped once on the seat before making it swing again. Oralie reached the frame, and when the monkey didn’t stop what it was doing, she sat herself down on the other seat. Her feet touched the ground, and she used the leverage to swing her seat a little. The monkey trilled and she giggled again.
A second monkey had appeared a little closer to Tazrae, brandishing a small passionfruit at the Innkeeper. Whether or not she took it, this monkey would then move off to jump onto one of the see-saws, chattering excitedly at the prospect of having humans to play with.
+1149
“Oh, I like it a lot. Tazrae has shown me all around, it’s very beautiful.”
She glanced curiously at the Innkeeper when she responded to Duncan’s second question. She had no idea what spider monkeys were, but the man seemed to like them, or at least thought Oralie would. She watched him for a tick as he left them, before turning to follow Tazrae once more.
Her steps faltered when she noticed that Tazrae was leading her directly into the trees. Panic fluttered in her stomach, even as her mind told her not to be silly, that Tazrae was not about to lead her into danger. The Innkeeper had herself warned Oralie about venturing into the jungle unprepared, so why would she take such a risk? She took a tick to look at the path she was heading down. It appeared to be fairly well trodden, and they were close to the settlement. Mathais had told her that wildlife tended to stay away from the main part of the settlement so she steeled herself, her left palm glowing stronger than it normally did, and stepped after Tazrae.
She caught up just in time to hear her talk about the storm she had experienced. Oralie however, found herself concentrating more on her feet that Tazrae’s voice. Roots and small stones were appearing on the path more frequently the further they walked, and the last thing she wanted to do was trip. The foliage too was creeping in closer, narrowing their route. So focused on her steps was Oralie, that she nearly walked right into Tazrae when the Innkeeper stopped to look at her.
She blinked, nodding as she took in the information Tazrae was imparting. Her shoulders in particular were tense, and she shifted the backpack again to settle it more comfortably in order to loosen her joints. She stiffened again for a tick as the Innkeeper reached out to hold on to her. Oralie had rarely been touched by a person who had not wanted to hurt her, but she managed to relax, letting Tazrae show her how she was supposed to move. Oralie bounced once on the balls of her feet before setting off again, trying to keep her knees bendy and her spine loose. She knew she could do it if she tried, she was a cat for Mizahar’s sake. Cats were the bendiest things around. While she definitely immediately found it a little easier to move through the foliage, it was apparent that it would take her a while to master the particular way of walking required.
She was appreciative that Tazrae kept up the conversation as they went, allowing Oralie to keep her mind off of the fact that they were walking right into the jungle. She nodded at her back as she explained more about the Protea and the storm shelter. “He built your Inn? He’s very talented.”
Oralie looked upon the various wildlife Tazrae pointed out with a mixture of awe and fear. Snakes and spiders, while fascinating, looked incredibly deadly to her. She much preferred the snakes back at the Inn, safely inside their enclosures. The parrots caught her attention, her golden eyes tracking a particularly bright scarlet one through the treetops. She wondered just how many creatures were in here that she couldn’t see. She imagined it was a lot, for she could practically feel the place vibrating with life.
When Tazrae stopped again, Oralie came up next to her, blinking curiously at the clearing ahead. There were all sorts of contraptions made of what looked to be metal, many of them being taken over by vines. She turned her head to meet the other woman’s gaze. “To… play?”
Oralie had never gotten to be a child. Play was as foreign to her as flying was to a whale. She followed Tazrae over to one of the structures, watching her climb the ladder attached to the side. Before following, Oralie eased off her backpack, carefully leaning it against the structure in one of the less vine-covered spots. Hesitantly she made her way up the ladder and made it to the top in time to see Tazrae disappear down the shiny metal tube. Her voice floated up to her from below so soon after and Oralie struggled to believe she had travelled so fast.
She sat herself down at the top of the tube, steeling herself for whatever was about to happen. She pushed herself off as she had seen Tazrae do, and soon she was hurtling down the polished metal to be spit out the other end. Oralie sat there for several ticks, her eyes round and not saying a word. Eventually though, she blinked, and the blink was followed by a noise the Kelvic had never made before in her life. A giggle rose unexpectedly in her throat and burst from her mouth, the sound high-pitched and filled with glee. Delighted, she flicked her gaze to Tazrae before leaping up and moving back to the ladder to do it all over again.
Twice more Oralie threw herself down the shiny chute, unbridled joy glittering in her eyes. The fourth time she climbed the ladder, she found someone else sat on top of the tube. A small furry animal was watching her, dark eyes set in a white face. Oralie tilted her head curiously, and the animal imitated her. Was this one of the spider monkeys?
The animal flung itself off of the structure, and down onto a different one. It scampered onto a large frame that had what appeared to be seats hanging from it. It made an excitable sounding noise and dropped onto one of the seats, causing it to move back and forth a little. The monkey called again, tilting its head around to look at Oralie. She cast a glance at Tazrae before heading over slowly. The monkey jumped once on the seat before making it swing again. Oralie reached the frame, and when the monkey didn’t stop what it was doing, she sat herself down on the other seat. Her feet touched the ground, and she used the leverage to swing her seat a little. The monkey trilled and she giggled again.
A second monkey had appeared a little closer to Tazrae, brandishing a small passionfruit at the Innkeeper. Whether or not she took it, this monkey would then move off to jump onto one of the see-saws, chattering excitedly at the prospect of having humans to play with.
+1149
