[Mirror Lake] Tip of the Iceberg [Open]

[Malisys]

Spring 48, 511 AV The day was bright; a few rays of light shined through various portions of the overcast sky. The ice glistened in the light, making Avanthal an even more beautiful sight to behold. Citizens of the large city wandered about, enjoying the sun rays as best as they could. Malisys sat on a public bench by himself. He let out a big yawn and rubbed his eyes. He was going to try ice skating. The Vantha had been to Mirror Lake a few times in his youth, but it had been quite a few years and he had completely forgotten the proper practices for ice skating. Most of his free time was devoted to learning how to become a hunter and trying unsuccessfully to attract females. Today was a nice day, though, and his mind was focused on one thing: re-learning how to ice skate. "Adding ice skating to my repertoire would be a great way to attract women," he thought to himself. "I hope Mirror Lake is still in as good of shape as I remember it." Malisys began to walk across town towards the ice rink. He hoped that most of his peers weren't there today, because he didn't want them to see him and laugh at his inability to ice skate properly. That wouldn't stop him though, after all, he needed to have a place to take a potential partner. The walk there was very calming. The plant life raised inside the gates of Avanthal was always a beautiful sight, even if they looked relatively normal to most outsiders. Malisys stopped by a tree to admire it for a few moments, letting a few idle thoughts drain out of his mind on whether his ice skating excursion was really such a good idea after all, before moving onwards. The ice rink had a fairly large number of people there today, or so the young man judged. Looking down at the ice, he could see people there with family, friends, lovers, and some alone. They all looked like they were having a blast, so it made the Vantha feel a little better about not having anyone with him. He stepped through the gates with padded confidence, and began looking around. There was a sign posted just inside the gates that read "Skaters without skates will have to rent or buy them." Malisys did not own a pair of skates, so he figured that would be the best place to start. He shambled over to the rental shop and stepped in line.

[Vina]

Mirror Lake, just only one part of the many places to have an enjoyable time in Avanthal. This was, for Vina, the best place she could escape the worries of her home. The pressure from her parents and all the responsibility that came along with it. There were one too many voices, for a person just walking in to Mirror Lake, to be able to distinguish one conversation on its own. Not to say it was a rowdy crowd of Vanthas. Not at all -but it was crowded and full of familiar and even unfamiliar faces. For those who could endure the harsh coldness of Avanthal, the ice rink became somewhat of a tourist attraction. Along with the various shops and dining areas. Some people come for a change in scenery, while others come for an adventure of some sort. It made Vina often wonder, exactly what kind of adventure can a place like Avanthal offer? Nothing but plenty of snow, ice and lights. A traveler who sets foot in Avanthal who has never been, might find this place more extraordinary than any other city in Mizahar. Vina has been here seventeen years, and all things that are extraordinary to others, are becoming only repetitive sights. Children, adults and even the elderly slipped and glided their way on to the ice rink, doing as best as they could to hold balance on the thin blade beneath their feet. There was nothing but joy filling the air as families held on to eachothers hands tightly, friends played a common game of tag on the ice, and children laughing and even sometimes crying is disappointment, when they began to trip over their own feet. Vina was standing just over the ice rink, her expression quite blank and emotionless. She was in deep thought, and anyone who knew her well knew exactly when her mind began to wander. "Lets go down there already, V." the voice said lowly, but a response wasn't given, "V." the girl repeated her name, her head turning to Vina's direction once she didn't get a second response, "VIINNNAA!" she eventually shouted. Vina was quickly shaken out of her thoughts by the blatant and loud shouting of her name. The violet eyes Vantha turned in her friends direction, as she sent her hand to her arm, playfully pushing her. "Alright, alright you don't have to shout." she said, a smile gently tugging at her lips as she turned her attention back down to the ice rink, "Go ahead I'm going to go lace up my skates." Vina said, beginning to pull her eyes away from the ice, and over to her friend who had a acerbic feel to her expression. "Yeeeah, yeah. Meet you at the ice." the girl said before turning on her heels and beginning to 'clack' towards the ice rink. Vina gently laughed as she watched her friend stumble towards the ice, before turning around and walking near the shop where people who didn't own a pair of skates, could rent with a small fee. Vina owned her own pair, and even though they weren't the best pair of ice skates, Vina was quite content with their tattered and torn condition. She found a bench that wasn't occupied by anyone, and took as seat just in the middle, releasing a soft sigh of relief as she sat. The ice skates were dangling over her shoulder, tied together by the laces. She carefully pulled the skates from off her shoulder, beginning to bite and pull at the knot that was holding the laces together.

