Ripped Seams and Chance Encounters [Inia]

by **Silarial** on February 28th, 2013, 1:16 pm

Silarial broke into carefree laughter as she once again got to see Inia’s strong penchant for rambling. Silarial often took the lead during social situations, so someone else taking over the conversation for her felt truly refreshing. And she appreciated how Inia talked and talked without expecting her to throw something in return; it kept her from suddenly blurting out what was currently running through her mind and end up embarrassing herself.

As soon as Inia stopped herself from talking, the music had come to an end, and the violinist called out to her to come over. Silarial turned her head towards the dark-haired man, a small mock-frown on her face. “Done already? My seat's not even warmed enough yet.” She turned to her companion once again, “Feel free to eat ahead when the food comes. For the mean time, please excuse me. Again.”

The young dancer, now in full performer mode, walked towards the small ‘stage’ with a light gait. She flashed a dazzling smile that was meant to do just that. She placed herself in position, head bowed down and arms crossed in front of her skirt, left foot in front of the other, standing still like the precious statues that adorned the Ice Palace. Most of the gradually increasing audience cheered, rousing in her the pleasure that was always present whenever she danced. The moment the musician slid his bow against the violin’s strings, Silarial moved her arms with teasing deliberateness, as if she was a finely crafted ice sculpture testing her newfound mobility upon Kihala's kiss of life. Slowly, she spun on her toes in lilting beats as she beckoned with waving hands for everyone to clap in time with the music’s increasing rhythm. To her delight, the room was soon filled the cheers and chants of her spectators. She sneaked a peek at her friend’s table, grinning widely at the girl before leaping high into a spin.

She had been dancing to the song ever since she was young, and she was sure, with all the bells she had dedicated to her art, that she was doing quite well. It was a song about a lonely ice bird looking for a friend. It wanted to be close to others, but its icy touch drove everyone away. It is ironic then, that such a lively song held a sorrowful story behind it. How fitting, Silarial thought. Such thoughts, however, are best not dwelt upon during a show, so she pushed it to the back of her mind for later musings. She only hoped that her performance was to her friend's tastes.

Silarial held the sides of her skirt, intent on raising them all the way to her head, but then she remembered she was not wearing her dance skirt. The one she wore now, the skirt Inia had mended earlier today, would only go so far without revealing her undergarments. No, she decided it's best not risk it. Instead, she shook her hips, the gentle movements of her body making her skirt billow in waves of blue. The undulations rocking her body crept up to her torso, and finally to her shoulders. Her gestures grew faster and more frantic as she made her skirt flutter, like the lonely ice bird beating its frosty wings.

by **Inia Skyglow** on March 5th, 2013, 1:03 am

Inia grinned, her eyes wide like a child's, as Silarial took to the stage. Her friend moved gracefully, both far quicker and more beautifully than Inia would have imagined. Soon, the entire room was clapping along with the music. She joined in, not even noticing her hands keep the steady beat, so focused was she on Silarial's dance. Inia was so enraptured that she forgot her food, too busy keeping her eyes on her friend, the dancer.

Silarial caught Inia's eye and grinned. Inia's smile widened further, taking up the whole of her face with an open, toothy grin. Perhaps she was catching the attention of those few who weren't paying close attention to Silarial's dance, but it didn't matter to Inia. The girl's imagination ran away from her. She pictured her friend atop a crystal spire, nothing save the sky and the glaciers witness to Silarial's beautiful dance.

Inia's reverie continued as her friend danced. Stormy skies, blizzards and light snows and sunlight and even the ocean were backdrops to Silarial's story. Inia couldn't even understand what her friend was trying to say, but the beauty struck her heart all the same. It was a melody she didn't know, in an unfamiliar setting, with a new friend; an altogether perfect blend of first experiences caught in a single brilliant visual of a girl and an intricate dance. Inia couldn't help but smile with more joy than she'd felt in years.

by **Silarial** on March 15th, 2013, 7:24 pm

In the story, the ice bird flew all over Taldera in search of a friend that will accept it despite its icy body. At the Red Diamond, Silarial leapt high with practiced efficiency, her skirt fluttering behind her like the majestic bird's plumage. The dancer landed, with some effort, into a crouch. It was not as graceful as she hoped she was, but she knew she'll get there, somehow.

She slowly stood up, her face showing the sadness a lonely being would feel. Her eyes was wide and her brows furrowed as she ran across the clearing, acting out the bird's search for someone who would accept its offer of friendship.

