PM to join [The Stone Gardens] The First Step (Vincent)

[Lynn]

5th of Summer, 513 AV A warm breeze blew through the Stone Gardens, making the sleeves of Lynn's tunic billow out as they caught the draft. She loved the serenity of this place. It was never as crowded as most other parts of the city, and the very nature of the memorial garden seemed to make people lower their voices out of respect and remembrance. The sun was nearing its peak, but the heat was not unpleasant; the day was mild, and Lynn's loose clothing kept her cool as she walked slowly among the stones of the fallen. She had arrived early so that she could enjoy the beautiful morning in solitude, and calm her nerves, before meeting her tutor. It was their first meeting. Prior to today, they had only communicated through writing: first, her ad (which a stranger had been kind enough to write up for her), and then the simple response her new tutor had left with the time and date of their meeting written out clearly enough for her to puzzle through without too much difficulty. Lynn shivered as a ripple of excitement ran through her. Despite her nervousness at meeting with a complete stranger, she had been looking forward to this day since she received his note. The basic knowledge of letters that her mother had given her was enough to get her through the day, but with these lessons, she would finally be able to study on her own and delve deeper into the world of medicine. With her heart full of hope, Lynn sat by the side of one of the garden's man made pools, fingers tapping unconsciously against stone as she began to look out for the arrival of her tutor.

[Vincent Lane]

5th of Summer, 513 AV

Vincent had spent the morning in his small apartment looking over all of his notes and worrying that he may not be prepared for the task facing him. He had never had to try and teach someone before and the thought of that was daunting over him. Having never been so nervous before Vincent grabbed everything he had prepared and heads out into the hot, crowded streets of Syliras. Vincent always did hate the amount of people who could be found in Syliras, much preferring quieter places where he could relax and think on his own without much distraction. The best part of this whole ordeal is that he gets to spend his time in one of his favourite parts of the city, although it was near impossible to escape the stink of the knights in their full armour on a sunny day he wouldn't let that bring him down.

Vincent arrived at The Stone Gardens after what felt like and age of clamouring past people on the busy streets and dropping his notes multiple times. At this point the notes where covered in dirt and footprints with some of them being slightly ripped. Looking around to try and find the girl he is looking for a voice in his head says "Vincent what are you doing fool? you dont know what she looks like" After thinking this and feeling like a complete idiot, Vincent recalls that her name was written on the notice board. Looking around now Vincent nervously calls out " Uhmmm Lynn? Is there a Lynn here?" hoping to all the gods that someone responds so he is not left standing there.

[Lynn]

Lynn only had to wait a few minutes before she saw him enter the Gardens. On such a nice day, there were bound to be quite a few people visiting this quiet little corner of Syliras, but she always had a keen awareness of the people around her, and noticed him almost immediately. Of course, she couldn't be sure that this tall, black haired man was the one she had been waiting for -- although the papers he had clutched in his hands gave her some small inkling -- but when she heard him call out her name, she knew her tutor had arrived. Lynn rose to her feet quickly and smoothed out her tunic before walking in his direction, one hand raised in greeting. "That's me," she said as she took the last few steps to stand before him, a shy smile on her face. He was tall, almost a foot taller than she; from where she was standing, Lynn had to tilt her head back to see his face properly, though she avoided his eyes out of habit. She took a small step back to ease the strain on her neck and continued, "Thank you for coming. I didn't expect someone to answer the ad so quickly.." Her voice gained a bit of strength as she saw that he was just as nervous as she was, and her smile became a little more genuine. Lynn eyed the papers in his hands. She was grateful that he had brought his own materials; she had no books at home -- what would she do with them? -- and had worried that she had come unprepared. "Are you -- um, do you want to sit?" She gestured back at the pool where she had been waiting; the sound of the water was comforting, and the shade cast by a nearby tree would provide some escape from the noonday sun.

[Vincent Lane]

5th of Summer, 513AV

Almost immediately after calling out, a rather small shy looking girl got to her feet and announced herself. Much smaller then Vincent she is stood in front of him having to stare directly up at him, making him feel slightly uncomfortable. After her offering him a seat he gladly accepts "Yes of course" walks over to where she gestured into the shade and takes a seat as close to the water he can possibly get. Water always made Vincent's nerves calm a bit. Just twirling his finger in constant circling patterns being able to feel the flow of water made him feel at ease. A big cheerful grin on his face now looks up to Lynn and introduces himself
"My name's Vincent, Vincent Lane. You can call me by whichever name you prefer. And you must be Lynn, It's a pleasure to meet you. I...I can call you Lynn right? Anyway to my knowledge you don't know any of the basics or do you know some and want to learn something in specific? " Vincent dries of his hand and starts looking through his notes to try and find a good starting point.

