Closed Working Closely (Nai'a)

[Erekez]

86th of Winter, 512 AV So, it's a shift of nine, alternating forwards and backwards between characters. Erekez sat in the Memorial Library, squinting at the text that sat beside him on the desk. He had been told that all evidence of the storm from Spring just passed was still trying to be erased from Zeltiva. The book he was squinting at was part of that evidence. It had suffered heavy water damage, so the print was faded or blurred. It didn't make it any easier that parts of it were encrypted as well. Still he didn't mind, he always enjoyed a challenge, and mental ones were just as fun as physical ones. The book itself seemed to be on herbs that could be found in the Wild Lands, and the different kinds of medicine that could be made quickly for an injured traveller. Whilst the list was not extensive, which was to be expected if they weren't being given sufficient time to settle properly, it did go into great detail about what effects different herbs could be combined to give, as well as some suggestions for applications of use. However, Erekez was somewhat surprised when he had made an effort on the encrypted parts. They started detailing poisons that could be created with the same herbs. Some poisons were antidotes for others, but only to be used as a feint. Side notes had been scribbled underneath for true antidotes that wouldn't cause temporary blindness and paralysis. I can see why a healer would want cover up any dabbling in poisons. Rak'keli forbids any kind of act that kills, unless it is in self-defence. Poisons are under Vayt's domain. The two are at opposite ends. Or did they just use them to cripple enemies and not give any lasting damage? Erekez looked back through the poisons he had discovered already. None mentioned 'death' as an effect, just different effects that would be gone with time or healer. I suppose this healer remained loyal to Rak'keli regardless of his personal research. The scratching of the quill on the paper had started to become rhythmic. Erekez had even started writing so the scratching would deliberately sound like a beat. He finished the sentence he was on and placed the quill next to the ink vial. Both had been borrowed from Lisaelis again. He needed to get some more of his own. When he wasn't running on a pocket full of coin. Leaning back, he ran his hands through his hair as he began to think about the night before. Nai'a, what a sweet woman she turned out to be, blessed with the mark of Rak'keli. Erekez looked down at his own hand, still wearing the gloves he wore when he had made his appearance. He stood up to stretch his legs and give his arm a break. He'd been writing for about two bells now, but the healing book was almost complete. Maybe another half bell and he would be done with this book. The infirmary had requested that healing books get restored sooner rather than later to deal with the current blight. Erekez had been happy to oblige. Still his thoughts came back to Nai'a. You're becoming obsessed. You were allowed to be who you wanted to be for one night, and you want to revert back to your old naivety? It was true. Just so he could have someone to talk to again. Someone who he felt wouldn't use him. The ball had given him that window into the past, without any strings attached. Now that the mask was off, all his shields and defences had to be put back up again. Before you can truly show her that side of you again, you need to see how she reacts when you show her what you are like most of the time. You need to protect yourself, before you leave yourself open. Erekez rubbed his palms against his forehead, massaging away any tension. He hoped he would see Nai'a again, and that she wasn't as different as he without the mask. She didn't seem to be the kind of person to leave someone she had gotten to know. She'll have to recognise you first. He didn't plan on telling her if he saw her again, but a part of him hoped she would find him. He sighed as he sat down, picked up the quill, dipped it in the vial and began scratching away once more.

[Nai'a]

Nai’a leaned up against the front desk and exhaled a tired breath, rubbing her eyes slightly to clear them of the tiredness she was feeling. She had become more tired as of late, no matter how much rest she got it was never enough. She always felt lethargic and worn out, as if she was being ran over by a stampede of large men repeatedly. She suffered from mood swings and emotional out breaks as well, making her feels so unlike herself. Becoming pregnant was not something she had planned on in her life, at least not until she became older. Nai’a shook her head and sighed, turning and looking at Mistress Claira, ”All my patients have been seen too, if it is okay I would like to take a break for a bell or two?” Mistress Claira smiled up at Nai’a and nodded her head, patting Nai’a’s arm, ”Of course my dear, take as much time as you need. You don’t need to over work yourself.”