[Malisys]

The bustling denizens of Mirror Lake made the scene appear somewhat chaotic. A few people got into an argument over their place in line, then quickly came to a solution and began conversing as though they were friends. Avanthal was such a friendly place; it often left a warm feeling in the hearts of visitor and resident alike. Mirror Lake was a place to relax and enjoy yourself. Malisys found himself frequently looking around at the other guests to the ice rink as the line pressed onward slowly. "Everyone looks so happy," he thought to himself. "They can't possibly understand the importance of my own task-" The young Vantha's thought was interrupted by a sight he was oft found staring at— a beautiful woman. She was sitting on a bench fiddling around with her ice skates. Malisys' mouth hung open as he stared at her in admiration. In fact, he stared for so long that the person in line behind him began angrily tapping his shoulder and pointed ahead. "Are you awake, buddy?!" the man asked, clearly annoyed. The gap in the line was pretty considerable. Malisys' eyes and cheeks flushed red with embarrassment. He quickly stepped forward, noticing that he was next in line. He tapped his foot impatiently, hoping the girl he had seen would still be there when he was finished getting his skates. He quickly got his pair and rushed over to the bench. "I'm in luck!" he thought excitedly. "She's still here!" The young man approached the woman immediately, forgetting the entire reason he had come here was to learn how to impress a girl, not to try and impress them here. A smile crept over his face as he walked up to her. He noticed she was fiddling with the laces on her ice skates. "Did you need some help, Miss?" he asked with a large grin. "I do this all the time, I know a trick for getting those undone."

[Vina]

Vina began to get a bit impatient, as she continued to bite at the knot of her laces, trying her best to not appear as a hungry vulture. In all ways, even the most boyish of situations, she tried to maintain grace and poise. Her mother simply always had a thing or two to say about her un-lady like behavior. The thought of her mothers nagging caused to her to bite even harder, soft grunting coming from her throat as she began to successfully pull up the lace with her bottom tooth. As she was doing so, her eyes spotted a pair of shoes, just near her own as she kept her eyes towards the ground. Her eager biting and pulling of the laces with her teeth ceased, as she lowered the lace away from her mouth, her eyes lifting up to the young man in front of her. In an instant, her eyes began to gently shift from a violet color, slowly appearing to be shifting in to a soft blue. The colors mixing together slowly, caused her eyes to look two tones. She was quite embarrassed. "Did you need some help, Miss?" he asked with a large grin. "I do this all the time, I know a trick for getting those undone." She forced a hesitating smile, and shook her head slowly, her Vani tongue overpowering her Common. "No, actually I just got them loosened!" she said, in a bit of a cheerful and accomplished tone, still abashed by her choice of method to remove the knot. Of course, she was in no way under any circumstance about to hand over her skates to a guy, with saliva soaked laces. The loosened knot made it much easier for her to completely remove the knot with her fingers, a sigh of satisfaction passing her lips. She bent over, beginning to remove her shoes, and begin to slip on the skates. As she bent over, her eyes glance up, noticing the young man still standing. Her movements became slow, once she realized she should scoot over from the middle, and to the side to allow him to sit and suit up his feet if needed to. She did so, another smile tugging at her mouth. "Nice day for skating, isn't it?" she said in attempts to break the ice, not literally. She finished lacing up one skate around her foot, and began to put on and lace up the next, grunting softly as she pulled to tighten the strings. Her eyes caught sight of his face, and it was gentle. Harmless, she was sure. But not a face she was ever familiar with. She was certain he was not from her own hold. Still, she couldn't seem to match a name to the face. She looked away, not wanting to get caught staring, as she focused her attention back on to her last skate. "I'm Vina, by the way." she said, pulling at the laces, beginning to finally tie them in to a bow.

