Closed Who Goes There? (Moritz x Evalynn)

[Evalynn Frostfawn]

Syka: Spring 14, 522AV

The sun had just started rising above the ocean, bathing the land in soft light and waking the life within it. Eva was one of those early birds to awaken from her sudden deep slumber, still dressed in her clothes from yesterday and her bag just tossed to the side. She gave a groan and sat her stiff body up, rubbing her eyes and stretching her arms over her head. She took a moment to take in the surroundings before she finally stood and stretched her legs, walking over to a window. She opened it to let in the morning air and inhaled deeply, it smelt divine but the immediate humidity caused her to groan. Oh well, she had to get ready.

Eva made her way to her bag and grabbed out a change of clothes and a tattered scrap of cloth she used to wipe her body down. Beforehand bathing in the shared bath was too risky when she was traveling, so she always had a bucket of water delivered to her room for sponge baths. Most of the time, the water was delivered upon wake up time, hot and ready for use. But this time it was cool and refreshing and something that she enjoyed to the fullest in this heat, and it was outside. Instead, she decided to gather water from the shower and bring it in, giving herself a more private area. Not only that, but the homemade soap that she stumbled on during her travels also was a godsend against her sticky skin. A small drop to the cloth lasted the entire sponge bath and left no thin residue or lasting stickiness.

"Mmm, I think this will be my favorite part of my stay. The cool baths." Eva talks softly as she finishes cleaning herself. She then went to a mirror to examine herself in areas she wasn't able to see while bathing. No bruising, no scratches, no open wounds. All was clear and in working order, except the Ginosis mark that sat oddly on her hip. It was an unusual area to have a mark, as all her family had ones that were visible and known. "However, having the mark here is easier to hide."

Eva fell silent before huffing away the feelings and quickly getting ready. She pulled her hair back and styled it into a thick, chunky braid that hung on her shoulder. She fashions her clothes into something that would keep her cool but not too revealing, something like cutting her pants into long shorts and knotting her shirt to show just a hint of her belly. Once she finished, she grabbed her father's hunting knife and made her way out of the bungalow to find some more substantial food.

[Moritz Craven]

14 Spring 522

In general Moritz was an early riser. Part of this was just habit, but also he sometimes had to go into work early to help with the preparations for some large or needy dish, and so he would have to get up early on those days. Perhaps from habit or some other reason, he continued this early schedule even on other days such as today when he had most of the day off and didn't need to go in till much later.

Normally avoiding exercise till after work to avoid going in tired and sweaty, Moritz reasoned he had enough time to get washed and rested before his shift, and so he had decided upon waking to go for a morning run.

He left most of his things at home, not wanting to be overly burdened, dressed only in his button up silk suit - which oddly enough had his name noted on it but only when properly worn- and a pair of sandals. Well that and the items he could not remove, like the charm bracelet stuck on his wrist even when shifting to his Okomo form, and the star embedded into his hand. If needed he could shift by only removing his shoes, the rest of his clothing an items would not be affected. It was one of the reasons he wore the suit so often, because it made it easier to shift while still being clothed and was not overly thick and so was cool enough for Sykan weather.

Having gotten dressed and finished his morning ablutions Moritz headed out to the beach side which was a safe enough place regularly visited by others, and a good place for him to exercise without worrying about something coming out of the jungle at him

However before he began Moritz started off with some stretches, something he was getting more adventurous at as his flexibility increased along with his ability to do fancy moves like rolls and flips.

He began by laying on the sand and flexing his body up, turning his body into a U shape by putting his hands behind him and arching up, while curving his legs down for the other side of the shape. He could feel this one in his shoulders, hips, and waist, and as he did he felt something pop and release which felt oddly satisfying.

Undoing that stretch Moritz moved to a sitting position, working on his legs now. Holding them out straight he moved into some toe touches, alternating one foot and then the other, and then both, feeling it in his legs and back region. He grunted with each lunge, pushing at the strain on his body but not forcing it to avoid injuring himself.

Popping back onto his feet Moritz worked on his arms, bending his right arm across his chest to his left side, and using his left arm to hold it in place and pull it across. Then he switched to the other arm, doing each stretch equally across his body for symmetries sake.