Nai’a smiled at the woman and nodded her head, and walked out of the Infirmary heading towards the Memorial Library. Mistress Claira was the only person that knew of her predicament, and even offered to mix a potion to make her body reject the little life inside her. Nai’a declined the generous offer though, she could not kill a life that had yet to live, or any life really, it was not who she was. Nai’a caressed the small bump that had formed it seemed overnight, under her cloak. She usually wore beautiful tight fitting dresses, but now she resorted to just wearing her cotton baggy shirt and pants, combined with her oversized cotton cloak, to hide what was growing rapidly inside her belly. Valo still did not know of what was going on, she felt so bad for keeping this secret from him, but as of late she did not know where they stood. He treated her like a friend, but behind closed doors he treated her like a lover, it was a rather confusing situation. Nai’a sighed again, casting the thoughts from her mind as she entered the Memorial Library.

Her sensitive nose picked up the familiar scent of old worn books; it was a rather pleasing smell. She sought out comfort in a book, preferring that over a person. She did not have a best friend to go and talk about her worries and tell her secrets to, or even a bond mate who would know how she was feeling, it made for a rather lonely life, except when she was with Valo. Nai’a inhaled deeply enjoying the scents of the library, clearing her thoughts, as she headed towards the shelves of books. She told Mistress Claira that she needed a break, though she was headed to the library to read up on medicine and herbalism, so really she was still working, but she loved reading and prided herself in the fact that she was able to even read.

As she began to shift through the various books on healing, a rhythmic scratching noisy came to her sensitive ears. Nai’a stepped around the book shelf and looked at a man writing on a piece of paper, while scanning a book. He looked slightly familiar yet not at the same time. His dark brown hair was mid length, and his clothes were patched many times, and his arms were adorned with various scars, as the muscles flexed with him writing. She stepped closer, silently approaching the man, to get a closer look at him, since her eye sight was not that good. He looks so familiar… Nai’a thought as she inched closer to the working man, not wanting to interrupt his work. Nai’a frowned slightly, and banished the thought that he may be someone she knew, because she did not know very many people in Zeltiva, and what were the chances of meeting one here anyways? So she turned to scan the books once more, looking for a book that was about medicine and herbs, but a little different from what she normally read, she wanted something interesting and new. After ten chimes of looking, and not coming up with anything that perked her interest she turned back to the man diligently working still. Maybe he works here and can help? Nai’a thought to herself, as she approached the man and cleared her throat.

”Umm.. Excuse me sir? I was wondering if you could possibly help me, that is if you work here?” Nai’a’s pleasant voice came out in a soft and low tone, hoping the man would offer his assistance, and that she was not bothering him by asking.

[Erekez]

Whilst the gentle voice meant no harm, it was typical that Erekez would be disturbed just as he was finishing this book. There was still plenty of other books for him to do, but he never liked leaving something unfinished when he was close, even if it was for a few chimes. Nevertheless, she had been very polite in her asking. Turning to look up at the woman, he noticed the baggy clothes she was wearing. They didn't seem to be the clothes of an average student. Erekez dropped the thought, it wasn't any of his concern what the students wore in their time at the University. It was entirely their own choice. Besides, he held no authority over any of them, neither did he really want anything to do with it. He was content as he was with his job. He was allowed to read may interesting things, even from the restricted section. Though that was technically down to the fact he needed to be able to so he could restore and decrypt any of them that needed it. Something from the corner of his eye caused him to stop turning. Looking over at it, he was able to confirm that it was pink hair, stopping about waist height or so. The colour was very unique to say the least. So much so that Erekez had only seen one person with that colour hair. Nai'a. Out of all the coincidences that could've happened, to see the person he had been thinking about from the night so soon was ridiculous. Erekez refrained from looking directly at her, just in case it truly was her, but tried to angle his gaze so that only the same eye ever looked at her, even though he spent most of the time now continuing to write out the book. "I can do my very best, but can't promise anything, I'm afraid." He didn't try to mask his voice. What good would that do? Most people could recognise when a voice was being put on. "How can I help you?" Looking with only one eye for short amounts of time didn't help when it came to picking up features to identify someone, but he wasn't taking chances. Erekez's eye continued to flick between looking at the possible Nai'a and the book. He wasn't going to make it easy for her to recognise him.

[Nai'a]

Nai’a fiddled with a loose string on her cloak, picking at it nervously, as the man just glanced at her. She felt immensely horrible for some reason, so much so a mist of tears started to cover her eyes. damn these raging emotions! Nai’a yelled at herself in the confines of her own mind. She did not mean to disturb the mean from his work, but she did not see any other people around this particular area, probably why he was working here.

