Closed Once Upon a Time [Kat]

[Oryani]

Fall 10th, 513 AV
After the Auction

Oryani walked a little ways away from the pair of Kalikar and his new wife, watching them intently. Honestly, she’d only come to the auction to keep an eye on her friend and relative, since this wasn’t something he was entirely comfortable with. He’d never gotten into the whole ‘woman’ thing, and though she hadn’t either, it was good to keep the man company. At the moment, he had a nervous grin on his face, half excited and half bewildered by all the events. A steady, callused hand rested on the woman’s shoulder, partially to comfort the brunette, partially to keep her from running away, and partially… because Kalikar wasn’t sure what else to do. Everyone else was doing something similar, so he decided that’s what he’d do too. The silly man.

Despite Oryani and Kalikar being a decade apart in age, and the man technically being her half-uncle, she thought of him more as a brother than anything else. He was a little immature for his age, preferring sticking to making pottery alone. This would be a new experience for him, something that actually made the Chatakwe smile. It would be… entertaining… to watch him out of his comfort zone.

Soon enough, the silence became awkward and both the Drykas noticed. ”So… uh… what’s your name?” it was stupid of him to forget, to be honest… but the Chatakwe had forgotten herself, so she was grateful for Kalikar to be asking. ”I’m… uh… Kalikar… Kalikar Darkeye. This is my…” he stumbled on the word, trying to find the right way to describe his relation with Oryani. ”Niece.” the archer supplied, pulling her friend out of the awkward rut he’d gotten himself into. ”Right. Niece. Oryani Darkeye.” He grinned widely at the woman, though the nervousness was obvious in his eyes. Oryani sighed quietly, resisting the urge to sink her forehead into her palm. She hoped the Drykas didn’t mess this up completely… hence the reason why she was keeping an eye on the man. If he started to do something stupid… maybe she’d ‘accitentally’ hit him with something.

”Anyways… uh… where are you from?” he asked, still attempting to be friendly with his new ‘wife’. ”And… do you have any family? My pavilion’s pretty small, but everyone there’s still pretty friendly!” Kalikar seemed to be warming up to this, and honestly grinned at the woman. However, Oyrani simply couldn’t wait when he had to explain his reasons for buying her… that would be… interesting.

OOCSorry for the short starter!

[Katerina Deveraux]

Day 10, Season Fall, 513 AV

If there ever an awkward moment…this would be it. Actually Kat was quite sure this was just a long string of awkward moments sown together. In all the ways she had pictured being free of Syliras—this was not one of them. Not only getting herself caught, but her siblings as well, Kat really had no idea where they were. And she always prided herself on knowing where she was going—her brother could get lost by turning in a circle after all. Then there was being sold—at least she was pretty sure she was ‘sold’. The large throng of people speaking a language she didn’t understand while she waited with others like her—and not like her.

When it had been her turn, she hadn’t actually paid much attention. There was so much shock flowing through her body… that this was actually happening. She wasn’t even sure yet if she was angry at the idea of being sold or happy to be out of Sylira for good. Maybe it was a little of both. Either way, she was silent as was ushered to a man who was obviously older than her and girl that looked around her age. Both with black eyes. If the situation wasn’t so tense to being with, she might have actually been a little unnerved by them.

The man kept a firm hand on her shoulder and seeing as she really didn’t have a choice, Kat followed. And that lead up to now… awkwardness. Lots of it. The girl was trailing at a distance, and the man was grinning at her as though he wasn’t sure what he had gotten himself into. Great… at least everyone seemed to be on even terms then.

It actually took her a moment to realize the man had asked her a question. Kat blinked up at him blankly for a few moments before she cleared her throat. ”Katerina Deveraux… I guess you could call me Kat.” Really he could call her whatever he wanted she supposed. But at least with introductions out of the way, she had names. Tilting her head slightly, she glanced between the two of them. They were… family. Made sense, but honestly Kat had no idea how to react. Normally she would taken her brother’s sarcastic tone—but that didn’t seem like a wise idea.

”We came from Syliras—all three of us. My older brother and twin sister included. I don’t even know where they are…” She couldn’t help the sadness clouding her tone. Her siblings were always close by—even now—but the idea of being separated from them was a hard idea to swallow. But she wasn’t entirely ready to just lose it yet. She could cry and scream later. He wasn’t the only one with questions…

”Where am I? I mean… I know I’m nowhere near Syliras anymore.” Kat gestured outwardly with her arm to the area around her. The people, the land, the tents—Kat was beginning to panic a little. She really had no idea where she was. ”Who are you people? And why are your eyes black? Why did you take so many people? Why—“ Kat gasped in a breath. She was rambling and she highly doubted that he probably even picked up on any of that. Judging by his accent he probably didn’t speak common that often. That and no one else around them seemed to speak common either.