Once he felt he was fully stretched Moritz began a light jog along the sandy beach, focusing on his running while in the background observing his surroundings. While his Okomo eyes didn't work quite as well as in his human form he certainly had a wider range of vision than a human, something that would be in their peripheral was clear, and what was his peripheral sight was beyond their view. On the other hand he had reduced vision up and down, and so had more trouble seeing something hiding directly below him or coming from above. This was less of an issue further away since his limited vertical scale didn't come into play as much, but up close he knew his sight was restricted in this way and took it into account when he went into the jungle.

Of course, Moritz reasoned, being on a flat beach with no structures for the most part his view was likely better off since he didn't have to worry overly much about above or below.

Thinking this he recalled the time he thought he had nearly broken his foot when he tripped and kicked a partially buried chest in the sands, and recalled that was not always the case... Of course the chances of some threat coming after him and planning in advance to bury themselves seemed low.

Turning his attention back to his jog Moritz moved along the beach, as usual planning to do a short loop of a stretch of the beach where he turned at a given point at each end and redid the stretch over again till he was done. For now he focused on his breathing, mentally counting in his head and trying to keep his air nice and calm and even, in one two three, out slow one two three, in one two three, slow out one two three.

While thinking on this he also tried to measure out his gait and the way his foot landed, but as usual had trouble directly controlling all of these at once.

WC: 850

[Evalynn Frostfawn]

Evalynn found herself trotting her way down the stairs of the bungalow and onto the sandy beach, wiggling her toes excitedly. Just in case, she bought some bread and jam and tied it up on her waist, it was habitual when going out on long walks in an unfamiliar area. One never knew just how expensive the wares were in that specific location. Taking a few steps out, Eva was able to actually appreciate the sea air on the slowly warming day. She stretched her arms over her head and bent side to side as she prepared herself for another eventful day. However, before she started walking towards the commons, she spotted someone off in the distance on a brisk run.

'Running? In this humidity? They must be well acquainted with the climate, and therefore could be a good guide.*

With that strange thought.in mind, she gave a smile and waved for the stranger's attention. She was hopeful that they would stop and not be too cautious, let alone curious into her arrival. Then again, if they were, she had spent a good week building and fleshing out a pretty solid cover story. Even for her mark if they ever saw it, which would be incredibly unlikely. But for no, she continued to flag down the man while also staying out of his way if he decided to ignore her and keep running.

But then the stranger came closer and she got a good look at them, and felt a wave of curious confusion. The pinks, purples, and black of their hair didn't seem to really bother her. She had seen many people dye their hair. It wasn't even the strangeness of their gait as they glided over the sand with minimal effort, like a deer leaping through a sea of grass. It was how lanky their body looked compared to their height. Something that shouldn't be strange to her as she had seen many beings along her travels. But in this instance, seeing this tall male stride over the sands like an elegant creature from a bedtime story just made it feel unreal.

Now, the hand she was using to signal the male had lowered and she was now entranced with watching this man run. She folded her hands in front of her and relaxed, forgetting why she was trying to wave down the man. If he were to stop, she would sheepishly snap herself out of her daze and give an embarrassed chuckle, tugging at her braid as she hurriedly tried to remember.

"Oh! So, uh, I had noticed you were running, obviously, and was wondering if you could possibly help me in exploring the settlement? I know it's pretty random, but you looked so comfortable with your run that I figured you were a resident and well accustomed."

[Moritz Craven]

While it did not happen every time, quite often on jogs Moritz found he was interrupted. Generally this was by people who knew him, though every once in awhile it was by a random person he did not know. Such as the prior season when he had met the odd woman who was sowing... Or tried to stab him? He was a big foggy on the specifics, but they had met later at his work and they had gotten a drink together and discussed things for awhile.

In the end he felt they had parted positively, but she was certainly an odd person to Moritz mind as she assumed someone trying to exercise was plotting some attack. Why wouldn't he just attack right away if he was going to, rather than taking several laps and tiring himself out? Her logic seemed faulty at best, if not entirely missing in truth.

