[Flashback] A Rough Start [Gabrielle]

[K'Sabe]

70 of Fall 506 AV Sabe sat in deep concentration bent over her paper and let her brush move with grace and flow, like water moving fluidly yet with power. Careful to get every line right from the beginning Sabe moved slowly though not to slowly, after all you couldn't erase ink once you had drawn with it, this in itself was hard for her as she lacked a lot of the patience many of her Konti sisters possessed. Her motif was the South Tower, the beautiful white tower said to be the goddess Rak'keli's home when she was in Mura, Sabe sat in the middle of the garden to add an extra touch to her impression of the tower. The garden in itself was a breathtaking sight, well kept and beautiful it was truly a worthy dedication to Rak'keli, full of flowers that broke off nicely to green and silvery bushes. The tower was built with the same stone as all of Mura were and it shone brightly in the sunlight. Looking up from her drawing Sabe examined the structure for her next brush stroke, though she was aiming for a simple style, with little details while still clearly showing what the motive had been. It was at times like this she wished she used colours more often in her drawings as to capture the South Tower skilfully with colours would be amazing though Sabe loved the simple yet elegant and beautiful stile of ink paintings. Gazing down again at her drawing the young Konti gripped the wooden brush with slender fingers and dipped the brush in the black ink and proceeded to put down some more lines. The real goal for this style wasn't to capture the exact look of the object you're drawing but its soul, instead of concentrating fully on getting every single line perfectly correct it is more important to show a sense of life and feeling in your drawing. Though that was easier said than done. Sabe's hardest obstacle in this art style was just to give her drawings life. What felt like several bells later Sabe straightened up, her back ached from her tense and slightly bent over position, as long as she could remember Sabe had never been able to sit correctly. She always started hunching over as she lost herself in concentration and had to deal with aching back and fingers as she always tensed up her hands and arms as well. She spread out her drawing beside her on the bench to dry Sabe proceeded to whistle, she'd been practising and had gotten relatively good at making melodic sounds that attracted small birds to sing with her. Soon enough the beautiful song of a robin followed Sabe's own whistling, entering a duet with the Konti. Sabe often fed the birds around Mura even in summer and always tried to have seeds with her, today too she had a pocket with a mixture of seeds, grabbing a small handful she spread a few on the ground and held the rest in her open palm. A small light grey bird with darker feathers on his back fluttered down to the ground and picked at the seeds before showing off his brilliant red chest as it looked up at the Konti stretching out a pale hand. Their robin stared at her white black eyes as if measuring her danger level before it then flew up and snatched some seeds from her open palm, it happened so fast the Sabe only felt the sharp claws of the bird for a short second before it sat on the bench as far away from her as possible. Sitting completely still Sabe started whistling a melody as close as she could manage to how the robin sounded, not so close but it wasn't as crude as her tries ten years ago. Cocking its head to its side the robin seemed to listen to her, then it broke out into its musical song taking over whenever Sabe quieted down and stood quiet on thin legs when Sabe whistled, sometimes it sang a duet with the Konti as well. From what she had learned robin's where quite social birds on the White Isle where they were not hunted by the Konti people and it was relatively easy to get a robin tame enough to eat from ones hand. After eating some more seeds from her hand the robin flew off into the garden continuing its song from a branch, hidden from sight. Turning to her painting again Sabe felt gently on it and found the sun had helped dried the ink faster than normal, sending a thankful thought to Syna for the warm glow off the sun. Rolling the paper into a tube she picked up her brush and inkpot, having no pockets on her dress nor did she have a bag with her she had suffice with carrying them. While initially intending to go home when done Sabe decided against it, a sudden urge to visit the South Tower, a place for honouring Rak'keli and inner contemplation, came over her. As she entered the cathedral like tower the tranquil atmosphere lulled her into peace, any worries forgotten, the sweet and calming scent of incense wafted through the open room further adding to the peaceful air inside. The walls ware the same white stone as the outside but glittered in the warm sunlight sneaking its way inside through the many windows high above, like it was sprinkled with diamonds, though it was more likely some kind of sea shells or pearls that had been crushed and mixed with the stone by the Konti who built the Opal Temple from the beginning. Green lines and patterns of leaves and plants decorated the walls, showing the connection to nature and all living the Konti race seemed to share. A beautifully coloured statue of Rak'keli stood in the centre, an altar with incense at its foot. The goddess winged snakes, her Raknivas, formed the legs for the altar, their wings and scales an ornate silver, breaking off against the all the white. Walking up to the altar Sabe lit an incense before kneeling, putting her painting and brush on the marble floor, her deep green dress spreading over the floor around her, contrasting against the pale floor. Taking deep breath, closing her sea green eyes, she soaked herself in the calm air and the aromatic smell filling the room, sending a prayer to Rak'keli she then let herself just sit in peace, thinking about nothing in particular.

