A Chance Encounter (Jokor)

[Jaelyn Baroth]

Ordering a pair of lunches when asked, Jaelyn returned her attention to Jokor with a small smile, "I was curious where you're from, since it seems you're not from Syliras, and how you came to be here?"

Now that she thought about it, how would a boy of his age come to travel to Syliras, apparently all by himself. Maybe he had some family he had run away from? She definitely needed to find out.

[Jokor]

Jokor just looked at her with an stupefied look on his face. Why the heck was she about that of all things? "yeah, I am not from here, I came from sunberth, you know the place even the god of chaos shat spits at because of the scum that lives there?" He shifted around in his chair, feeling the eyes of a few people on him as he let the word sunberth slip, just as he thought. "I ended up here because of a circus came trough the city somewhere in the winter, I jumped aboard to get out of that hellhole, didn't want to die somewhere in a ditch to be looted by the other people." He shrugged and looked around the tavern trying to see the if the food was coming already,he was starving! When he didn't see anybody coming towards their table he just looked back to jaelyn and continued his story. "Well after some traveling we ended up in some place called zetiva or something like that," He got a disgusted look on his face as he thought back to what was called food in that city. "But I didn't want to stay there, those freaky magical persons where everywhere there plus the food tasted even worse then the garbage I found in sunberth, and that was the normal stuff in the stores!" Not finding anything out of the ordinary with eating out of piles of garbage just laying around in the street, Jokor continued his tale. "I really didn't want to stay in that place, if the food was already that bad what would the trash be like? So I stayed a bit longer with the circus and ended up here." he shrugged as he ended the story not finding it that a big deal. "So that enough for you?"

[Jaelyn Baroth]

As Jokor recounted his story Jaelyn quietly watched him, her eyes widening slightly at the explanation of where he had come from, and what he had been through. She'd heard of Sunbearth, and was amazed that a child could live in a place like that. Not only live, but leave there, and then travel to Zeltiva before coming to Syliras. It certainly made the life she had had look easy, and Jokor seemed to be her age, if not younger!

Giving a small nod as Jokor finished relating his story Jaelyn spoke softly, "Yes, that is more than enough," she gave an apologetic smile to Jokor, "Thank you for sharing that with me. I hope it did not bother you to share it. I think it is quite impressive what you've been through and done. Is there anything you would like to ask me in return?"

[Jokor]

Jokor just thought a bit when Jaelyn asked him if he wanted to know something about her, There where a few questions that where on his mind. Though most would have gotten a not that good reaction from her, especially the one about where the security of the knight was the thinnest. Jokor not really wanting her to know what he was thinking about just shrugged. "Nah I didn't really mind, probably hundreds of people with my kind of background in sunberth alone." He scratched his chin trying to think what he would ask first. "Well I would like to know why you are even bothering to do all of this for me, not even wanting something done in return, that is weird if you ask me." Jokor's stomach growled loudly as he finished his sentence as if trying to announce that it was sick of the talking and wanted to be fed! Ignoring his stomach he just continued talking. "besides, are there any places where you really shouldn't go to? you know, because there is still scum living in those places?" Jokor carefully asked Jaelyn, pulling his face into a rather concerned look. I wouldn't want to end up in the same shit as I came from.

[Jaelyn Baroth]

Jaelyn gave a soft smile at Jokor's question, "Well, it has to do with the traits I told you about earlier. Generosity is the willingness to give of yourself and your possessions to help those in need. Patience is remaining calm and collected even when faced with provocation or difficulties. Integrity is staying firm in what is right and good always. Tolerance is accepting and treating everyone the same, even if they are different. Finally honor, which is sometimes confused with pride, which is actually being dignified and always acting as a Knight should."

With the arrival of their food Jaelyn gave a polite nod to the waitress that brought there food before answering Jokor's second question, "As for dangerous places, there really aren't any here in Syliras. There are some occasional criminals and unsavory types, but they don't usually get away with much," she gave the boy a reassuring smile, "The Knights work hard to make Syliras the safest and most welcoming place in all of MIzahar."

[Jokor]

Jokor arched his eyebrow as he heard her explain what all those things meant and how they where important to the knights as a whole. Some of them sounded like a whole load of bull though, he could get why patience would be important to people who where fighting and keeping your head clear of anger while there was some fat ass taunting you when you where running away. And he sure won't go and complain about people giving him free stuff. The ones that he just didn't understand how somebody could believe in them where those last two ones, Honor and tolerance, he sure as hell wasn't going to accept a non-human as a human and he doubted that even half of the people here would accept somebody with no money at all the same as one of those rich guys with an entire tree stuck up their ass, and what would honor be anyway? She said it was how a knight, but how should a knight act? Just about as he was going to deliver his own opinion on those two 'virtues' he got a plate of steaming hot food before him, not even bothering with the eating utensils he just tore into it with his bare hands scarfing down the food with surprising speed and what was probably a miracle in jaelyn's mind, not even wasting a morsel of food. When he was done he just wiped his hands on his pants and let out a satisfied sigh. Though inside he cursed as he didn't hear of a place where there still was crime, there went his pocket money so to speak. "So you mentioned that honor would be what a knight should be, that still doesn't explain what honor is though. Also why would I want to treat everybody equal, Nobody is, so why treat them like they are?" He looked at jaeylin with an expectant look in his eyes, he really was curious to the answers of that.