[Lynn]

Lynn followed the man back to the stone-encircled pool, where he quickly sat. She stared openly as he dipped his hand into the water, her wide eyes following the twisting trails his fingers left on its otherwise placid surface. Often suffering from frazzled nerves herself, she knew a calming ritual when she saw one, and so remained silent and still, waiting for him to speak. When he finally looked up and introduced himself, his relaxed grin put her own mind at ease, and she smiled broadly as she took a seat beside him. There was something about his face when he smiled that she very much liked -- though, to be fair, Lynn thought everyone looked their best wearing a smile. "Lynn is the only name I have," she said in response to Vincent's query. Even though she had been raised by a human, there were certain aspects of human culture -- like the importance of names -- that she did not fully grasp, and if her answer seemed odd to him, she certainly didn't notice. "I know the alphabet, and I can read some words, if I have enough time. I.. I want to be able to read texts. About medicine. But there are so many technical terms, words I've never seen before, I don't even know where to begin." Lynn bit her lower lip, more in thought than out of any sense of self-consciousness. "And.. I was hoping, maybe, you could teach me to write as well." She reached into the satchel she had brought with her and drew out a small pouch, the mizas inside clinking softly as she cupped it in her hand. "I'll pay, of course."

[Vincent Lane]

Vincent thought carefully about how he would teach this girl to read medical texts if he didn't have any, or any knowledge about medicine. He would have to go and visit a local store to pick one up. But it wouldn't be possible without having to cut out today's lesson. Pondering what he would do and how to get this started. Vincent had a puzzling look on his face while looking through a small brown book with a thin leather jacket covering it. Vincent looks over to Lynn and explains"Okay so i understand you wish to learn to read medical texts. I'm assuming you want to be able to help people in need, which i admire. But i don't posses any texts or knowledge that could help you with that, at this time. So if today you don't mind just reading over what i have with me and next time we meet up, I can come with more material fit for your needs." After saying all this he notices the girl had been offering him payment. Clinking around some Mizas which he hadn't noticed until now. "Oh right. Payment. You needn't worry about it for the time being. I'm more then happy to help." Vincent left out the part where he should have said i need this as much as you do, not wanting to come across as incompetent.

Moving closer to Lynn to show her the small book he had been checking over he places it down carefully in front of her. The first page was open and at the top of the page scrawled down in big letters was "A history of The Syliran Knights" Sighing slightly in disappointment wishing he had something better. Vincent gives a half crooked smile "I'm sorry this isn't quite what you had in mind but i have a lot of knowledge on The Knights Order and its only going to be temporary. Now if you would like to get started. I'm going to help you read through this to give you a good idea on what letters form what sounds when put together in a word. Don't worry if you cant quite get it at first these things take time"

[Lynn]

Seeing Vincent's consternation, Lynn couldn't help but laugh, the gentle sound spilling out into the quiet courtyard like sunlight through the trees. "Oh, I didn't mean today," she explained with a good-natured smile. She tucked her coin purse back into her bag as she continued, "I know I'm not ready for medical books yet. I'm sure what you've brought is perfect." As much as she wished for immediate results, to improve her skills with a snap of her fingers and begin absorbing as much information about medicine and healing as she could, Lynn knew her path was a long and winding one, learning to read only the first step. The road ahead was daunting to say the least, but she had heard enough of Priskil's trials and endurance as a fawn to know that faith and hope could shine a light in any darkness. Lynn had no doubt that she would one day realize her dreams. Vincent drew closer, a small leather-bound book in his hand. Lynn leaned over the pages to get a better look, her auburn hair falling over one shoulder and creating a temporary screen between them as she scanned the seemingly cryptic pages. A History of The Syliran Knights Lynn stared intently at the first line of words, a small indent appearing between her brows as she concentrated on the letters. "A," she began, tracing her progress with an index finger, "Of, the. Those are easy." The other words presented more of a challenge. She sounded them out slowly, stumbling at times, announcing each one proudly when she finally figured it out. When she came to the last word, however, Lynn faltered. "Kuh.. kuh-nuh," she murmured softly, finally tucking her hair behind her ear and looking up to Vincent for help when she reached the final cluster of consonants.

[Vincent Lane]

Vincent helped Lynn along with the pronunciation of the first couple of words starting at the title. Having some trouble with the last word, Vincent can see that she is struggling quite a bit with it. "The word is Knight"
Vincent begins to explain to her, that certain letters in the common tongue, when put together form to create a silent letter. " This is one of the more difficult aspects of the common tongue" The 2 of them continued on for another hour or so. Slowly struggling along a few pages of the books. Having to stop every now and again to explain why certain bigger words and letter combinations are said in the way they were.

