[Soothing Waters] Drykas in Training [Open]

[Eldon Sunkiss]

Day 57 of Summer, AV 511 It was his first day on the job, and Eldon found himself to be oddly calmed by the fact that he had absolutely no idea what he was doing as of yet. Then again, it wasn't exactly hard to feel nervous when your first task was to be thoroughly worked over by the ever-so-skillful hands of Calyna Zia. Eldon found himself lying face down on some odd bed, which was nothing like the cot on the ground he was used to back in Endrykas, and his entire body was flooding with feeling that could only be described as incredible comfort. Why was his job to receive a massage? Simple, to understand how a massage was meant to feel, the point of it, and maybe even find all those sweet spots on the body that made people pass into divine joy as you massaged their body. Then it stopped. Eldon knew it meant his time of sampling was up, it was his turn to try and massage. He expected Calyna to trade him spots, but that didn't happen to be the case. "Alright Eldon, I'm going to send in your first customer. Since you're new, they're going to get a free sample, you're still working though, be nice, be gentle, and talk with them if they want to converse." Calyna smiled as she patted Eldon gently on the cheek, which was lightly shaded with the hint of growing-in facial hair. Being new in Syliras, he hadn't really taken the time to properly dress himself up. The young Drykas man stared at Calyna for a long moment, his Common was poor at best, understanding what she said was difficult, but he had common sense, he would manage. He nodded slowly, and was then left alone in the room. Eldon peered around the place, taking in several crucial observations. Incense for burning, he wasn't going to touch that stuff. Aroma-therapy was something he wasn't even vaguely familiar with. The strange bed, really a massage table, with four fluffy pearly white towels neatly folded and stacked at the end, the large privacy wall, which was mainly a beautiful piece of polished wall standing up high enough to hide anyone behind it completely (except for an Akalak perhaps, their heads would probably be spotted from over the top), privacy obviously so they could change without the masseuse absorbing their naked bodies. Bowls and bottles of oils lined the shelves in perfect organization so that it was both effective and beautiful to look at, and again Eldon would not be touching these since he wouldn't know the first thing about using them correctly. And there he waited, nothing but a towel tightly attached around his waste in that room, steaming from the vents that lined the floor. This might have been a special room, Eldon wasn't sure, but the warm humidity felt good, he liked this. He even forgot how uncomfortable he was being in a place with no wind or grass or sky to be seen (Syliras as a whole), just because of the water was so abundant, he was actually enjoying himself. Now, if Calyna would just lead his first client in so that he could get to work.

[Asara Willow]

Asara felt growing apprehension as she awaited an escort to show her to a waiting masseuse, whatever the hell that was. In all seriousness, she'd never thought to return to this infernal place. Humans parading around in their birthday suits was shameful. At least, to her...

Suddenly, a rather kind looking human woman came, introduced herself as Calyna, and gave Asara a sharp look over, showing no disapproval at the Symenestra's obvious heritage. She gave a warming smile, perhaps a real smile, and told Asara to follow her, which the Symenestra promptly obeyed.

As they walked, Asara's mind lingered on her choice to return to the Soothing Waters. It was almost masochistic, her desire to return. But she had come to escape the pain in her body from constant collisions with the larger race populating Syliras so dominantly. Her ribs had been sorely injured, and the bruises still splotched her fair skin, and every breath still felt painful.

Her thoughts were once again interrupted as the woman directed her to a rather elegantly furnished room. Asara stepped in, her gaze only for the odd bed and the lovely furnishings. She'd never been to such a lovely place in what she held of her memory, and she swallowed the sights eagerly. Her gold eyes settled on a man human and she started, his appearance out of what she assumed was empty air had given her a good fright. Thought, suspicions, trickled into her mind. Was she in a human trap? Or was he a 'masseuse'?

"Am I in the correct place?" Asara whispered softly in Common, clutching her few toiletries to her body. Her folded towel she held close. It was something she had bought at the instruction of the woman who suggested she try out the 'massages' here.

[Eldon Sunkiss]

At least, Eldon wasn't anxious until the door opened, Calyna had returned, and as promised, Eldon had his first customer, and he felt a little nervous at the thought now. He had no real training, but he had been explained the theory of massages several times, experienced it, watched it happen, and had the common sense to know that you had to be gentle, and firm only when necessary. He wasn't sure when that was, but that he could learn over time. Calyna ushered the Symenestra into the room and motioned to the privacy barrier. "You can get dressed back there. Eldon is new, but strong and handsome. He's Drykas and doesn't speak Common very well, so I hope you can be a little patient with him. Let me know if you need anything." Calyna must have been busy with something, because she left in quite a hurry, though the smile, the cheerful demeanor, none of that faded in her rush. Eldon grinned. The Drykas looked over Asara as she stood there, and he thought prayers to himself that his first subject wasn't an overweight obnoxious man with flatulence or a hairy back. "Hello. I am Eldon." It was painfully visible that Eldon had difficulty pronouncing in Common, but his greeting was fairly clean, being one of the few phrases he could do skillfully. He pointed towards the Privacy walls with his head as he took the folded towels from the Massage Table and set them aside. "Need change?" Eldon wasn't ignorant that his client wasn't in fact human. The pale skin was so white that even the Humans of Syliras, who were considered pale compared to Eldon Sunkiss who had been, as his name implied, thoroughly kissed by the sun. His skin was tanned by years of sun, but Asara was nearly white, and her hands, that stood out the most. Since his recent departure from home, Eldon had found several interesting things, the weather was the most important, the different culture was next, and the races third. He hadn't met a Symenestra before, but neither was he afraid. She was nothing like a Zith anyway. Eldon waited for Asara to get ready, and just to make her more comfortable, he turned her back towards her, giving her that much more privacy for any situating she felt was necessary.