[Gabrielle Seawind]

The young gray dolphin jumped into the air and did a twirl. The beads of cool seawater that he splashed looked bright and beautiful against the sun light. Gabrielle gave her tavan a slight wave; the dolphin, along with its brothers, retreated to the deeper parts of the sea as Gabrielle and her pod members made for the city. Their casinors were situated at the White Harbor of Mura. Gabrielle's sisters carried down boxes of merchandise that they planned to barter of to the Konti in the hopes of leaving with much Vision Water. "This is the first time Kairo came this close to land," mused Gabrielle to one of her sisters. Her tavan, the dolphin she named Kairo, rarely went close to land when Gabrielle and her pod members docked at a harbor, or even anchored near shore. Gabrielle figured it was because he was not comfortable amongst strangers, and many lands men found entertainment in seeing the dolphin pod that swam with their casinors. "Mura is known to be kind, even to animals. Kairo must know that," her sister said in reply, though her sister did not seem to be paying much attention as she heaved a wooden box of silks on her shoulders. They made their way towards the city, and Gabrielle quickly separated from her pod members in fear of being given work to do. As the day went by, Gabrielle saw herself exploring the city itself. In all her fourteen years, she had never seen such a beautiful city. She felt much awe at the structures with designs that she had never seen before. They had such simple formations, but they were incredibly beautiful in an entirely different way. The young Svefra was not an artistic one, but even she could appreciate such a site. Soft music could be heard here and there, and the aura was so peaceful, and so very different to what Gabrielle was accustomed to. Another factor that made her very curious was the people who lived in Mura. They all seemed to be young, beautiful women with very lightly colored hair. Scales which shimmered ran down their limbs and their backs, and the young girl often found herself staring. It was a rude practice, but the Konti women did not seem to care. Gabrielle soon found herself in front of a high tower. As she entered, she couldn't help but further admire the beauty and the peacefulness. Vision water could be found seeping into a few parts of the floor. Across the room, she could see a Konti woman praying to the altar. The woman was the only other person around, but in the silence of it all, it was as if Gabrielle was alone. The scent of incense filled her nose, and she felt light-headed and relaxed. She was not one to pray, but in her mind she thanked Laviku for again guiding them on a safe journey. Approaching the altar, she could see the intricate designs of the statues, and the fact that some light gems scattered from the feet of Rak'keli and unto the floor. They were beautiful, and the light that spilled in from the high windows reflected on them and caused them to shimmer like the morning sunlight against the seawater. Without giving much though, Gabrielle reached forward and took three gems in her hands. She stared at them and then placed them in her pocket, not even wondering if it was against the law or a disgrace against Rak'keli. As a young Svefra, she was not too educated in laws or the culture of others, and only believed that would could be taken may be taken without problem. Now that she had three beautiful light gems to show off to her sisters and mother, Gabrielle smiled widely to herself and turned around, ready to find them in the bazaar. She was excited to show off her discovery, and took no further notice of the Konti woman by the altar.

[K'Sabe]