Time gets on and the end of the session comes near. Vincent is starting to become more and more curious about Lynn. Things like whys as a grown adult she doesn't know how to read and write. She seems rather intelligent.
Vincent stands up and smiles "Okay that should be enough for today. You've done well for your first day"
Feeling a little bit like he shouldn't be asking this Vincent says "So uhm before you go. Might i ask how you got into medicine. It must have been very difficult without the ability to study texts. I mean surely there must have been someone else you know who could have taught you" Vincent scrathes his head awkwardly hoping he hadnt just offended her.

[Lynn]

For all the difficulty Lynn had expected to face, she had no idea learning to read could be this fun. Most of the words they encountered over the course of the lesson were well beyond her recognition, many too complicated for her to even sound out, but Vincent was a patient teacher, and his doubts about her interest in the texts they worked out of were unfounded. She devoured it all like a starving child, both the intricacies of the Common tongue and the lore itself, and while much of it would not sink in without repetition, together they laid a solid foundation. The history of the Syliran Knights proved to be quite an interesting topic, one Lynn had known nothing about prior to today; though she had lived in Syliras her whole life, that amounted to only a few years, a time during which she thought little of the city's history. They read about the Dyres brothers Lawrence and Leon, the two founders of the Knighthood, and the Konti woman Nila, whose vision set everything in motion. Lynn felt a deep admiration for their dedication and perseverance in the face of great adversity, a trait that she respected above many others. As they read on, she noticed something: an event referred to simply as the "Valterrian" was referenced several times, though never in any great detail. She had the feeling that she should know what it meant, and filed the name away to look up later. All too soon, the lesson drew to a close. Lynn had been so absorbed in their work that she hadn't noticed the passage of time; glancing up at the sun, she was surprised to see that it must have been close to the sixteenth bell. She felt ready to burst with pride when Vincent complimented her progress. He had proven to be quite an effective teacher, showing knowledge and patience in equal measures, and she couldn't have been more grateful for his help, nor happier with the results. As they were both gathering their things, Vincent posed a question about her interest in medicine with some apparent discomfort, though she couldn't understand why. "My mother taught me," she replied. By this time, Lynn was much more comfortable speaking with him, so she continued in more detail. "She was an herbalist and a healer -- not a healer of Rak'keli, but she knew how to mend wounds and which herbs would serve the body best." As she spoke, her eyes seemed to dim, and she wore a sad, distant smile, murmuring, "She died last fall." Lynn had never bonded with her adoptive mother, but her death still affected the young Kelvic deeply, and it showed on her face -- but only for a moment. Having a nature which made it difficult to linger in sadness for long, Lynn adopted once more a smile of genuine happiness, which she directed in full force at Vincent as she said, "She wanted me to continue studying medicine, so here I am. It's my dream." Over the course of the lesson, her curiosity about her tutor had grown, so she asked a question of her own: "What do you dream of, Vincent?"

[Vincent Lane]

Vincent listened intently to Lynn as she went on explaining her story to him. It has been a long time since Vincent had been able to have a conversation that actually meant something. Which made him all the more happier that he came out of is isolated lifestyle. Vincent looked into her eyes she started to look rather upset. She murmured something under her breath that Vincent only just managed to catch. "Oh i'm sorry to hear of your loss. She sounded like a lovely person" Vincent knew what it was like to lose someone. Although not in such a final way as death, but he can sympathise with her loss. She lets out a smile after a moment and explained that it was her mother that wanted her to learn about medicine. The fact that Lynn felt comfortable enough to tell Vincent all of this eased him into a similar sense of comfort. No longer feeling anxious or awkward with her. He felt happy that he was helping someone obtain their dreams, it gave him a warm feeling of happiness.

After all was said and done Lynn posed a similar question to him. This was rather tough to answer as he didn't fully know what he wanted to do or what his dreams were. Vincent still considered himself to be a foolish kid who didn't know anything. Thinking long and hard about it he sighed. "I suppose what i really want is to someday leave this city so i can continue my own personal studies in peace. Away from all these people and cramped places" Vincent wasn't to fond of living in the city but he knew it to be near impossible for him to leave at present time. " i suppose our stories are quite similar actually. Like you, my mother also wants me to continue on my studies. Always saying i must carry on tradition" All this time Vincent is trying to be very vague and avoiding what his studies are. worrying he might not be accepted if she found out he could use magic. He knows a great many people distrust mages and wizards. even though he would in no way consider himself to be one he would rather not take the risk.

The sun was starting to go down upon the horizon emanating a bright orange glow across the city. It made the gardens look rather beautiful. There wasn't too many people left there any more. Most of them had cleared out to head back to their respective homes and duties. Vincent gives Lynn a warm smile "Hopefully someday i will be able to get away from this city and travel, but my dreams are for the future for the time being im more then happy helping you achieve yours"