[Asara Willow]

Asara eyed up the male at Calyna's introduction, her gold eyes always watchful. She wasn't sure what 'Drykas' meant, but the man seemed reasonably strong, and if Asara was a hormone driven human with a mind constantly fogged by desire, she'd have to agree that he was handsome. Still... Too human.

When the other woman had fled for whatever business, apprehension built up in Asara's small frame. Strength implied the use of force. She was fragile. She feared he would break her bones, but she fought to control the emotion before it rose to overflow her gaze. Instead, she managed a small smile.

"Hello, Eldon. I am Asara." Asara's accent caused her name to creep out like the most eerie of musics. She managed to pronounce his name, being fairly well at speaking Common. Reading the language was a whole other thing. "Yes. I would like to change."

She did not allow venom to seep into her voice. While she felt the mild stirrings of awkwardness, Asara felt no real dislike for Eldon. Curiosity was the dominant emotion, making her gold eyes grow darker, but she didn't speak. She took advantage of his turned back to remove her normal human clothes and wrap a towel around her form. Once again, the towel made her feel tiny, like a little child in a comforter. She grumbled something under her breath, and then told Eldon he could face her.

"Will this be a painful experience, Eldon?"

[Eldon Sunkiss]

When Asara told Eldon she was ready, he turned around. He had already noticed she was smaller than him, most women, regardless of race, were, but as he looked at her body engulfed by the genuinely human-sized towel, he realized that she was very small, by even small-human standards. Almost childlike, perhaps she was a child even. Eldon inhaled slowly, exhaling slower. Painful? What was she talking about? "Not hurt. Here." Eldon gestured to the massage table, offering the petite woman to lie down so that he could begin, if she was, of course, ready for such a thing. "You can lay... here. Ready?" Painful Common, but Eldon assumed that Asara Willow wouldn't know Pavi, not like his boss who knew at least enough to communicate with him. Eldon moved across the room to a large bowl, a wash basin, empty. It had several purposes, to clean the hands of the person who would be massaging, if the customer wanted to wash his or her face, it was there, if cleansing of wounds was necessary, water was there. But this was empty, or for a moment it was. Eldon glanced behind him at Asara, then reached into the basin. It was an awkward feeling because of how long it had been since Eldon last formed his res. His Djed pumped through his body, racing slowly through to his hand as he sat there, and water was created, almost expertly, as the water basin began to fill up with this magical, pure, water. Being a watermaker of the Sapphire Clan had its uses in faraway places like this as well. He then proceeded to wash his hands slowly and thoroughly, not that there was much to clean off of them. He had already bathed this morning, soaked for a long while even, which was a luxury he wasn't accustomed to, but already learned to love. "No hurt, promise." Eldon smiled as he moved back towards Asara, whether she went ahead and sprawled across the table, which was definitely large enough for one and a half people her size, in preparation. Eldon could see her worry though, in her golden-yellow eyes, she was worried about something. Pain, and she was so small, Eldon was larger and stronger. He understood, she was afraid he was too strong. But, he could, and more importantly would, be gentle for her. If anything, he was likely to be too gentle. He was too paranoid of hurting anyone else, which he never wanted.

[Asara Willow]

Asara couldn't help but offer Eldon a small smile as he spoke, his Common understandable, if a bit awkward. He sounded like Seven when the half blood had begun his learning of Symenos. In a way, she'd describe it as cute. Cute but unfortunate.

In silence, she came to the table-bed and lay on it, unsure of if she should lay on her back or stomach. She chose her stomach and stretched out slowly, feeling some of her aches and pains alleviated as she relaxed. She watched the Drykas closely, her gold eyes showing mild suspicion mingled with overwhelming curiosity. The sound of water was a surprise to her. She was certain the bowl had been empty, but he was washing his hands in it. Interesting.

It's magic or Djed. Whatever the hell that was... Couldn't the inner voice that plagued the darkest corners of the Symenestra's mind be more descriptive? What was Djed? There came no reply to the thought and Asara dismissed it for now.

She watched him dry and turn to her, keeping her eyes on him much like a beast in the wild would watch a non-threatening predator. He told her he would not hurt her? So he was going to administer this 'massage'? Once again... Interesting.