Sabe sat bent by Rak'keli's statue, praying, though she was never quite sure how a prayer was supposed to be done. It was something she had never understood despite being quite religious, what exactly was said in a prayer? She did not know and so Sabe said what came to her at the moment, though quietly. She had her neck bent and so she saw nothing except the floor if her eyes had been open but she instantly felt the disturbance in the calm atmosphere as someone entered the temple. At first Sabe didn't care, as it was no one she knew or any danger present she just continued her silent meditation, though she could hear the stranger moving about in the quiet tower. Until a soft noise brought her out of her concentration, it wasn't anything weird really, just the sound of stones gently being rustled. But just that was what was weird, this was a temple to honour and house Rak'keli, nothing should be taken from here, the most visitors should do was lit incense. Rising quickly she spun around just in time to see a young girl maybe around her mid teens, Sabe wasn't sure as she had little knowledge of any non Konti, put some coloured stones in her pocket. "Hey!" She called out in Common, the language felt a bit stiff in her mouth as she didn't use it too often, eyes gaining a resemblance to a stormy sea, and strode over to the girl quickly, grabbing her arm to hinder her from running. "Those are not for you to take, this is a place to honour the goddess Rak'keli not a tourist spot with free stuff." If the girl would not listen Sabe's grip would tighten slightly and she'd insist quite sternly and give off the impression she was not to take lightly. Let it be that she was barely capable in unarmed combat but she could fake it quite good as long as it didn't come to blows. But so far the atmosphere around her felt safe, and Sabe trusted her gift with her life. If the girl gave the stones back then Sabe would release her grip and her temper would quickly cool down again and offer an explanation as the girl was obviously a visitor. "Rak'keli is our mother's sister as well as being a very honoured goddess here in Mura." Sabe said, smiling and placing the stones back at the statues feet taking her chance to grab her painting and small case with her ink and brush before turning back to the girl. "I'm Sabe by the way, you are new here I take it." The young Konti said, to her it was a bit obvious but she still said it as an opening if the girl was interested.

[Gabrielle Seawind]

The woman was a beauty to behold, with flowing blonde hair that resembled the light of the moon. To Gabrielle, the green tint of the woman's eyes resembled some parts of the sea. Sabe was much taller than the young Gabrielle, and the Svefra took a soft gulp, fearful of what may happen. However, even if she was currently being reprimanded, it was difficult to be truly afraid of the woman, who had such a beautiful demeanour and seemed to move and speak with so much grace. The young Svefra could have very well run at that point. She was an agile girl, and there was nobody else there to stop her. All she had to do was break free of the Konti's grip and get away as quickly as she could; but, then what? She was just told that she wasn't allowed to take the stones, and she was somewhat aware that other cultures regarded "stealing" as a serious crime. It would surely start a disagreement between her pod members and the Konti, and she could very much be punished later on. Gabrielle couldn't do anything, so with a childish expression of sadness and stubbornes, she put the gems in Sabe's hands and watched as they were returned to the feet of Rak'keli. Gabrielle looked with a bit of interest as Sabe picked up what seemed to be her belongings. They seemed to be used for the arts, and Gabrielle wondered if it was true that all of the Konti were really very creative. At the very second that Sabe turned away from her, the young Svefra had a quick thought to swipe away another stone... just a small one, and behind Sabe's back, and maybe it would be missed. However, Sabe was quick to turn back to her and speak once more, and the Svefra's mischievous thought was gone just as soon as it had surfaced. "I'm Gabrielle, I'm only here because my pod is in need of vision water," mumbled Gabrielle in reply to Sabe’s words. She stared at the ground and kept her hands behind her. Her posture and expression clearly emphasized that she was truly disappointed that she wouldn't be able to show off her discovery to her family. "I'm sorry I took the stones... they were just lying around, so I thought nobody owned them." Soft voices came from behind them, and two Konti women entered the room. They both spoke in hushed voices and had smiles on their face, and their conversation dwindled down as they walked towards the direction of the altar, probably to pray. They gave a quick glance to Gabrielle and the Svefra knew she looked out of place. Gabrielle awkwardly scratched the back of her neck and made a move to leave the room.

[K'Sabe]

