Closed [Sanikas River] A Chiet and her Charoda (Una)

[Lavira]

Pausing after they reached the Inner Warrens, Vira turned to stare interestedly at the Charoda. The talk of a bird from the north being given as a gift had piqued her curiosity. She'd never left Wind Reach, and never would. Seeing animals from beyond Kalea was something so far outside her realm of fascination she hadn't even considered it. Hearing about another raptor, however, well it was safe to say Una had caught Vira's attention.

"Well, I was really just trying to be nice; we're not really supposed to do those kinds of things, see, and if word gets back to the Valintar, I might get into trouble. It wasn't your fault, really. However-" The teen considered the hair-less being closel. "I'd love to see this Frost Hawk you spoke of. I've never heard of it before; it'd be interesting to work with one." She trailed off into silence when the other went on about a bird kelvic and her husband. Briefly, Vira thought about her friend Fenris; she hadn't seen him in a year or two and wondered whatever became of the moldling.

Clearing her throat now, Vira gave the other a friendly enough grin. "I get strange looks anyways, so talking with a fish isn't that far out of my norm. I'm sorry Irriama snapped at you, she's usually fairly sweet and motherly. It must have just been an off day for her today." The warmth of the warrens was a constant thing, something Inartans were used to; it kept them alive in the winter, afterall. "I do need to get back to work, though; I'll keep an ear out for your return, Una. Be safe in your journey!" Not knowing the creature that well, Vira would not reach out and offer anything beyond a distanced comraderie. What if Una was slimy and the slime rubbed off on her?

OOCSorry for the tapering conclusion, Una; I do look forward to the interaction with her when she returns to Wind Reach! Just lemme know the dates and I'll reserve a spot in my calendar. Maybe we can have someone jump into the thread with us then too.

[Una Tanta]

Una nodded accepting the assurances that it was indeed not her fault if Vira received any flack for what she'd done. The absence of a parting gesture stung Una. Spending the majority of her childhood and adulthood in the sea she bonded quickly with strangers and within a few hours often felt disproportionately attached. She smiled and waved as she moved away from the woman who was obviously retracting her offer to take Una back to the lake. Una knew she must have done something wrong to receive such hostility after friendship but she didn't dare to probe. Either way, she owned this woman a great debt. Meeting the wind eagles had brought her closer to Cy at Vira's expense. Uncomfortable living in debt Una hastily settled and perceived debts and always went out of her way to return favours. Following the winding path through the sky city they had tread hours ago Una disappeared behind the sharp curves and inclines and into the sun. Away from Viras protective force she felt the probing eyes of the Inarta around her. With nothing covering her slim form except a light white dress and bloody grass shoes she was more than an unusual sight. Ducking into the shadows blushing from the attention Una kept the high gates in view. Once she neared them they allowed her to slip out without a word but as she rounded the corner heading for the path they had taken earlier she could hear the baffled chuckling following her. Slipping into her head, away from the sounds that followed her retreat, Una wondered about the Wind Eagles and ran over remembered lore and poetry of them. Though the experience had been captivating they had been so different from Cy that as much as she had been trying to convince herself, she felt no closer. Even the city on the top of the world made her feel distant. He could sore this high effortlessly. She, Una, had had to climb for hours and even then all she felt at the top was staggering vertigo. Stumbling down the pathway toward the sea Una was snapped out of her reverie as she tripped stumbling down the decline. Lnading with a loud THUD at the bottom she sat, momentarily still, dazed. She couldn't walk or climb down, her feet were too sore and her ability too minimal to attempt. Instead she eased herself into the water slowly. The bitter cold glacial water soothed her wounded feet and stomach. Closing her eyes as she submerged her head she opened them wide the swirling tumultuous water before her tugging at her limbs, begging her to play with them. Relaxing her grip on the edge she obeyed and down toward the sea she flowed leaping clear of the top of the waterfalls to avoid the sharp rocks below. The first few jumps were only a few feet high and she managed the leap easily but as she descended they grew. Leaping from one such waterfall she landed too far and was swept off the next without the time to leap. Landing behind the sharpened rocks she was pulled through them. Like a grater they tore at her skin leaving numerous shallow gouges. Bursting to the surface to heave she fought the current to grab the edge of the pool it had emptied into. Wretching Una dug her nails in to the wet sand bed panting with fear. She couldn't make it to the bottom...not before the sun set. Once it set, unable to see, Una would be trapped. Gazing at the descending sun Una felt the wave of fear send her into another fit of heaves. After several minutes Una was able to control her stomach and she closed her eyes thinking deeply on the matter. "If I keep jumping I will either run out of energy and make the same mistake or my jumps wont be accurate enough to stop me from hitting the rocks below the waterfall while allowing me time to prep for the next one. Climbing down is simply too slow and arduous. If I am going to get out, I have to swim out..." She murmured to herself. Releasing the edge of the pool Una let the water grab her and send her headlong down the next chute. Letting it take her Una crashed hard into the bottom of the falls. Because the falls were not direct cliffs but rather converse lips there was an area behind the water. As the water fell it sharpened the rocks beneath and beat down the soil creating a dip in the sand. If Una let the current take her and could land right behind the rocks she'd be able to land safely in the depth created by the pounding current and if she was agile enough to weave through the rocks. The plan, though potentially foolhardy, was more designed for Una's strengths. With proportionately short legs and a long torso she was designed for acrobatics over speed and power. The latter attributes which had failed her in the cliff jumping. Landing behind the rocks Una fought through the sight of the bubbles searching for the dangerous rocks poised to spear her. Tightening her body in on itself she wove through carefully catching the edges of some with her legs or arms but exiting relatively unscathed. Una smirked to herself, "This could work!" Repeating the plot through the next several waterfalls she was at times more successful. In one particular occasion she was hurling towards two rocks too closely pressed together to slip between she grabbed onto a handhold in a rock nearby and heaved pulling herself into the momentarily less rapid current behind the rock. Back arched her feet followed suit and curving into a sharp s she move her way between the two. One other occasions she was less fortunate and was beat mercilessly against the edge of a rock. When she emerged from the bottom of the river she slipped beneath the ocean waves and buried herself in the warm sand at the bottom and slept. The only indication of a living presence the tiny bubbles that rose toward the surface from a small hole in the sand, popping gently as they searched for the surface. OOCNo Problemo ;3 you can submit it for grading now!

[Auric]

GRADES FOR...
Shared Lores
Kindred Spirits: A Love for the Sky

Lavira
Lores
Charoda (Basic)
Una (Basic)
Charoda: Not Made for Land
Una: A Kelvic's Widow
Una: A Promise, A Debt
Skills
+5 Falconry
+5 Rhetoric
+2 Observation
+1 Weaving

Una
Lores
Lavira: Call me Vira
Lavira: Tender to the Mother Wind Eagles
Lavira: Owed 1 FrostHawk
Wind Eagles: Varied Personalities
Sino: Excitable and Talkative
Irri: Irritable

Skills
+5 Rhetoric
+3 Acrobatics
+2 Observation
+1 Weaving
+1 Foraging

Additional Notes: Wonderful thread! I think most of the awarded skills are obvious; Una, I awarded you acrobatics for the wonderful waterfall trick she pulled off; very clever, by the way! Lavira, I saw a lot about falconry in the thread! I especially loved her interactions with the wind eagles, which awarded her bonus points!

As always, any question about the grades, please message me!

Stay Golden!