"What exactly is this going to be, Eldon?" She asked in an almost icy tone. She bit the words with her fangs, agitated now by the thought of something new that she had foolishly not bothered to learn about. Bathing in the pools with humans seemed much more comfortable at this point. Here, she was in a room in only a towel with a grown adult male and no knowledge of what was going to happen.

[Eldon Sunkiss]

Eldon stopped his advancement as he caught Asara's somewhat intimidating glare and sharp brutal tone of voice that extended from the petite woman's lips. Eldon simply stared at her for a moment before speaking. "What?" That was all Eldon managed. Either he was caught off guard or preoccupied by her tone, or his ineptitude with the Common Tongue was just so poor that he didn't quite understand what she had asked him. Why was she so defensive? Did she seriously come here for a massage and expect her masseuse to harm her? Did she even know what she came here for? Eldon took a step closer. "Massage. The body comforted." Eldon remembered Calyna saying something along those lines, comforting the strained or exhausted bodies with your hands. "Can I?" Eldon was now, oddly enough he thought, asking permission to begin the massage. He was aware that a decent portion of time had been wasted in their inability to communicate properly, as well as her hesitation, still. She was laying on the table, she did intend to go through with it, right? Eldon, assuming Asara did nothing to refuse or deny this, would ease himself by her side and gently place his hand on Asara's back, between the shoulders blades. He wanted to see if she was comfortable enough with him to do his job or if touching her like this only startled her more. If she didn't freak out on him, then he could finally start her massage.

[Asara Willow]

She offered him a slight half smile when it became apparent to her that he must have caught her tone. She didn't mean to get sharp with him. She had no intention of alienating a man hired for her... Body? Relaxing her body? Sounded almost too heavenly to be a human concept. She allowed him to approach her, deliberately reigning in the instinct to keep her eyes on him. She'd wasted valuable time for him to do his work. He probably had other appointments, and here he was stuck with a Symenestra with a trust issue.

She had to work on her people skills.

When he put his hands between her shoulder blades, Asara stiffened slightly. She still wasn't used to personal contact, with anyone. She forced herself to relax again, settling for the unease that filled her gut and letting the man do his work. Maybe this relaxation would ease the pains of her body? The subtle aches and groans of overuse and undersleeping. Maybe this would make her doze off? Unlikely, but an entertaining thought. She'd not slept in human company before.

[color=#BFFFFF]"Sorry,"/color] The Symenestra muttered softly, apologizing for everything she felt she'd done wrong in this encounter. She really should have researched what she was agreeing to, but there was no time and no one to ask. It was a stupid moment.

[Eldon Sunkiss]

Eldon was relieved to find the woman not quite as vicious or bloodthirsty as she appeared. It must have just been uncommon for her, Eldon would accept it as so. He took his hand, the one already resting against Asara's back, and finally got to work. Shoulders would be first, top to bottom, he assumed it was a decent way to start. His hands reached upwards, and he began to massage her shoulders, nearest to the neck, as carefully as you might handle a precious piece of glass. His fingers moved slowly, only putting on enough pressure that Asara could feel his fingers rotating slowly, gently, carefully. His hands would, over time, work their way down and and out, following the curving trail from her neck to her shoulders. Then he paused, withdrawing his hands entirely from her body. He, just now, remembered how Calyna had worked on him. Up from the lower back. He was sure there were several methods, but that way was obviously shown to him for a reason. Eldon sighed as he stared down at the petite woman. She was still wrapped in her towel. He couldn't work with that thing covering so much of her back, yet he had this strange feeling that peeling it away without warning or asking would be met with serious and swift repercussion. "I need move... this." Eldon pinched the towel and watched Asara, watching for any sudden reaction, denial, and again assuming she cooperated, he would began to fold the towel from her back, yet leave it covering her behind and upper legs. If he was met with resistance, obviously, he would pull back instantly. "I not hurt. Eh?"

[Asara Willow]

Asara felt herself relaxing, almost unwillingly, as Eldon's hands worked on her shoulders. She felt a brief twinge of pain from where that stupid human woman had hit her with an apple and broke, almost shattered, Asara's shoulder. It wasn't fully healed yet, and it would probably always give her pain, but she forced herself to ignore it. Other than it, the massage thing had started out quite nicely. It was probably far better than going into the hot baths again. She had no patience with the gaping people there.

To her surprise, Eldon removed his hands and sighed. She wondered why he had sighed. Had she done something wrong to bother his focus? Before she could ask, he was gently peeling back her towel to expose her bare back. His only words previous didn't prepare her for this, and she immediately tensed again.

After a few tense moments, in which she kept herself on the bed, she forced herself into relaxation. He hadn't hurt her yet had he? She didn't have to get afraid of any human who touched her shoulder so nicely, did she? With a soft sigh, she relaxed an muttered a curse for her own stupidity. She wanted him to continue.

"It feels very lovely, actually..." Asara muttered softly for him. She didn't want to discourage him.