The disappointment was clearly visible in the Gabrielle's entire body language as she stared at the ground with blue eyes, blonde hair lightly touched by fire falling beside her face as she mumbled her answer, it was very effective even though it wasn't intentional as it made Sabe feel bad. She had never liked telling people off or scolding someone, not the best trait when you had a niece that was very energetic and annoyingly curious, actually very similar to Sabe herself in the same age. If those stones had not been an offering to Rak'keli Sabe would probably have given Gabrielle some of them but things were like they were now. Maybe it was more usual in other cultures to take what lay in the open, she didn't know for sure but it made sense somehow, and then it wasn't so strange if people didn't really understand how cities like Mura, where much decor lay in the open yet it was an untold law that they were not to be taken, worked. Just then a pair of Konti came through the door talking in hushed tones and cast glances at the stranger, Sabe smiled and nodded in greeting to them before heading after the girl who was turning to leave. "Actually if you're looking to collect beautiful stones the waves washes up a lot of stones and shells on the beach, they are often intricately carved by the sea and smooth like silk. She offered, pearls she knew, though they were frequently harvested not free to Konti themselves either but Sabe had spent much time on the beach and had a quite large collection of stones and sea shells she had found on the beach, one she'd found had even taken to form off a fish almost, quite roughly formed but still recognisable. "They can be found at most beaches but the larger ones usually have more off them washed up," Sabe said streaking back her hair over her shoulders and shifted her things to her other hand and rested them against her hip. "I think you'd be able to find some beautiful things there, otherwise you'd have to buy stones at a shop."

[Gabrielle Seawind]

The young girl's face lit up almost instantly. The idea of collecting beautiful items that could naturally be found in the beach was an enchanting idea. As a Svefra, she had seen her fair share of beaches and the items that could be collected from them. She liked the different shapes the shells could form and the various assortments of colors that stones could present. When she was much younger, around five or so, she used to collect them in a jar; at that moment, she wondered where her jar of shells and stones were. She knew that some of what she had collected had been fashioned into simple accessories by her mother. Gabrielle had no idea how the accessories where done or how her mother would smoothen the stones and shell out so that they wouldn’t scratch one’s skin, but she had always liked the result. She had thought from the moment she stepped into Mura that it was a stunning city, and very abundant in natural beauties. What more could she find in the beach, where the naturally occurring beauties themselves should show up on their own. Without waiting for an answer, she grabbed Sabe's arm and started for the door in a quick stride. Gabrielle didn't really give Sabe much of a choice but to be dragged behind in a hurry. She was thinking ahead of herself, and in her mind, although it wasn't really what happened, Sabe had just offered to take her to the beach where she would find the best items. The young girl was still very childlike in most ways, and quick to jump at things which enchanted her. Her lips were curved into a huge smile and her eyes sparkled with delight and excitement. "My mom can make necklaces and bracelets out of what can be found by the shore! I wonder what she can make from what I find here?" she asked in a joyful tone. She held up her wrist for Sabe to see. On her wrist was a collection of smoothed colored glass which were made into a bracelet."I found these ones somewhere on the shores of the Northern Suvan Sea... I think it was somewhere near Syliras. We spend most of our seasons near Syliras, you see. Have you ever been there? The lands there are much busier than Mura's, so I think people just love grabbing the stones and leaving the simple ones behind... I hope the ones here are much nicer!” As they stepped out into the street, Gabrielle stopped in her tracks and gave the Konti a questioning look. She was not familiar in any way with the island, and had no clue as to which direction to go. Then, realization hit Gabrielle. "Oh... you were going to show the beaches, right?" she asked hopefully. Her lips pouted and she gave Sabe a pleading look.

[K'Sabe]

