Closed Hey! Oh wait, I don't know you... (Erekez)

[Vanna]

18, Spring, 513

Vanna took a deep breath as her body stretched on the sofa. She seems to have fallen asleep due to the warmth of the fireplace... or whatever one could call that strange thing that kept her warm and helped her prepare food.
After all, it did look better than most of her house. It wasn't falling apart, which was the important bit.

After waking up properly, she noticed that the day outside isn't that bad and thought that an idea of stretching her legs and potentially freaking out another human is not that bad, so she put her dress and shoes on, combed her hair, adjusted the jewelry and headed out the front door.

It took her about two seconds to notice that she had forgotten her bag, and after mumbling "Oh for the love of.....", she went back through the front door, grabbed a few coins, an apple, a cup and her tattooing gear, put it in her bag just so she could run out again.

Shivering and stretching once more in the middle of the street, she yawned and started walking towards the nearby park. Sitting on one of the benches, she pulled an apple out of her bag and started chewing on it slowly, idly looking into the distance with her legs spread way too far out, being a danger to anyone not looking at where they were going.

[Erekez]

Erekez wandered through the streets of Zeltiva, nothing of importance needing to be taken care of. Instead, he took the day to himself. The breeze was welcome as was the sun's warmth, contrasting as he felt both reach across his skin. He had gotten the day from work, Lisaelis saying that he needed a bit of sunlight and air every now and then. Just because he worked in the library didn't mean he had to live there as well. Zeltiva had been the longest he had spent in any city for a long while now, and he had become used to living in a city. Though he still didn't like it and preferred staying outside the walls. His bow sat strung over his shoulders. He still didn't trust nothing to happen within the walls, just because there was the local 'law'. It only took one second to not be paying attention, or one drunk thinking he had something to prove, and trouble began. Erekez wasn't going to be caught unaware. The birds sang overhead, creating their own melody as he walked. How he missed when he had sang back home, but that was almost four years ago now. No doubt he had lost any and all skills he had in singing from lack of use. A singer's voice needed to be used as often as an archer's bow, else both would begin to deteriorate if not properly cared for. Unfortunately, his time travelling had made better uses of his bow than of his voice. Perhaps another time. He continued walking, noticing someone had decided to take a seat at one of the nearby benches. Erekez thought nothing of it. It was another person who was probably enjoying the sights and sounds from the park. Or just taking a rest whilst they eat an apple. Erekez still had tendencies to let his mind wander and think about every possibility. It had its uses sometimes. Normally, he would've just walked by, letting them get on with their own day as he had nothing to say to them. This time, Erekez took a second look back at the woman sat on the bench. He looked at what he thought he had seen, smiling as he saw it was as he thought. Her eyes were a deep violet. One that he had not seen before. What a unique colour. He hadn't even realised that he had come to a stop, memorised by the colour, as others had been by the contrast in colour between his two.

[Vanna]

Vanna, touched by the beauty of the sky above her and the nature around her seemed more inspired than usual. Her lips, after she finished chewing on the last bit of the apple, moved in a soft manner, creating a cheerful, humming melody.
It seemed to match the day perfectly.

She reached into her bag quickly, pulling out a leather strap to tie up her hair, allowing her pale skin to get some sunlight on it. Every time she looked up, her eyes became lighter, she could feel it.
Nothing can ruin my day today, she thought to herself before moving her hands back down on her thighs and letting her eyes wander about, just to notice a man standing in front of her, almost staring.

She tilted her head in a rather questioning manner with a puzzled look on her face. The humming melody was gone, as her violet eyes explored the, what she thought was, a strange male standing there, just looking at her.

"May I help you?", she whispered as softly as she could, not to scare the man that seemed so deep within his thoughts, while standing up from the bench and straightening her clothing.
Only then did she notice all the little details on him. His messy hair, the bow that stood so proudly over his shoulders and strangely enough, his unusual eyes.

She had always thought she was the only one with that strange feature, at least withing the city of Zeltiva, but apparently not.
Her curiosity was at it's peak right there and then, so she curled her full, pierced lips up in a soft smile and waited impatiently for his reply.