[Malisys]

Sun rays gleamed off the ice around Mirror Lake. The surroundings were prettier than most days in Avanthal, yet Malisys found himself unable to take his eyes off the girl before him. It was almost like he was in a trance. His rental ice skates hung at his side, smacking into his leg as they swayed back and forth. He heard a sound that appeared to be her voice, but he was too lost to make it out the first time. "She's so pretty... what should I say? What should I..." his thought trailed off as she spoke again, this time snapping him back to consciousness. "Nice day for skating isn't it?" she asked him. Malisys nodded his head as his cheeks began to flush red, followed by his eyes gaining a red hue as well. He was embarrassed at how obvious his staring must have been and how lost in thought he'd grown. He looked down at her skates and saw that she had already gotten them loosened and wouldn't need any help. The Vantha attempted to regain his composure as she made a space for him to sit down. He realized he still had his own skates to put on. He quickly sat down next to her. She introduced herself as Vina. "It's nice to meet you Vina, I'm Malisys. he spat out very quickly. "I can show you a trick on how to put these on quickly. I can do it in ten seconds." he boasted, trying to keep things going in a direction that wouldn't make him look weird to her. The Vantha fiddled around with his skates, trying to put them on as fast as he could. He couldn't even put one on properly in a minute, let alone ten seconds. His eyes remained bright red as he looked at Vina. "I guess I'm just out of practice or something," he joked, trying to make light of the situation. Malisys finished up his first skate and began working on the second one, taking care of it much quicker this time. He just began to knot the lace when he turned back to Vani. "So what brings you here today? Any special reason?"

[Vina]

Finally, the girl thought to herself as she tugged gently on the the lace of her skates, securing the last and final knot. Her back then straightened, no longer slumping over towards her feet, but now sitting upright as she extended her legs outward to tap her heel on to the ground, the blade giving off a gentle 'clinking' sound. She shifted her ankles from left to right, her head following the motion as she became satisfied with the fitting and lacing of the skates. Her attention was then taken by the boy who took a seat next to her, and opened his mouth to speak again. "It's nice to meet you Vina, I'm Malisys.", he spat out very quickly. "I can show you a trick on how to put these on quickly. I can do it in ten seconds." Now, who wouldn't be curiously intrigued by a statement like that? Even Vina, as good of a skater as she was, couldn't even lace her own skates in ten seconds. She gave a smile, her shoulders shifting in a bit of excitement as she observed the young boy, beginning to fiddle and meddle with his skates, giving it all he could to at least attempt to get the skates on in little time. Of course, Vina knew it would be simply impossible. But, she gave the idea her attention. The Vantha turned his bright red eyes towards Vina, and she could already see the flushed complexion, taking over the top of his cheeks. Even so, she continued to smile, finding the effort to even try, quite adorable. "I guess I'm just out of practice or something," he joked, trying to make light of the situation. He just began to knot the lace when he turned back to Vina. "So what brings you here today? Any special reason?" Vina slowly looked away, and over to the ice rink, trying to spot her small group of friends who were supposed to be waiting eagerly for her, but instead, they were off enjoying theyreselves. Vina didn't mind, since she didn't want to impose on any one else's fun. Her usual days at the ice rink, were much different. She was usually the first one out of the group on the ice. The first one laughing, and the first one begging to stay just a little bit longer. But today, seemed to have been much different. She was a bit sluggish when it came to getting on the ice, just not enthused as usual. Vina lifted her arm, her finger pointing in their direction. Of course, he probably wouldn't be able to see exactly where she was pointing, but he could assume which friends were her own. "I'm here with them." she said, pausing as she let her hand fall back on to her lap, beginning to shake her head, "No, no special reason, really. Just wanting to get away from my home is a good enough reason for me." Vina pushed her palms against the space on the bench at her side, pushing herself up and to her feet, keeping her balance on the thing blades. She looked over to Malysis, lifting her hand to move the strands of brown hair away from her face, tucking them behind her ears. Her eyes, very slowly, began to change back to their natural violet shade. "What about you. Here with family? Some friends?" she asked curiously, turning to look over her shoulder, gently jerking her head towards the ice rink, "Come on, what you waiting for?" she added on, still awaiting an answer. Of course, befriending a stranger was completely in her nature. She didn't hesitate at all, since she found his face most friendly. He seemed to be just another Vantha, like herself.