The man’s voice reached her sensitive hears, sounding slightly familiar, yet she could not grasp it. The man told her he would do his best, but he could not promise anything. He kept writing in his book, and glancing at Nai’a with that one eye occasionally as he spoke. Nai’a stayed silently for a little while, feeling horrible that she was bothering the man, but then she spoke, ”I am truly sorry for bothering you. I was just trying to find a medicine or herbalism book that contained information on certain types of potions, and I cannot find that type of book on the shelf, I am a healer at the Infirmary so your help would be really appreciated. I was hoping you could show me.. But if you are too busy I understand.” Nai’a’s voice came out soft as silk, but waivered slightly from the intense emotion she was feeling.

The man’s build looked so familiar, the curiosity was beginning to really annoy her. He looked so familiar, his voice, his build, his hair. Yet he still looked strange at the same time. It was as if she was having déjà vu, that something was there in the back of her mind, yet she could not grasp it and form it for her to view. She ran her hand through her hair, a little exasperated at herself, putting a strand behind her left ear. Nai’a sighed loudly, as she tried to view the man from where she stood, but not really seeing much of anything. It was beginning to ride her nerves that she could not figure who this familiar man was, but she did not want to be rude and march over there to see, plus she did not want to disturb his work anymore than what she already had done.

[Erekez]

Her voice began to falter and weaken as she spoke. You didn't need to be a healer to realise that wasn't normal, but it all fit together. It would make sense that Nai'a would work as a healer because of her mark. A quick glance confirmed it. Pink hair, mark of Rak'keli, this woman had to be Nai'a, and something was the matter with her. Erekez tapped the now-dry quill against the pages of the new book he had put together, thinking. I'm almost certain that I dealt with a journal of that nature a few days back. He looked over at the rows of books on the shelves close to where he sat. It should be amongst all the other medical text I've done since the request was put through. He sat and thought a little while longer. "I think I may have the kind of book you are looking for. Please wait a short while whilst I finish this quickly." He dipped his quill back in the ink and finished off the last few lines he had to deal with. They were a little bit rushed and somewhat rougher than most of the book, but it was indistinguishable unless you knew to look for it. Going back to the front of the book, Erekez signed the original author of the book and placed his signature underneath so people knew it was a restored book. It was only fair he got some credit for it. Closing the book, Erekez stood and made his way over to the shelves. "If you could follow me please?" he called back to Nai'a, still making sure he continued to look at her from the same side. He'd never felt the need to be on edge so much within the walls of any city, but then he had never been in a similar situation where he had opened up to someone before they truly new who he was. It was a learning point for next time, and he wouldn't have taken last night back for anything. The section he stopped at was aligned with many new books, most was the result of his own handiwork. He couldn't help but let a small, proud smile escape. He was content with what he had accomplished in his time at the library. He traced his hand over the spines, stopping on some books and checking their contents before putting them back. He found the journal he was looking for. "This one has numerous potions in it for a wide variety of uses. Some are simple and quick to make, but weak. Others are complicated and lengthy, but are considerably stronger. Each section details a new potion." Erekez had no idea what he was saying. He knew almost nothing beyond what he had read whilst working on these books about herbs and medicines. He was just reciting the first few sentences in this book. He extended an arm out, offering the book to Nai'a. "There are other new books also, if you would like to look at them." He was hoping she would stay a little longer. Just one question. Just one, is all you need to ask.

[Nai'a]

Nai’a sniffled lightly, and wiped her wet eyes with the back of her cloak, as the man got up from his work and told her to follow him. Nai’a smiled brightly, all the tears that were there before vanishing. These roller coaster of emotions cannot be healthy for my mental state. Nai’a thought to herself with a sigh. She followed the man as he made his way over to the shelves. His walk, the way he carried himself, it was familiar too. Nai’a was becoming irritated at her foggy mind, she was gripping the last of her sanity on whether she knew him or not.

The man traced his hands over the spine, checking the contents of a few books and then placing them back on the shelf. Finally he seemed to have found what he was looking for, and told her it had potions in it that had a variety of uses, that intrigued Nai’a a great deal, especially since some were simple where as some were difficult, she liked a challenge when it came to reading books. The man’s arm extended out, offering the book to Nai’a, still not showing his face to her, which was becoming quite odd to her. It was uncommon for someone to hide their face this long, unless they meant to hide it from a person’s view. The man told her that there were others to look at if she wanted to, which made Nai’a cock her head to the side a little, it was time to ask the question she somewhat feared of asking. Even though she was afraid to ask it, it had to be done.