The instant joy on the Gabrielle's face, and the wave of happiness overflowing the air filled Sabe with at least the double amount, chuckling heartily Sabe followed as the girl tugged her along through the garden and out to the street, as the sun hit her hair directly it darkened to a pale golden. "It's beautiful," Sabe said, admiring the bracelet. The sun broke through the coloured stones, casting small but beautiful shadows on the girl's light sun kissed skin. "No, I haven't been anywhere else than Mura. She said, her smile shrank slightly at that. "But I plan to travel sometime, not necessarily to Syliras perhaps, but somewhere different. Sabe saw the enquiry in Gabrielle's face and though she herself had no trouble navigating the white city but she knew visitors often had problems finding their way through what seemed like identical streets. With the sun reflecting off the white stone and many parts of Mura being underwater it could be a challenge finding what you were looking for without staying for awhile. "I'll show you there," Sabe said and proceeded to guide Gabrielle out of the city. Walking down the streets, taking some shortcuts between shops and houses always surrounded by white broken only by the coloured stained glass windows in the houses that was often built to resemble sea shells, and the trees and flowers growing throughout the city. "Are you a Svefra?" Sabe asked bluntly. She lacked much of the normal soft spoken and polite ways of the Konti, she never was rude with purpose but she had a strange mix of a soft, calm composure and an eager free-spoken personality that made her act in strange ways sometimes. "How is it to spend your life on the sea? I love the water, to me it's like a second home," Sabe said, absently stroking her gills covering her neck, sending shivers down her spine as the gills were very sensitive. "But I don't think I could spend my life at sea despite our mother's mate Laviku ruling there." Slowly the city thinned out, the houses never stood too far apart and the city ended quite abruptly, replaced by the serene beauty of the White Isle's nature. A golden beach covered the area near Mura, licked by warm waves and a slight breeze rustled the trees nearby. "Here we are, there's usually some very interesting things to find here depending on how Laviku has deemed the currents to travel. Sabe said and strode out on the sand, here and there stones peaked out of the sand and the closer to the water they came the more shells and smooth stones they saw. Not all of them was whole or smooth, some had been damaged or had not been in the sea for a long enough time to be polished entirely. Placing her scroll and ink case on piece of flat rocks that was closer to the trees so as to not risk damage them and then placed her sandals beside them walking barefoot down into the water relishing in the feel of water on her bare skin and the sand between her toes. Occasionally she bent down and picked up something she deemed nice enough before heading up out of the water to sort through her small collection, seating herself promptly on the sand ignoring if the sand may dirty her dress. Looking through the shells and stones a familiar drilling filled the air as a small forest bird came flying over head. "Hello little friend, Sabe smiled up at the bird, talking in Kontinese, "I have no food for you today though. The birds on the beach were generally friendly with Sabe as she almost every day brought them seeds and sometimes small fruits and by now they were used to her presence. Often flying down to join her but today this little sparrow seemed cautious of Gabrielle and stayed airborne while singing its harmonious song for them.

[Gabrielle Seawind]

"I'm a Svefra," replied Gabrielle automatically, not really putting much thought into what she said. She was just excited to get to the beach, and while they walked to their destination, she daydreamed about what new array of stones she could place in a brand new jar. "The water is like a second home to me as well... the first being our ships. Why don't you think you can spend your life at sea? I heard the Konti have gills and everything. We Svefra like to swim, but it's not like we can actually breathe underwater. If we were able to do that, I bet every Svefra would be overjoyed. And you have that gift and you actually want to spend it in not exploring the seas... well, I guess it doesn't really matter, Mura's a really nice place. It's just a pity you can't see what other nice places there really are." Gabrielle was rambling, and she didn't think about the consequences of her words. She had practically said that Sabe was unfortunate for not seeing the world. However, Gabrielle sometimes wondered what it would be like if she had to be stuck in one land city – just the thought of it was terrible to her. As soon as Sabe announced their arrival to the beach, Gabrielle ran to the water with joy. She kicked off her boots on her way and ignored how some of the shells felt sharp against her feet (she was used to it). The young girl rushed to the waves and kicked the water playfully, watching as the waves and sand spilled over her bare feet. The water was cool and refreshing, and she took a glance at Sabe to see that she was tending to herself, and even speaking to a bird in a language Gabrielle couldn't understand. Gabrielle watched her for a while before walking along the shore to grab pieces of shells, stones and glass in her palm. At the corner of her eye, at a far away distance, Gabrielle saw a few small shadows dance in the water. She turned around quickly, and saw that a few dolphins from Kairo's pod were swimming around and occasionally jumping in the air. Gab raised her hand and waved with a huge smile. She yelled as loud as she could, "Kairoo! Heeey! Sabe, this is my best friend, his name is Kairo. Can a Konti speak to animals? Would he understand you?" Again, she was rambling and not waiting for an answer. The smallest of the dolphins, which she knew was Kairo, gave another jump in the air. In a few minutes, he was near the shoreline and squeaking happily at Gabrielle. He was still a calf, far from being an adult, but already Gabrielle's closest friend. The young Svefra was too rowdy for most animals, even for the little sparrow that she didn't realize was avoiding her, but she was happy that at least Kairo liked being by her side. Gabrielle went knee-deep in the water and gave the young dolphin a pet on the snout, to which he answered with another squeak.