He was jogging along thinking of such things when he noticed some motion, and turned his head more fully to inspect the source. As he did he saw a woman standing off to the side. On closer inspection she seemed to be smiling and waving at him, which he took to mean she wanted him to approach or was at least trying to be friendly... Seeing as she wasn't rushing him or holding out a weapon it seemed unlikely she wanted to start anything. Looking with his other senses he apprised her combat ability, feeling it right along with his own... But as he did he for a rare occasion found his own combat presence far superior to this woman's... Did she even have a combat presence? He had literally seen children with better ones. With that in mind her being a threat or wishing him ill seemed unlikely...

He slowed down as he neared instead of passing her, taking a few moments to let his breathing return to normal and listening to what she had to say. As he did he got a better look at her, and noticed... Her face... And... Her hair... And... Her...

He did his best to keep his gaze on her eyes, for once meeting someones gaze as they spoke, and more than ever wished he could talk properly without lying as he had all season. As he did he felt his face heat up from something other than the exercise, though it was possible the woman might think it was from the heat or his exertions in running. Strangely enough he also felt an odd twisting in his stomach, and had the sudden urge to run away or talk about her eyes. They weren't quite as nice as his own Okomo Iraso eyes that glowed to life as he used magic, but still...

Moritz nodded along in reply to her words, considering his response. He was a resident, but had not been here long, less than a year in fact. He wasn't really well accustomed, and still had quite a bit to learn. He had just started his run, and was not that far in. Plus, she was asking for a favor from a stranger, but hadn't even given her name? His was clearly place on the front of his suit, hard to miss, so she didn't need to find out his, but she had offered him nothing on that front. And so of course when he did talk nothing like those points came out.

"Ah, hello my lady. I would be more than glad to tour you around. I was just finishing up my run anyways. I've been here quite awhile, so know a fair number of places close by. Though I do usually charge for tours, and I wouldn't normally hold one for another few bells at least... But I suppose a private one... How about this, I'll show you around, and in exchange... You can pay by letting me know your name, that seems a fair trade. Tips are up to you."

WC: 662

[Evalynn Frostfawn]

She looked a bit confused at the fact that they would charge for tours in the settlement. Maybe he was a professional tour guide and this was his living. If she thought of it that way, and with him saying hot to worry about pay, it only made her question it more. However, Eva just smiled brightly and shuffled around a small pouch on her hip. She gave a mumble about location before the sound of coins jingling could be heard. She pulled out a single piece of gold and offered it to the man without much of a verbal question. If he would refuse the payment, she would gently take hold of his hand and place the coin in it, allowing him to feel the cool touch of her skin against his.

"My name is Evalynn Fro- uh, Frontier, and even though you said not to worry about payment, I don't feel that is right. I hope a gold coin will cover it though, sinemy name won't pay the bills." She chuckled at her attempt at a joke and continued on. "And I'm sorry for catching you at the end of your running, if you'd like I can wait here as you freshen up? But, then again, you look pretty put together as is."She once again smiled, but on the inside she was cursing herself.

'Stupid girl, you once again almost let someone else find out about us! Our last name is dangerous, break the habit of giving it out.'

Last time, she had gotten too comfortable with an individual right after she had escaped her homeland. They offered the lost child food and shelter, which was a blessing in disguise. What the person really wanted was to find out who this child was and to collect the bounty on her head, regardless of age. Eva actually had to run away after being drugged, and almost died on the road. But now would be different, she was extra cautious and made sure she was the friendly and bubbly one.

[Moritz Craven]

Moritz felt an odd flutter in his gut as the woman smiled at him, and watched as she silently moved to dig into a pouch she wore. When she eventually finished and pulled out a single coin Moritz smiled back at her as she tried to force the coin into his palm by grabbing his hand with one of her own and placing the coin into it with the other. He did notice her skin felt a bit cold considering they were outside in Syka, but did not think much on it, soon after offering the coin back to her.

"Ah, I am afraid I cannot except coin, they don't let tour guides accept coins you see. Something about the town using more of a barter system, so wanting to introduce people to the methods of bartering. Get them into the habit of it. I just do this on the side for fun. So if you want to trade you could always try goods or services, that's more in the spirit of barter. Not coins. Though that's generally at the end of my tours, not the beginning."