[Malisys]

Vina began to point in the direction of the ice as she mentioned her friends. Malisys strained his eyes to see who she was talking about, and saw a few small groups that may have been the ones she meant, but he couldn't tell that well. He smiled and nodded, pretending he knew who she was talking about. He made a cautious effort to get to his feet, nearly stumbling, but managed to hold his balance and settle down a bit. "What about you. Here with family? Some friends?" she asked curiously. Malisys froze instantly at the question. Sweat started to form on his forehead. There was no way he could answer that question honestly to this woman he'd just met, was there? "Come on, what you waiting for?" she added, which made his heart jump at the opening. "Well, I came here today because I want to learn how to ice skate better." his voice quavering as he spoke the half-truth, only realizing after that he had proclaimed himself an expert just a few moments ago. He smacked himself to try and get his thoughts together. Being near an attractive woman was clearly bothering him and he knew he'd have to get it together or she'd be scared away. He took a few deep breaths, then tried again. "I used to ice skate when I was younger, not too much, but I liked it. I think this place is nice and somewhat romantic, so I like to come here every so often now. It's a fun place to be." The young man looked at Vani, trying to gauge her reactions to his antics. He hoped he hadn't been clumsy enough with his words to scare her away, but he also knew he was in no way feeling 'normal.' Nervousness still clouded his mind and embarrassment from his multitude of mishaps was making him perspire, though not excessively, yet.

[Vina]

Vina turned her gaze from around her shoulder, back towards the crowd of people covering the ice. She watched as they seemed to move so gracefully, without a care in the world. She placed her hands on her waist, the eagerness to get on the ice beginning to kick in. "Well, I came here today because I want to learn how to ice skate better." Her attention focused back towards Malysis direction, just as he finished his statement, continuing on. She began to turn completely around, now facing him as she watched his uncomfortable postures and his wobbling ankles. She did as best as she found, to hold in the small bits of laughter her mouth wanted so badly to release. "I used to ice skate when I was younger, not too much, but I liked it. I think this place is nice and somewhat romantic, so I like to come here every so often now. It's a fun place to be." Romantic. Her expression winced, her nose appearing a bit wrinkled as she completely disagreed with his mention of romance. It has never been no surprise that Vina has never took much interest in relationships or guys period. She has always disliked the idea of falling in love, and being surrounded by a barricade with the title of someones wife and mother. Where was the fun in that? Instead of settling down with a worthy man, she would rather travel Mizahar, making the adventure the only love she needs. As much as she wanted to batter the word, she shrugged her shoulders and reached out towards his hand. "I guess it can be romantic, if you're in to that sort of thing, anyway. As for it being fun, that I definitely agree with!" she smiled, giving a long pause once her fingertips reached only an inch away from his own, "Well, the first thing is to always remember: It's just a bit of a slippery surface! -and of course well, balance." Once her fingertips brushed just against his, she grabbed his hand with a light squeeze once she felt most comfortable. She did not want to just leap in and snatch his hand, that would be rude of her. Instead, she had let her hand wander and linger towards his own, until their palms met, her fingers embracing around his hand and holding it as much as she could, in to her own. She looked up towards him, her neck having to bend a bit backwards. Malisys wasn't a towering height of 6'0 or more, but he had more than enough inches on Vina, for her to have to give effort to look up in to his eyes. She was a very small height of 5'2, which was very short, even compared to someone who wasn't very tall himself. She watched his expression closely, and couldn't help but to release a vibrant laugh. "Don't look so frightened! I won't hurt you.." she said, trying her best to bring some comfort. With her never ceasing smile, she turned her feet back around, as she began to stamper and move towards the ice rink, pulling him slowly and carefully behind her. She pulled his hand a bit tighter, once they were much closer to the ice, pulling him along side her. "Okay, you first!" she exclaimed cheerfully, as she reached her arm behind him, giving him a rough pat on the back with a gentle laugh to follow after.

[Malisys]