”Thank you so much for your help! This book should be a great read. Although, I must say, you seem familiar. I do not mean to be rude, sir, but do I know you?” Nai’a kept a pleasant tone in her soft voice, keeping a warm smile on her face, and a calm and soothing exterior to her features. She hoped the man would just turn towards her and let her see for herself, or answer her, and she could not help but wonder why he was hiding his face from her. Was he mad at her? Was he ashamed of something? Nai’a could not remember making someone mad at her; she usually avoided any conflict or confrontations. Nor could she remember giving anyone ashamed to be seen with her, she usually kept herself hidden. Nai’a stroked her pink hair cascading down a little past her waist, realizing now that she forgot to hide her hair with her cloak.

A small flush appeared on her cheeks, as she spoke in a low tone, ”Is my hair offending you?” It was an odd question, to some, but there were plenty of people who did not like people that were strange like Nai’a, and maybe she offended him with her looks somehow without meaning to do so.

[Erekez]

Rude? How could that question be considered rude? Is it one of those questions that shouldn't be asked? He never understood those kinds of questions. How else were you able to know if you didn't ask the question? Erekez was aware that there were some situations where you didn't ask some questions, but just to have a question that nobody should ask was ridiculous. Regardless of the way it had been worded, Nai'a had asked the question. Erekez was no liar, usually avoiding questions or making it know he was not going to answer a question. He had lied in the past, but only when it wouldn't bring harm to anyone who hadn't harmed him first. He smiled. Before he could reply, Nai'a had asked if her hair had offended him. I can understand that one. People are more inclined to find the pettiest things to become offended about if something is different from what they are used to. There were very few people who could look past a person's physical appearance to see who they truly were. Erekez had learnt that early on, though he liked to believe he was one of those few people. Placing his right forearm in front of his stomach, Erekez bowed as he had the night before when he greeted her. "Your hair has the same impact on me as my eyes do to you my dear." He pulled himself up, rising to his full height as he looked at her face. He could see clearly now that it truly was Nai'a, and that her eyes and cheeks looked red slightly. Has she been crying? The thought unnerved him slightly. Had Nai'a thought that he had something against her? He needed to make things right if that was the case. "I'm sorry," He began, "I was not expecting to meet you again, and especially not so soon after finding we work in the same building. I was unsure of how this was going to go. It is good to see you again though." Erekez inclined his head towards her, watching her face for any reactions she might have. This was going to be the point where he discovered what Nai'a was like after that. Was she going to be more inclined to say something about the way he acted? Or was she going to disregard it in favour of socialising with him again after last night. He knew that either could be possible, or both, one after the other. He had already accepted the outcome by doing what he did. Nai'a had asked if she had offended him, but Erekez only hoped that it wasn't the other was around now. He waited for her response.

[Nai'a]

When the man bowed down, telling Nai’a that her hair had the same impact on him as his eyes did her, she knew who it was, and could not hide the excitement and embarrassment on her face. Oh god I look horrible! Nai’a thought to herself and hurriedly started rubbing her hair down with her hands. She did not like being in such baggy clothes seeing people, she liked to present herself in a fashionable manner. After all, those who took care of themselves, took care of others. He must think I look horrid! Nai’a thought that, and did not know why she actually thought that, nor why she would care what he thought about her. Nai’a shrugged the thought off, looking up at Erekez face as he apologized, saying he was unsure how it was going to go, though it was good to see her again. What did he mean… how it was going to go? Nai’a thought, but abandoned that thought as she looked into his mystical eyes, one blue and one green, they intrigued her so.

Nai’a smiled warmly at the man, and threw her tiny arms around his large frame, the book falling to the floor with a loud thud. ”Erekez! It is so good to see you again!” squeezing the man lightly, she let go and stepped away, hoping she did not make him uncomfortable with her actions. Nai’a was a hugger, she liked to show people she cared, especially those who were as kind and friendly like Erekez. It was easy for her to become friends with others; it was a good thing, yet a flaw at the same time. Nai’a remembered the tears and wiped her face briefly and looked up at Erekez, ”You look different than you did at the ball, I was not sure if it was you or not.” Nai’a chuckled lightly and a radiating smile on her face, ”You work here?” the Kelvic asked pleasantly, truly interested in what his job was here.