Offering the coin back Moritz waited for the woman to respond and take it before continuing, smiling as she told him her name. In truth he felt a bit... Odd about that exchange. Had she... Liked that? Normally he would not have said such a thing, but due to his affliction he could not help it. But she had seemed to like it. He was reminded of some of the things he had discussed with the woman at the bar, he forgot her name but she had sown and saw him on the beach before running away unlike this woman... Was this perhaps some of what she had meant about wooing women?

Though as he smiled another thought occurred to him, considering it he wondered if it was another side affect of all his lying. He had been doing it so much, was he picking up more on other peoples lies? Everything else she had said had been normal, no stuttering or issues with speech. And yet, she had started to say her last name only to falter and say it again in a somewhat different way. Had she forgotten her own name? Or had she changed her mind on it partway through... Or perhaps was she lying about it or some part of it. She had been fine with the first name, but the last name she seemed to have issue alone with. Thinking it over logically that did seem to be suspicious, and seemed to indicate in some way she was trying to lie. Though he could not reason why someone would want to hide their last name. Was it well known? Or perhaps she was a criminal?

His name clearly noted on his own clothing and not wanting to try and tell her his own since he knew he was only going to end up lying Moritz pressed on from the topic of names for the moment.

Thinking for a moment what he could actually show her and what she had not seen likely, the only thing he could think of was the Shrine he had been told about the season prior but had not yet actually gone to in person. Kihalas shrine... And it was somewhere near here, not too far off the commons... He had been given directions he was fairly certain, and did not think it was hard to find, so set off in the general direction of where it might be.

Not really addressing her question about him taking a break before they began, he set off in a direction he vaguely thought the shrine was at Moritz spoke while talking over his shoulder.

"I generally start the tour this way, by showing people the shrine. Been there many a time, and everyone I've shown it to seems to love it. Not too hard to get too, but just over this ways. You'll see it shortly. Oh, and I also try to find out if the guest has any particular interests or things they want to learn about, or places they want to go to. What about you? Any trade you want to take up, or place you want to visit, I would love to hear it!"

If not asked to stop Moritz would wander around in the general area of the shrine until they finally stumbled upon it, likely seeing it by its statue and things well before they arrived seeing as it was a somewhat noticeable landmark.

WC: 763

[Evalynn Frostfawn]

"Oh, is that so. Well, I suppose my name is as much as I can give you then for the time being."

Eva gave a nervous chuckle and took the coin back from Moritz, putting it back in her pouch. Her thoughts on the topic swirled a bit as she looked back at the man. Not having to pay for things in coins was relaxing to think about, but that would also mean she needed to find something worth bartering with. None of her skills were very noteworthy, including the ones needed to survive here. Actually, she only had one of the required skills at her disposal. The other skills she had heard about were out of her knowledge. While she was fretting over something completely unrelated to what had happened before, she was able to catch Moritz talking about the shrine.

"Oh, I've been there before. One of the founders, Mathias, guided me there for a chat. However, I had just gotten off the ship and was awestruck by everything. I don't quite remember the exact path we had taken." She then thought about the question he had asked her. "Actually, I was hoping to become an apprentice herbalist and poison crafter to gain and improve those skills. As for a job, I am still struggling to figure that out. I am pretty good at hard labor, and have some knowledge in surviving in arctic temperatures."

She thought a bit more and attempted to gather all the information she had gained while traveling here. She stewed on it a bit as they started walking down the beach towards the shrine. "Well, I also know a bit about carpentry, but I think everyone here knows more than I do. I've only been able to make little stick houses when traveling along trails." Yeah, she was told that carpentry was something she was doing once while she stopped on the side of the road. An old man had given her some tips on how to improve the small structures and turn them into model homes. Right now, she was still struggling with keeping the frames and walls up without them collapsing under the weight of the roof.

[Moritz Craven]

Not able to help it Moritz glanced back at the woman Evalynn, a smile coming to his lips as he did. He quickly looked away, but he found her particularly nice to look at and kept finding himself trying to glance at her when he could. This didn't seem to be helping the odd fluttering in his stomach, as he was seriously beginning to think he had some kind of stomach worm or beast wobbling about in his innards.