So Kat took several deep breaths, trying to calm the rapid beat of her heart. Closing her eyes, she tried to focus—but it was terribly difficult. All she could think about was what happens now, and what happened to her siblings. One question at a time. ”What is it you want with me? You… bought me after all.” Every other question could fall in line behind that one. What was going to happen to her now?

[Oryani]

Most of the woman's explanations went over Oryani's head, though she did catch the name she was given. She wished, for a moment, that all the captives spoke Pavi for one reason or another. It would simplify things... a lot. Instead, they all had to speak the annoyingly plain language of Common... it was very irritating. At least Kalikar's skills in the speech were much better than the Chatakwe's own, and he was able to hold a conversation in the language if needed. Said Drykas nodded at the explanation of Kat's family, planning on displaying his own later.

He paused to answer her questions, thinking on the wording for a moment. "You are in Endrykas. City of the Drykas. We are Drykas." at this, he motioned between Oryani and himself, to explain that 'we' meant the pair of them. "Our eyes are black because we are Chatakwe... well... Oryani is. I am... half Chatakwe. My mother was a Chatakwe. Don't worry, most Drykas do not have our eyes." He used the last sentence to console the woman, worrying that the sight of completely dark eyes would possibly be disturbing. The pair had been told such things before, since their eyes lacked even the usual whites or pupil's that almost all other races had.

When the last question came, however, Kalikar's hesitation was obvious. Oryani had gotten the gist of the sentence, understanding 'bought' and 'what'. She assumed the woman wanted to know why her companion had bought Kat from the auction... and the awkward question began. The Chatakwe had to smother a grin, keeping her steely expression, but nearly lost her control when her 'uncle' glanced over with an expression that was obviously begging for help. The archer gave the smallest shake of her head, amusement growing. Instead, the Drykas was left to fend for himself... it was his situation, after all.

"Well... see... uh... The Drykas, seasons before, had... a... disease. Many died. Our numbers are low. So... we need new Drykas. We take woman and children and take them into the Drykas culture. So you are here to join our pavilion and... uh..." He gave up, leaving the sentence trailing with the hope that Kat understood the general idea of what would happen next. The poor man didn't even want to say it out loud... but at least he would be better than a lot of other Dykas husbands, Oryani knew. Some would just treat their 'wives' as things to give them babies, and sometimes simply 'play' with. It mostly disgusted the Chatakwe, as her entire pavilion was honorable (in her eyes) and had accepted many wives from other cultures... which included her mother.

[Katerina Deveraux]

Day 63, Season Fall, 513 AV

If Kat was not so busy trying to calm her insides, she would have been entirely impressed that the poor man had kept up with her words. Even her siblings had trouble with that at times. It was actually a rather common occurrence with her, the rambling. Curiosity always got the better of her, and apparently even being here did not change the speed of her mouth. Kalikar at least did not seem offended by the mention of their eyes. Though in all honesty she wasn’t entirely disturbed by them, but it was difficult to look at. It made them look so much more… intense than anyone else around them.

Drykas… she had heard of them before of course. But she had never met one. She knew nothing of their culture to go with that fact. In the very least it was a start, but Kat realized no matter how many questions they answered it still did not change one simple fact. She knew nothing. Panic would not fix this, crying would not fix this—she wasn’t even entirely sure she wanted to fix this… whatever this was. She had been the one who wanted a new life; this was a perfect chance to have it. Only she wasn’t the only one who got a new life. Her brother and sister had been dragged into it.

They had comfortable lives back home. Skills that were useful—especially Nathan. Kat had spent most of her life just running around the city, letting her siblings take care of her. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that wasn’t going to fly here. Kat reached up, rubbing at her temples in a circular fashion. A headache was beginning to settle in her head, draining her of energy. But the headache was a distraction, she hadn’t even noticed Kalikar’s hesitation, or exchange of looks between him and his niece.

When his words finally came however, Kat felt her entire body freeze. ”Wait… you took people from their homes, to bring them here just so you can keep yours?” Her speech was purposefully slow. He may have kept up before, but she wanted to be sure that she was understanding him correctly. While she may not want to change her outcome… so many of those people had been crying, sobbing over being forced to leave their own homes. Even Nathan had been severely uptight, the only reason he didn’t put up much of a fuss was because they had both of his sisters.