[Erekez]

The question snapped him out of his trail of thought, causing him to notice what he had actually been doing. Erekez bowed his head to her. "I'm sorry. I didn't realise I was staring. I just happened to notice your eyes and they got me thinking. I hope I have not offended you." It was not the first time his mind had wandered, and it wasn't the first time it had landed him in a situation like this. There were things that would catch his curiosity in life, and Erekez could never resist trying to understand them further. However, there was a difference between staring at a woman looking at her eyes and searching caves and ruins. Erekez looked back up at her, looking over her. She wasn't the tallest he had met, but there was hardly anything she could do about that short of magic. Even then, why would you want to use magic to change who you are? That was what overgiving would do to you. She looked friendly enough, especially as she stood there now, smiling at him. The way she dressed herself had only just become apparent after she had stood up. It was not something that would be expected of most people would choose, but that was what made her all the more interesting, uniqueness. Things that were too similar lost their interest very quickly, but she was different and seemed quite happy to be so. It was an admirable trait. "Is there a way I can make it up to you?"

[Vanna]

Her fingers moved back, slightly annoyed by the leather strap that was pulling her hair, she decided it was a better option to let it run freely. Eyes moved over the bow, admiring it openly with every little smile and blink her face showed.

It seemed as if she didn't even notice his apologies for a couple of seconds, before she did the same thing he did earlier. She snapped out of her train of thoughts, and by the looks of it, they were quite amusing, just so she could reply in the most calm, relaxed manner she could "Oh no, please don't worry about it. At this age, and with these eyes, by now, I am used to people staring at me.... ".

Chuckling lightly, as if she lost her train of thoughts for a second again, she reaches back for her bag, leaving the leather strap in and pulling out another two apples. Wiping them off of her dress and with a warm smile, offering one to the man standing before her "They are not poisoned, I promise... oh and, that's a lovely bow you have there"

After saying that, her lips closed, still curled into the welcoming smile but once again, letting a humming, somewhat sweet melody escape them. It was her favorite song.... about her favorite time of the year... about the soft, cold crystals she missed so much, even though she could barely remember them...
Aaaand, once again, she was lost in her own mind, rushing all over the very few memories she had of her childhood.

[Erekez]

"Even so, just because you are used to it doesn't mean it is okay for me to stare. But all the same, I'm glad I haven't upset you." Erekez was unsure if she was just being polite, or really didn't mind. He'd always ignored stares, but still felt uncomfortable under them. Erekez always felt that someone was weighing him up, considering their own chances against him. It was amazing how bold and reckless people got when outside city walls. He envied how relaxed she could remain, not knowing who the stranger in front of her was, or what he was capable of. Was it naivety, nonchalance, or just simple innocence? Erekez probably wouldn't find the answer to that question, neither did it bother him so much if he didn't. Her personality also had the possibility of being an act. He only needed to keep an eye on her and act only if she did. Erekez remained cautious as she began laughed quietly to herself, reaching for her bag. Two apples were pulled from her bag, wiping them both on her on her dress she extended her hand to him holding one of the two apples, offering him it. Her smile seemed genuine, but her words did little to help his scepticism. It was nothing she had said or done, it was just who he was. He gently took the apple from her hand, hearing her comment about his bow. "Thank you." He meant it for both, the apple and her comment, though he considered his bow only a weapon designed to kill. "My last one broke unfortunately, so I decided to buy a sturdier one. It cost a bit more, but a tool is worth its price if it does its job well, and this one has." He returned her smile, concentrating on the apple he now held. He became aware of Lykata under his glove, allowing it to show the images it could retrieve from the fresh contributions on the apple. He picked up hints of a playful, mischievous person, but nothing that implied anything to be wary of. Lykata also held two other bits of useful information. The woman in front of him was a Vantha, which explained her eye colour now. Erekez muttered her name to himself, getting a feel for how it sounded. "Vanna." A soft and beautiful sound reached his ears as he looked back up at Vanna. She was humming, but it didn't sound random. She was humming a tune to a song. "That's brilliant. What song is that?"

[Vanna]

After hearing him speak, she, once again, giggled at his attitude and the look on his face. She never understood people around her, in this city. They were never at ease, they were never relaxed.. never smiling or enjoying their time. Shaking her head, at the train of thoughts that had occupied her mind for a second or two, she bit into the apple.