[K'Sabe]

Sabe sorted out some stones that felt special and put them next to her scroll together with a seashell and spread the rest out on the beach again before going back to the shore. "While I love being underwater and explore the depths I wouldn't want to give up a life on land, both places are beautiful in their own ways and I, and most Konti I guess, wouldn't want to give either one up. Maybe it has something to do with Laviku being a god of the sea and Avalis is a mortal woman raised to a goddess, we have both sea and earth in our blood." Sabe mused, as they walked through Mura. "Though I read a book once that those without gills could gain them, tough not permanently, I think it said that in a city there was a library was underwater or was filled with water, and that when you entered you got gills so you could freely browse the large library. But I can't remember where it was." Sabe said, thinking back, it had been almost ten years since she found that book and she wasn't sure what it had said exactly or even if it was true. While Sabe herself wanted to see something else than Mura one day she couldn't see herself leaving Mura for good, no matter how great the world may be she knew in her heart that Mura would be her true home and that she'd return eventually. The small isle was as close to a heavenly existence that Sabe could imagine and she knew that seeing knew places would only increase her love for the island. At the beach she tried to get the bird down by whistling but it landed in a tree instead so Sabe gave up and walked down into the water again, her dress was too long though and she tired of holding it up all the time so she loosened the belt she usually wore and lifted the skirt of the dress up so it reached her knees before tightening the belt again, effectively holding her dress up. Bending to pick up another beautiful, swirled shell she looked up to see Gabrielle wave and call out to a flock of dolphins. Intrigued she saw one of the smaller gray animals leave the group to swim over to the Svefra girl and whistled in the unique way of the dolphins and smiled it's constant smile as the young girl petted it fondly. "No we can't speak with them unfortunately, what I spoke just now was Kontinese, Sabe said laughing at the eager girl and her friend Kairo and walked a bit closer, letting her hand glide through the water. "But we Konti never harm a creature and animals around Mura seem to know that, but there are those Konti who in some ways can feel with them and such but my gift don't seem to affect animals though, I can only sense the atmosphere around humans." "He's very beautiful Gabrielle," Sabe said admiring the dolphin but avoided going too close lest she'd scare him."How come he's so tame?" She asked curiously, not used to Svefra customs.

[Gabrielle Seawind]

A library which could grant its readers the ability to breathe underwater... the idea was magical, and caught Gabrielle's attention. She tucked the piece of information in her mind and was sure she wasn't to forget it, along with the other bits of stories that she had mentally collected over the years. Gabrielle recalled what her sister had told her earlier that day. The reason Kairo approached the land with less caution was because he probably knew that Mura would be kind to him. A part of him could probably sense that it was safe to do so. Thinking about it, at the moment, it was apparent that he was comfortable with the land. Kairo had just approached her while there was a stranger nearby, and he didn't retreat at her presence. The young girl looked at the dolphin and saw that while he did seem a tad bit cautious and ready to swim off, he also looked curious at the Konti's company. "Atmosphere? Like the wind?" asked Gabrielle dumbly. "Kairo's my tavan. Simply put, he's my other half! Even if I don't have Laviku's mark... yet, I think he's Laviku's gift to me, so I'm thankful for that. And he's not actually very tame... last week, my sister and I were playing in the water and he pushed her away from me because he thought she was hurting me. He doesn't like strangers as well, but he seems okay with you. Kairo, say hi to Sabe!" The young Svefra slapped her thigh and beckoned for Kairo to get closer. She was very proud that she had him as a friend, and she wanted Sabe to be able to come near him. The dolphin made a move that implied he was about to get closer, but he first decided that he had other interesting things to attend to. Kairo turned around swiftly and raised his tail in the air. Shocked, Gabrielle knew what was coming, and raised her arms in the air to shield her from something she couldn’t escape. Not a second after, he brought it down to the water in a swift manner, sending water splashing at Gabrielle. Drenched and giggling, the girl pointed an accusing finger at the dolphin and scolded him. The dolphin made noises of happiness, emphasizing that he was in a mischievous mood, before swimming in a circle and towards Sabe. He raised his head and made joyful sounds towards the Konti, as if saying he was okay with being near her. Gabrielle felt a tad bit jealous that he was so comfortable with another human, and in an extremely short amount of time. She huffed slightly to herself before spotting a small red stone near her feet. She leaned down and submerged her arm in the water before smiling victoriously to herself and adding another stone in her pocket.