For once he was glad he could not tell the truth, as he was fairly certain that telling someone he had a thing in his stomach would be off putting to say the least.

Eye contact was a bit tricky at the best of times, not helped by the fact that many found his eyes off putting. Between his odd markings due to being an Iraso, along with his base Okomo kelvic eyes which appeared as the square pupils of a goat, his eyes were quite abnormal. From farther away his hair was noticeable, but up close and on closer inspection the odd mix of square and starbursts were much more odd and confusing if not outright freakish to some. At the moment as he kept looking at her Moritz had forgotten about that, and as she had not seemed to notice them or had not said anything perhaps he was a bit emboldened to keep her gaze more than normal.

For a moment as the woman explained she had nothing else to barter, goods or services, Moritz wondered on that. Surely she had something of use to the settlement, unless she was just a visitor or... What had it been called before... A tourist. From what she said that did not seem to be the case, though it left Moritz wondering why someone so unskilled had ended up in Syka. He himself had his own reasons for coming despite his lack of skill, but he doubted his particular reason for coming was all too common... If not outright unique. So what was her reason for being here? He wondered such things, picking away at small details as she spoke without commenting on them, not that he would be able to do so if he tried... Regardless he tried to fathom out this woman a bit more while silently continuing his mini investigation.

When he found out she had already been to the shrine Moritz was a bit surprised, hoping she would not notice he did not know much about where they were going. Though perhaps, here he fell back to walk even with her, he could subtly let her take the lead to get them there if she knew where it was.

Regardless though if she took the lead or they just kept on wandering, he would focus on keeping his eyes open and kept looking about and trying to find the spot. Eventually he would notice, either through random chance or Evalynn taking the lead, the odd statue and things which marked the area and heading in that direction towards the shrine. Luckily it was not too difficult to find, and they would arrive quickly enough.

When she commented on her own skills or lack thereof and a possible job she was trying to find, Moritz pondered for a bit before responding. Once more his words came out false and not quite what he was trying to say, though often in an odd way he was not expecting. It was almost like his tongue had a mind of its own, and while always lying seemed to do so in odd ways. Usually ones involving making up odd stories and things to explain details.

"Well, jobs are not really my department, I meant more hobbies and the like, that is what we usually ask about. I've also been known to give a lesson or two, I am a fair hand in combat and a few people have been known to come to me for some training."

While Moritz did like to spar usually he was the one going to others to learn, not the other way around as he said, and in truth he was not all that skilled. Though of course being somewhat skilled was still better than someone with next to no skills.

"I'm sure there would be many people interested in arctic survival in this climate, but you would need to ask others about that as a job."

As he said this Moritz pondered for a few moments, realizing why many people assumed his lying was just some type of sarcasm. He had not meant it that way, but someone could surely hear that as such... All the same he said such things with a smile on his face, and simply leading the woman along on the walk.

Finally arriving at the shrine Moritz looked around a bit, taking in the sights. Most noticeable was the statue, and a small shiny ladle for drinking from. A bit parched from his exercise Moritz took up the ladle and emptied it in one gulp, before placing it back to let it refill. Once it was full again Moritz would offer it to Evalynn if she seemed willing or interested in taking it.

Once after he had drunk and offered some to Evalynn would he look more closely and try to work out exactly where the water was coming from.

WC: 900

[Evalynn Frostfawn]

Eva was enjoying being able to watch Moritz from behind. She took in his appearance first, from the unique coloring of his hair to how his clothes swished on his body. His stride was long, slightly difficult to keep up pace, but was definitely not something that caused her to be winded. She also gave a bit of a chuckle when she spotted him trying to turn and get a peek at her, feeling a bit of a blush rising. But then, her leisurely view was interrupted when she noticed he started matching her pace and stride. He was walking next to her! Eva continued to smile and talk, but inside she was giddy. She got to see more of him, especially his eyes, and the way the sun would bounce off of them. They seemed to already glow when they were in shade, but now they sparkled and demanded more attention in her opinion.