His words seemed quite cold. It didn't seem like he enjoyed the violence that came with the bow. It seemed as a necessity one would deal with, if needed be. The muttering he had done got her curious again, but she decided to be a bit more polite than usual, so she said nothing.

It was quite strange, that he was interested in singing. People in this city seemed to be more interested in science than any of the artsy things she was interested in. Giggling and then continuing to hum for a few seconds more to give him a feel of the melody, she finally added "Oh, it's just a song from my childhood.... the very few memories I carry with me... it's called Winter and well, as a Vantha, I guess that name fits well, hm?"

Once again, she bit into the apple, enjoying in her breakfast and thinking of what she could do for the rest of the day. Maybe this strange man would be entertaining enough... he certainly looked so
"I mean no harm, but why are your eyes like that.... I can't seem to connect you with the Vantha society... and it is a trait common for us"

[Erekez]

"It makes sense, as you say, because you are a Vantha." He listened to her humming, smiling at the sound. He was thankful for the times when he didn't have to be on guard, but that was usually when he was on his own with Moonraker and, more recently, Nai'a. "And if you are able to put as much feeling into singing as you do humming, you must be very talented." Vanna bit into her apple, following it up with a question. The way she started it was as he had come to expect from people when addressing his eyes. Erekez still did not understand fully why some people were timid when asking questions. He shrugged in response. "I do not see any harm in asking a question. How else would people learn if they did not ask? I'm not sure why my eyes are as they are. They have been so since birth. Neither am I aware of any Vantha within my bloodline, but I suppose it is possible." Erekez watched as Vanna bit into her own apple again. It didn't feel right knowing her name when he hadn't offered his own. "I'm Erekez, by the way." He inclined his head towards her. Just because he didn't trust people didn't mean that he couldn't be polite to them. "Pleasure to meet you." He lifted his head back up, gently smiling as he did so. He bit into the apple Vanna had given him, feeling his shoulders relax as he felt the apple crunch as he bit into it. There was something about her. The presence she gave was a relaxing and jovial one. It was welcome. "Are there any other questions you wish to ask?"

[Vanna]

She smiled as she saw the man relax a bit. That is more like it, she thought to herself before biting into her apple again. His response made sense and the fact that he didn't mind questions, was good, since she was a rather curious one and holding back was never really her deal.

Pronouncing his name wasn't hard, but she still had to do it "Erekez", she mumbled, trying to get the hang of it before looking over to the bow again. It was extraordinary... she never really had the chance to be around those things, the only weapon she knew how to use was... well, her tattooing kit... or, sort of knew how to use...

Her eyes started picking up a lighter, pink shade, since her curiosity was rising. "Well, for the start, what is it you do here, Erekez? Something fun, or? And, it doesn't seem you much enjoy the violence... when you talked about the bow, you seemed... not at ease, really"
Smiling, she continued to munch on the apple just so in the middle of all of that, she could squeal out in a rather excited matter
"Oh, oh and.... how come you like singing so much?"

[Erekez]

Erekez watched in fascination as he saw the colour of Vanna's eyes change from violet to pink, listen closely to her question. It was a simple question and had a simple answer, but the second part was an observation that asked for more of an explanation to better understand it. Neither answer was anything that Erekez considered the need to be cautious about. Opening his mouth to answer, he shut it again as Vanna almost squealed with a mouth of apple, asking yet another question. Her curiosity was endearing, almost like a child was. They weren't questions designed to search for a desired answer, just to know. He smiled as he began his answers. "I'm a traveller, and have been for the past four years. I've been in Zeltiva for a season now, and it looks that I might be staying longer for the meantime. I wander through the city from time to time, but I work in the Memorial Library making unreadable text useful to everyone again. It has its perks, I'm allowed to read any book within the Library. I've learnt a few things I hadn't expected I would." Briefly glancing over his shoulder at his bow, Erekez started speaking before turning back to Vanna. "As for enjoying violence? What is there to enjoy? I don't fight for fun, I fight to survive and train to get better. There isn't really anything else I can expand on. A weapon is designed to kill, and I take no pleasure in killing." "And, to answer your last question, I enjoy singing because it is a simple way to unwind. You only need your own voice and, just with that, you can allow others to understand how you feel. It's amazing what people are capable of with just words. Unfortunately, I haven't had a chance to sing for years." "A question I could ask you is why do you seem to only hum to yourself?"