And the bird finally did found a friend. It was a human, a person who saw beyond the frosty wings and its icy touch. Silarial twirled on her toes, around and around, and she extended her arms above her head in praise. She was very happy, both for the bird and as the bird in the story. But she knew in her mind and in her heart that the happiness was not to last.

One day, danger has befallen the ice bird's precious human friend. The human was barely hanging to the edge of a cliff. Silarial made a show of being shocked, stepping back with short, uncertain steps from her audience. The human cannot hold on any longer and, hands finally slipping from the icy crag, prepared to fall into Dira's embrace. But the ice bird would not allow it.

Silarial sprang forward and moved her body as if to grab something visible only to her eyes, and continued with a series of spins as she tilted her head down and slowly wrapped her arms around her in an embrace. In the bird's talons, however, was not its warm human friend, but a sculpture resembling the human, made entirely out of ice. It must have hurt a lot, to see the one you valued the most lifeless because of what you have done.

The dancer pushed her hands in front of her, shaking her head vehemently in denial. No, it was not to be. The human will live, even if the ice bird was to pay the price for it. Silarial ran about the stage, her movements frantic and desperate. The violin's music was shrill, almost screeching. It added to the tension of her dance, and the atmosphere among the spectators as many watched with held breath.

It traveled south, further from the warmth of Kalea and into the burning sands of the desert, holding its friend firmly in its talons. But it cannot stand the heat anymore, for it was a creature of winter. The scorch of Eyktol will be its untimely demise. Finally, Silarial seemingly tripped to the ground, hands stretched out to catch her fall. Moving ever so slowly, she arched her back until her head touched the floor, notwithstanding the difficulty of the task for someone whose body was quite inflexible. It, however, made the pain on her face all the more genuine.

Silarial ran a hand from her chest and raised them above her as far as she could, and then the other, followed again by the other. She implored to the heavens, just as the ice bird implored the gods to save its friend. Moving her hands to her side in a show of weakness, Silarial inconspicuously pushed her body up so that she was sitting on her heels. The ice bird was melting fast, but in its mind was not the suffering it was undergoing; it wanted to see if its friend had gone back to life.

With the last of the ice bird's strength, Silarial raised herself up to her knees. The creature of ice saw that its friend was finally of warm flesh once more. She lifted her fingers to her lips, and finally to the sky as a person utters her last prayers. And then she let all the power in her body dissipate. Silarial dropped to the floor like a puppet with broken strings.

The room was in a standstill. After a few heartbeats, Silarial finally rose, and the room emerged into cheers. A satisfied smile graced her lips as she bowed low into a curtsy. Another wave of claps, and another curtsy. She bowed gratefully at the violinist who praised her for the performance.

Breathing deeply to catch her breath, she made her way to Inia's table, wiping the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand. Silarial dragged the chair and plopped down on it, and grinned at her friend. "So..." Another deep breath, "...did you like it? The dance, I mean."

OOCI'm sorry this took very, veeeery long! I was very late, but definitely not dead so I hope you didn't give up on me. Though, I do think we should end the thread soon. It has gone too long from what was originally planned, don't you think so too?

by **Inia Skyglow** on March 21st, 2013, 1:52 am

Inia was, momentarily and uncharacteristically, speechless. After a moment, she opened her mouth, made an awkward chewing like motion, and then closed it again. She frowned, confused by her own thoughts. Smiling suddenly, she promptly stood and circled the table to wrap Siliarial in a tight hug.

“Sorry,” she said, somewhat sheepishly. She returned to her seat, with a smile still plastered to her face. “I quite liked it. It was mesmerising. I mean, it was a very pretty dance. I'm not an expert, of course. I think you're probably the first dancer I've seen in years. I don't get away from home much. I think I've mentioned that before. I'm a bit of a shut-in.” She crossed her arms, laying her head in front of her. She blinked, realising she hadn't eaten at all.

“Oh,” she chuckled. “Perhaps I'd better eat that.” She didn't moving, choosing instead to leave her head on her arms, staring fixedly at Silarial as if daydreaming. After a moment, she returned to a normal sitting position and began to eat.

“I know dances are supposed to have stories behind them, but I'm really bad at interpreting things like that. Why don't you tell me what it was actually about?” She gestured with her fork, or with a half-eaten piece of bread, as she spoke. Her voice was muffled by her half-filled mouth. Despite the unpleasant social effects of this choice, Inia quite liked the sound of her speech when she was eating.