"Oh, well, if we are talking about hobbies, then I've dabbled in a few. I've tried my hand at some artistic qualities like drawing on stones or carving some wood. I can't say I was any good, and it was extremely difficult not to get injured during carvings."

As the two finally arrived at the shrine, Evalynn found herself looking at the shrine more closely now. It gave off the sense of calm while also feeling very protective. She actually found it even more refreshing than when she had first visited, making a mental note to come here during stressful times. She was taken out of her thoughts as Moritz made his way to a fountain and drank from the ladle. She rose a brow curiously and peered over, just to have the ladle offered to her. Moritz turned his attention away from her and this allowed a side profile view as she sipped the fresh water from the ladle, a small smile crossing her lips.

"Ah, you mentioned giving lessons. I'd like to learn more about combat in action. All I've learnt was by word of mouth, so any knowledge is welcome."

[Moritz Craven]

Following along the water with his eyes Moritz tried to work out where the water was coming from, but other than coming down or out from the statues hand he was less than sure on that front. He was sure it had a source, but was having some trouble working that out. It was a shrine though, so perhaps some odd magic was involved?

Turning back to his companion Moritz once more met her eyes while smiling before darting away his focus to inspect some other aspects of the shrine. It even seemed to have seating and other such things for more prolonged visits which he was only just noticing.

Evalynn seemed nice and happy enough, smiling back at him and meeting his eyes, pleasant company by all measures. However he did notice she seemed to at times be getting a bit flushed, and so perhaps was not so used to being out in the Sykan heat and sun? It had taken him awhile to get used to it, and he was not sure he still had completely to be honest.

Hearing her hobbies Moritz was less than sure he could help, and honestly he was unsure who in the settlement could do so. He was by no measure the most artistic person, and so had not spent much time practicing drawing or carving. She on the other hand seemed to have an interest in it from he stated hobbies, and so perhaps was more creative than he was. Though he was unsure if the word dabbling was meant to show modesty, or was just her being honest in saying she had tried it but was new to it. She also seemed to describe herself as a bit clumsy, based on her narrowly avoiding injury while practicing these things.

"Yes, I think a instructor once told me about blades, always point it at yourself, and cut towards yourself, something like that. Of course they may have just been trying to see if I would lose a finger or two, so I cannot say for sure how serious they were. I still have ten though, so I suppose if that was their goal they failed."

At her stating an interest in combat Moritz smiled and nodded in reply, considering things for a moment. If she was a bit clumsy bladed weapons might not be the best place to start... But also it was a good idea for anyone to have some training in weaponless combat. Plus seeing as he knew more about that he would likely be able to help more. Though admittedly he was better at dodging and such things and other acrobatic maneuvers than the actual combat side of fighting. While he had sparred a bit with Alric before and some others, and taught Alric some simple acrobatics, he had never really full on taught a lesson in unarmed combat. Most of them he had shown or sparred with either more than him, or knew about the combat side of things but was less trained in the acrobatics he was teaching. So to try to start from scratch, well he did not really have a clear path for that.

"Yes, a lesson, I've given a fair number of those. Lets see... Well while I am sure they would love someone practicing combat in a shrine, we could also go over in the sand to practice. Though generally when I start a lesson I try to see what people can do, and then move on from there. I don't have any weapons on me, so I suppose we could begin with unarmed."

In truth Moritz was armed, though not in the traditional sense. More so he was armed in a magical sense, namely the star embedded in the back of his left hand. Since it could expand into a full gauntlet, and from there additional blades, he did not really consider himself fully unarmed at any time seeing as he could summon one just by willing it forth.

Since it seemed Evalynn was interested Moritz would head off into the sand and lead her out of the shrine, finding a nice empty spot of beach where they would not get in anyone's way nor run into anything. Once there he would turn to face her and take on a ready stance, feet shoulder width apart, hands ready with one near his shoulder and the other at his waist, and eyes on his target. Then he would wait, letting her show him what she could do as he had said earlier. Even if it had been a lie at the time as he was making it up on the spot and it was not his standard practice, he did intend to see her current level. Though from her combat presence, he had a feeling that level was... Low.

WC: 807