Malisys watched Vina carefully as he spoke his peace. One of the things he said caused her face to wrinkle up. Fear began to cloud his mind as he wondered if he'd offended this woman, and how she must think him irritating or offensive. His mind raced as he tried to think of a way to rectify the situation, but then she spoke to him in a reassuring tone while simultaneously reaching out to him. The Vantha's heart skipped a beat as he looked at her hand, unsure of what to make of the gesture. Did this mean she liked him? Was she not offended at all but intrigued by his mention of romance? No, how could that be, she'd not a few moments prior scoffed at the idea of something like ice skating being romantic. "You're thinking too hard, Malisys. You have to calm down. She has to be noticing your behavior by now. Calm down. You just met her." he thought. The young woman's hand grabbed his own before he could try and relax, though, causing his heart rate to skyrocket. It felt nice to him, not too warm, and gentle. It was almost... soothing. Malisys took a deep breath to gather himself and calm down, which caused his eye color to start reverting back to his natural violet color. He looked at her and smiled weakly, still not over the heart palpitations. "Don't look so frightened! I won't hurt you." she said, trying her best to bring some comfort. "She did notice... what should I do?" he thought to himself, trying to keep his composure for once. She could tell she just wanted to have some fun, and he wanted to do the same. Just then she began to pull him towards the central ice rink. He held out his hand, trying his best to keep his balance. His heart rate drifted back to normal finally, something about her fun-loving nature calming him. When he was moving on skates, he didn't have time to worry about what she looked like or how nervous he was. He realized she was just like any other person, not a beauty with rigid demeanor and a cold shoulder for anyone deemed unworthy, but someone who was searching for fun and had ideas of her own. He let his eyes drift onto the ice ahead to notice the many people skating around, having fun. He smiled, ready to do the same. "Okay, you first!" she exclaimed cheerfully, as she reached her arm behind him, giving him a rough pat on the back with a gentle laugh to follow after. Malisys slid out onto the ice, flailing his arms around in an attempt to gain some balance. He looked back at her with a sour face, but laughed afterward as well. He reached back and grabbed her hand, pulling her onto the slippery ice. He was quickly forced to let go, though, as this caused him to lose his balance and fall straight backward, sliding a few feet back on his rear end. "This is your fault, Vina!" he joked with a hearty laugh, trying to keep his mind focused on how kind she was being to him, rather than on her looks or gender, then carefully lifted himself back on his feet.

[Vina]

Vina observed the wobbling legs of the Vantha, his clumsy and entertaining movements bringing her to laugh even harder. Of course, she was in no way making fun of him. The moment of watching him on the ice though, was just very amusing, in a the most innocent of ways. She saw his reach towards her own hand, and she voluntarily extended it just a bit so he could grab a hold. He pulled her gently on to the ice, but with her eagerness to get on the ice in the first place, it was almost as if he was escorting her, and not so much pulling her with force. The skates touching the ice brought a sudden jerk to her body as she adjusted her balance, beginning to slowly glide her feet, little by little. Malysis let go of her hand, and she watched as his legs began to scamper much faster. It was obvious, he was about to take a tumble. Vina stopped her movement and watched with worried eyes, her hand reaching towards her mouth as she awaited the fall, hoping it wouldn't be anything too.. er, dramatic. He fell straight backwards once he lost complete balance, and slide a feww feet away on his bottom. Vina moved her feet gently, making her way closer to him until she was just hovering over his side. "This is your fault, Vina!" He laughed, and with his lightened response to the fall, she shared the laughter with him. She lowered her hand from her mouth, watching as he got back up to his feet. She shook her head, placing her hands on to her waist. "Looks like you do need some work on your ice skating, there. Here.." she said, removing her hand from her waist and reaching for his. Her feet carried her to turn, facing the crowd of people, now along side of him. She began to slowly move her feet, her eyes looking down towards his wobbling skates. "There isn't a wall around the rink, so you're going to have to hold on to my hand and well uh, imagine me as a wall -or something.. like that." she shook her head, confusing her own self, "-ah, anyways, the trick is of course, balance! Just take it easy, let your feet get used to the ices surface. Try leaning more on your weak foot. You know, the foot you use the least." She tried to recall her own lessons, but she can't ever remember having any. She was used to the ice, at a very young age. Coming out often with family for a little 'bonding' time. Though, once in her older years, those moments she spent with her family kind of started to die away. She spent much more time with her friends, and if it wasn't with her friends, it was usually spending time alone. She kept an eye on his feet, waiting for him to get comfortable enough until he really didn't need her hand. "Well look'it what we have here!" the high pitched voice called out. Vina looked up quickly, observing the two dark haired girls skating their way, their expressions quite amused with the sight they were taking in. "You two are looking quite.. 'cozy'. Must have forgot all about us, huh Vina! Guess you did more than uh, get your skates in a little knot, didn't you." the girl teased, while her friend who stood next to her, had to simply add in her instigating comment, "Yeah, I saw the two up there, snuggling about near the skate shop." "Oh can it, Salrin." Vina said through her clenched teeth, finding that her Vani language had slipped, now speaking in common. That wasn't the only thing that slipped, but her hand did aswell, removing itself from Malysis grip.