Kat worked her jaw back and forth, before breathing out heavily. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to dwell on these facts or not. Plus there was more to the whole story… one he hadn’t finished. There were so many things she could fill that ‘uh’ with. Having an over active imagination did not help matters much either. But she had a feeling she knew where that sentence ended. Kat didn’t even have emotions to cover the idea. Pressing her lips into a thin line, Kat stared at the Drykas hard, trying to discern where to go with this knowledge. But really there was going nowhere…

”So… I was taken from home and brought here to… what exactly?” Her fingers twitched, bunching the fabric of her dress under her fingers slightly. A nervous habit despite her attempt at… well standing tall, which between the three of them was obviously failing. "What are we to you people?"

[Oryani]

At both questions, Kalikar’s jaw snapped shut with an audible sound. The muscles there were tight, and he didn’t seem to want to explain what was really going on to his new wife. Instead, he strode in silence for a few moments, avoiding both the judgmental women’s gazes. During this time, however, Oryani’s amusement kept growing, and finally she gave in to the laughter. She started with a snort, then a chuckle, which quickly grew into a laugh when she spotted her uncle’s frown. Of course, it deepened then, but the Chatakwe was already bent over, resting her hands on her things as she laughed.

It took her a moment to recover from this state, and only then did she straighten, gasping for breath. Her face was split by a large grin, and Kalikar gave his friend a small frown… but she could see it twitching. After a pause, she realised Katerina might have thought the Drykas was laughing at her, so Oryani quickly tried to fix that. ”I… laugh at him.” She pointed at the man for emphasis, who’s scowl looked more than a little comical. ”Not you. Him. He can’t tell you… truth.” she shrugged, irritated immensely by the simple fact that this woman couldn’t speak Pavi. Her fingers twitched constantly, wanting to show her amusement, but this silly language didn’t have any of that.

Instead she sighed, letting her annoyance out there. It also slightly hurt her to tell this woman the truth, but less than it did Kalikar. Honestly, she was beginning to like Kat. ”The Drykas… need.. babies. You… babies.” She made a rocking motion with her arms, hoping she explained the sentence right. ”Kalikar… husband.” She pointed at the man as well, unable to keep a straight face. Still, she only snorted this time, telling him in Pavi ”I’m done. You’re turn now. You get to answer the rest of the questions.” Instead, she only got a shaking of his head. Oryani scowled, thinking he didn’t want to speak, until the man continued in Pavi. ”Tell her about you and your mother. That might help.”/b] He shrugged, mostly ignoring his wife for a moment. The Chatakwe shook her own head this time, before commenting [b]”I can’t speak Pavi well… you say it.” She gave him a raised eyebrow, wanting a retort, but her uncle simply sighed and nodded.

”Um… Oryani’s mother is like you. She was from Ekytol, but came to the Drykas at your age. Oryani was born in Ekytol too. They are happy in the Drykas” he nodded, hopping a success story would help the situation a little. He frowned, remembering Kat’s comments about her siblings, and decided to attempt to change the topic. ”So… your siblings. They are here, yes? Maybe we can go visit them. Today or tomorrow, if we find time.” he nodded at the statement, glancing at Kat with hope in his eyes. He didn’t want to ruin any of this meeting and make his wife hate him… as that would just complicate things too much. Luckily enough, their pavilion was fast approaching, meaning that they could also get away from the awkward topic by introducing Katerina to the rest of the family.

[Katerina Deveraux]

Day 10, Season Fall, 513 AV

Kat wasn’t entirely sure how Kalikar took her questions, and she began to wonder if he was going to answer her at all or if he was just going to pretend she hadn’t asked period. He just… walked in silence and Kat felt her twitching fingers curl into fists. If she had the ability, she might have actually hit him—but she had a feeling if she could have, it would have been a very bad decision. Instead she scowled darkly at him, following him as if it were by choice. She was determined however that he was going to answer her questions one way or another…

The sound of a snort caused Kat to literally jump. She had forgotten his niece was with them. And apparently she was laughing. Frowning, Kat finally released her fists, crossing her arms underneath her breasts. There was something she very obviously missed and she wasn’t entirely sure if she should be offended or not. So Kat did the only thing she could. Stand there and glance between the two of them. The entire stress of the capture and journey here was starting to weigh heavily on her shoulders and all she really wanted to do was snap. But Oryani did her best to at least clarify that she was not laughing at her, just her uncle.

So it was exactly as she feared. Well—to some extent. Babies… Kat had never once thought about kids, she was still too childish herself. Her brother called it a flaw, not that she entirely disagreed with him. But being married to Kalikar was not the same thing as just giving babies. Oryani’s hands started to move, along with a foreign language from her lips and Kat felt entirely left out again. It was impossible to tell what she was telling her uncle, much less follow her hands. In some ways though it actually looked kind of… beautiful. Grumbling nonsense under her breath, Kat shook her head slightly. This place was going to take some getting used to.