OOCYes, as much as I love this thread, it has gotten to be quite long. Perhaps we can move on to more social interactions. I imagine we can wrap this up in the next post or two.

by **Silarial** on March 25th, 2013, 1:44 am

Silarial returned her friend's hug, fearful for a moment because Inia was suddenly at a loss for words. As she fanned herself with her hands, the dancer's smile grew wide when the woman praised her dance, albeit in her own way. While her friend talked, her eyes traveled to the table in front of them and noticed that Inia's food was still untouched.

Moving her gaze back to her companion, Silarial silently grabbed the spoon and fork and stared with worried blue eyes at Inia, staring at her as if lost in thoughts. She wondered what could've suddenly gone wrong. What if Inia actually didn't like her performance, and was in fact just forcing herself to say nice things to her about it? Her lips parted slightly as if to say something but hastily closed it again when she decided against it.

After a moment, her friend straightened her body and started eating, to the relief of Silarial. She started to eat herself, taste buds singing for joy at the delicious food. As they ate, the Skyglow brought up the topic of her dance and asked the story behind it. Her mouth was quite full when she did, and Silarial covered her mouth subtly to keep herself from laughing.

"Inia, it's okay. Go ahead and swallow first. I can wait." she smiled to herself, wondering if perhaps her quirky friend liked talking with food in her mouth. One would never know for sure when it came to Inia, after all.

Drinking the water that was served with the food, Silarial cleared her throat and leaned a little bit forward. "The dance... it was actually based on this one story I've heard of as a young girl." she ran a finger over her lips as she tried to find the words to narrate the tale. She found it easier to put them into motions, but that doesn't mean she can't tell a story or two by words. "There was a bird whose body was made of pure ice. Nobody wanted to be close to it because one touch from it turns a person into ice. So, umm, a human, or Vantha..." Silarial scratched the side of her head as she tried to remember the story's exact details.

"Actually, I don't remember anymore. But anyway! A human agreed to be its friend and they were happy for a while until something bad happened and the bird was forced to touch its friend. So the friend turned to ice, and the bird sacrificed itself by flying to the warmer lands south to thaw the ice that encased the human. Because the bird was made of ice itself, it melted too, but the human lived so it was happy its death was not in vain..."

The dancer paused for a few moments before she was able to speak. "It's actually quite a sad story so it's quite ironic the tale is often told in such a happy tune." Another pause. "Inia, what do you say about dropping by our place sometime in the future? I would very much love to introduce you to my mother." she smiled warmly, tilting her head slightly to the side.

OOCAfter you end the thread, feel free to submit it for grading!

by **Inia Skyglow** on March 26th, 2013, 6:20 am

“That's not a sad story. I mean, I guess it could be, but it seems like such a happy story...” Inia trailed off, smiling. “Anyway, what were you saying? Well, what was I saying?” She made a strange face and gestured out a little circle with two fingers. She giggled happily. “Yes, dropping by your place sometime in the future. That sounds lovely. And I'm not just saying that,” she said, bouncing slightly as she talked. The girl was attracting a bit of attention with her manner and volume, but she didn't mind. Inia was quite content to simply be around Silarial, without having to put on a façade.

“I'm not saying it to say it, that is,” she continued. She ran her hands through the back of her hair, massaging her upper neck as she talked. “It really does sound quite wonderful. Lovely. Brilliant. Fantastic. Oh, and meeting your mother. Is she as nice as you?” Inia asked. For a second, her cheeriness evaporated and she simply sat there, staring at Silarial. “Nahh,” she said loudly. Her expression softened immediately. “No one could be nearly as nice as you've been to me. It's just not possible.” Inia kept smiling as she rubbed her neck, oblivious to the asocial nature of her behaviour.

“But yes, I'd love to meet her. I mean, kindness must run deep on a familial level. Why wouldn't it? Any family of yours would be fantastic. Oh!” she frowned, looking around. “Actually, as wonderful as this has been... I do need to be heading home. I have work tomorrow... And I need sleep, or else I get these horrible little...” Inia's broken speech, rushed and interrupted, left Silarial sitting alone quite unexpectedly when Inia stood, hugged her tightly, and ran out the door.

She didn't stop running until she was home, and in bed. Perhaps that was... Foolish of me, she thought, frowning to herself as she lie awake. Her mind wandered through various happy places, all centred on her new friend. Despite her quirks, Inia had made a friend. If nothing else, today was a good day for her.