[Jaelyn Baroth]

Jaelyn was about to start eating her food, but stopped in picking up her fork as she watched Jokor tear into the food. Mouth slightly open she could only stare at the messy sight that unfolded. She was stunned that anyone could possibly eat in such a manner, especially when they had utensils easily at hand. Especially the mess it ended up making of his brand new clothes. For a brief moment she had the thought of lecturing Jokor about his poor manners.

Taking several slow breaths Jaelyn calmed herself as she started to eat her own food. She had to remember the unfortunate life he had had so far. Of course he would eat like that, he wouldn't know any better. Before she could even touch her food Jokor asked some more questions, and she placed her fork back down before replying, "Well, all of the other traits are what a Knight should be, along with being dignified in your actions," she paused a moment, realizing he might not know what dignified meant either, "It is being noble, poised, and respectable in all that you do. As for tolerance, it is not letting the unimportant differences in people change how you treat them," she gestured to Jokor, "Like how I do not treat you differently even though you are a boy, or not from Syliras. How I treat you is just determined by your actions and your situation. I helped you because you asked for help."

[Jokor]

Jokor threw Jaelyn a look that clearly stated a questioning what when she looked at him with a slight disapproving look on her face. To his confusion Jaelyn didn't say anything else and just began to explain, even passing up a few bites of her food for that. "Well, all of the other traits are what a Knight should be, along with being dignified in your actions,It is being noble, poised, and respectable in all that you do. As for tolerance, it is not letting the unimportant differences in people change how you treat them," Jaelyn made pointed at him. "Like how I do not treat you differently even though you are a boy, or not from Syliras. How I treat you is just determined by your actions and your situation. I helped you because you asked for help." Jokor burst out laughing at the mention of being noble and respectable, "They really feed you knights some kind of bullshit then." He managed to say after his laughing was died down a bit, not caring about the weird looks he got for the burst of laughter. "I mean always being noble and respectable just limits your options doesn't it, not being able to spy and sneak around, or always having to be honorable in your actions. As I see People are honorable as long everything goes easy, after that they are just like everybody else they looked down upon." He brushed a few crumbs of his new cloak and looked back to jaelyn. "I think its just something people do because they like to feel better then the rest, not realizing that they are putting themself in chains when they do it."

[Jaelyn Baroth]

Jokor's sudden laughter caught Jaelyn by surprise causing her to jump ever so slightly. When he explained the reason for his mirth she couldn't help but feel pity for him. Of course he would believe such things, growing up in the situation he had. While she could not go back in time and change his past, she could at least teach, and show him that the way he had grown was not the only way.

Giving Jokor a patient smile, and a small shake of her head, she replied, "In an ideal world there would not be a need for such things as spying and sneaking around, but Mizahar is far from an ideal world. There are many who wish to destroy the Syliran Knights," a faint frown touched her lips as she remembered the strange encounter from many days ago, "Or even Syliras itself. Few, if any, of these people would attack us openly and directly, and so we do what is needed to protect Syliras and the people who live here. The Knights who serve quietly in the shadows are no less honorable than those who guard the city walls. All serve willingly, and they would give their life to protect what is innocent and good. One does not become a Knight so that one can be better than others, to look down on them, instead we train and work to protect and serve others."

Despite his open disagreement with most everything Jaelyn had been taught and believed, she had to admit that Jokor was interesting. She'd never met a boy like him, especially since most of the boys she knew were other Squires like her.

[Jokor]

Jokor repressed a few snickers as she began to explain again, Knights sneaking around, he really doubted any of them would be any good at sneaking around or when push came to shove cutting of the enemy from behind and silently dumping their body in the sea...or whatever was available around these parts maybe dump them in the waste of a butcher? Jokor grinned at jaelyn. "Well I think that is kinda impossible, I doubt one of those honorable folk would dare to cut the throat of a sleeping enemy or do everything that is necessary to make sure enemies are taken care off. If you are thinking about something else then your goal your probably going to fail." A bit of mallice crept on the boy's face and he leaned a bit forward his grin stretching wider. "Besides you said they protect what is innocent and good. Mind pointing at somebody who is still innocent and Good is just something to help yourself sleep anyway." He leant back in his chair and looked at the still untouched food. "Your still going to eat that?" He pointed to her plate. Even after the first plate he was still fairly hungry.