The man was almost completely different from the other night, except he was wearing the same leather gloves as he was that night. She wondered if this was the true Erekez or not. Either way, he was a kind man, and it really did not matter to her. She kept the warm smile on her face as she waited for the handsome man standing before her to answer her question.

[Erekez]

Erekez watched as Nai'a quickly tried to brush herself down. From the embarrassment on her face, he assumed she was worrying about her looks. It seemed to be a common trait amongst the woman he had spoken with. He watched her face as she continued to busily work on herself, smiling all the time. Nai'a had hugged him after his apologies, the embrace was welcome. He hugged her back gently as she hugged him, only releasing her as she stepped back. Erekez suddenly became very aware of something. She dropped the book! He had worked hard on that journal, so felt a little protective of it. Though Nai'a could get away with dropping it after that hug. He listened attentively to her comments as he bent down to pick up the book. It was true he looked different, it's what he was hoping for, as he hadn't intended on revealing who he was to anyone he had met at the ball, if he had ever seen them again. Nai'a was different though. There was a comforting aura around her that Erekez couldn't explain. She just felt like a person that could be trusted explicitly. It had been her mark that had persuaded him to give his name last night, it was the same reason that he felt she could be trusted. He reasoned that, if she was dealing with a person's health, she was not inclined to do anything that threatened it. Not that she was allowed to anyway. Rising again, Nai'a asked about his work. Erekez opened up the first few pages of the book. "I got this job shortly after arriving in Zeltiva. My job is twofold." He began to explain. "The first part is to restore any text that has been damaged for whatever reason, or has faded with time. Apparently, there was a storm earlier in the year and caused damage to a lot of the books in the library. The second is when some texts have been coded. It is my job to deal with them and rewrite them so they can be read by anyone. This is one such journal." He showed Nai'a his signature underneath the name of the original author of the journal. He was unaware of where the original encrypted journal had been put. He assumed Lisaelis had locked it away to prevent further damage, in the event that this copy became irreparable. He bowed to her wisdom. "The one I was working on when you arrived is back over on the table. I can show you what they start out like and what they end up like." Erekez gave the journal back to Nai'a as he motioned back towards the herbs and poisons journal he had just finished, briefly slowing to look back at Nai'a. "It really is good to see you again Nai'a." He almost whispered. He doubted she would ever truly know how much he meant that.

[Nai'a]

Nai’a did not realize she dropped the book out of excitement of seeing Erekez, until he bent down and retrieved it. It felt nice that he accepted her hug, but she still hoped that he did it because he liked her hug, not because he was just being nice. When he rose, Erekez opened the book, and answered her question about his job. Nai’a stayed silent as he spoke fondly of what he did at the library, her eyes widening in amazement.

When he was finished describing his job description, Nai’a had to let her amazement burst out, ”Wow Erekez that is such an interesting job you have! It must be glorious to be surrounded by books all day, and to be able to decode a book, that’s just amazing.” Nai’a said this on a dreamy sigh of longing. She loved books, quite a bit, and she would love to be surrounded by them, all day long, reading books that were coded and being able to decipher them, that would be the life.

When he pointed at his signature on the book that he handed her, that he decoded, Nai’a smiled brightly. ”I feel honored to read something you worked so hard on Erekez.”

Nai’a could not help but think that there was more than meets the eye to Erekez. Just like people based their judgments of her because of her outer appearance, she would bet they did the same to Erekez. He was so intelligent and kind, though intimidating by his scars at the same time. Nai’a wasn’t really intimidated by them though, she was used to seeing scarring on bodies, and each one of those scars held a story she was sure, and she was dying to know the story of each one on his exposed arms. Nai’a noticed she was looking at his arms, and looked back up to those eyes she adored so when she heard him speak once more. Erekez wanted to show her how the books began and ended that he worked on, this intrigued her deeply. He went on ahead, as she stood there looking down at the book smiling, then she turned to follow him to the table, and that was when he whispered that it was really good to see her again. Nai’a smiled brightly at his kind words, and followed him to the table to look at his work.

”I am more than happy to your work, it must have been difficult starting out. I only know how to write enough to get by, I don’t think I would ever be able to write and decode a whole book. That is just amazing.” Nai’a laughed melodically, a small smile lifting the corners of her mouth.