”Well I’m… glad that they are happy here. I guess.” Kat didn’t want to be rude, but the shift in conversation was noticeable. Dropping her head into her left palm, she took several deep breaths shaking her head slightly. ”I would like to find my family yes. I’m sure my brother can handle himself but my sister…” Her siblings were going to hate her for this. Kat wasn’t entirely sure she could fix that rift with them. But he was still avoiding the subject.

Watching Oryani out of the corner of her eye, Kat reached out and snagged Kalikar’s wrist and attempted to pull him to a stop. She wasn’t entirely sure how her… daring would be viewed but she hated it when people avoided things. ”Having babies is completely different than marriage. I don’t understand why I would have to… marry you.” Other than it might just be as looked down upon as it was in Syliras. She was supposed to join this… pavilion. Be married and give children. ”And I don’t have a choice…?”

She released his wrist and looked away from both of them. She had basically just answered her own question. It really should have been more obvious. If she had a choice, they wouldn’t have just taken people from their homes. Sighing heavily, Kat motioned forward with her hand. More information to crush her later when she tried to absorb the entire situation. ”Right.”

[Oryani]

Kalikar shrugged at the woman's statements, but his cheeks held a slight reddish tinge. "It's not right to have children... but not marry. To me." He looked a little relieved that Kat hadn't panicked or run away, and didn't mind when she grabbed his wrist. In fact, if she pushed her luck, she would find that the Drykas would treat her as an equal rather than some one under him.

However, before more conversation started up, they arrived at a medium-sized pavilion. A few horses stood outside, munching on the grass, and Oryani patted her own, a bay paint stallion named Khal. The Strider glanced up, whinnied quietly at the newcomer, before resuming on a delicious patch of clover he'd found. She held the tent flap open, and her uncle led Kat into the wide area with a light hand on her shoulder. They would have to duck slightly to enter, because of the canvas flaps, but the doorway was otherwise quite simple.

Inside the tent the area was wide and open, and there seemed to be a pair of canvas doorways on the opposite sides, leading to other, smaller tents. Oryani herself had her own tent, which was set up nearby the others. She preferred to sleep on her own, though most of the family resided in the main tent. In the middle was a small cooking fire, though it was not lit yet. Small cushions and other comfortable seats littered the floor- which was the same grass that they had been walking on earlier- and a few were inhabited. An old woman with half grey, half black hair sat on one, long legs crossed. Her face held a slightly stern expression, though the lines at the corners of her mouth indicated she could be quite happy. Facing away, though towards the older woman, was a man, also tall and regal, with an important demeanor. He had darkish brown hair, which held a few grey hairs as well. They seemed to be the only current members, and their quiet conversation in Pavi stopped as the trio entered the abode.

"Welcome!" the woman exclaimed, her Pavi accent thick, as the man glanced behind him with a confused expression. However, this quickly turned to pleasure as he greeted Kat in kind. "This is Savian, our Ankal. He is in charge. The woman is Jyomica, his mother." Kalikar nodded at each person in turn, slightly bowing when he addressed the Ankal. "Brother, mother: This is Katerina Deveraux, my new wife." he said this in Pavi, acting much more formal than he had earlier. Technically, however, the woman was his step-mother, the first wife of his father. His own mother had been a Chatakwe, Aviar's second wife. That also made Savian his half-brother. Most here weren't directly related, though everyone skipped on the specifics.

The two older Drykas nodded at Kat, before turning back to their conversation. Oryani took her own seat on a cushion, wondering where her mother had gotten to... normally the Chatakwe rarely left the pavilion. However, her questions were answered when said woman entered from the leftmost flap, her eyes and hair as dark as her daughter's. "Hello... you Katerina?" she asked, her accent also thick, though... from something other than Pavi. "Hello Oryani" she spoke to her daughter in Tawna this time, stooping her head sligthly. The introduction done, Mianko (as that was the Chatakwe's name) went to join the other two in their conversation.

Kalikar directed to sit next to him and his niece, taking a comfortable seat himself on a cushion. "So... you have met the family. Oryani's brother is away, but he will come." he nodded, and shifted his position slightly, trying to decide what to talk about next. "What do you do? Did you work in Syliras?" he asked, brightening at the topic. His fingers drummed on one of his knees, anxious to use them to speak, and do something in general. the potter always liked to have something to do with his hands.

[Katerina Deveraux]

Day 10, Season Fall, 513 AV

To him. Kat wasn’t entirely sure if the idea annoyed her or touched her. Marriage—from her own perspective—was usually about love. It’s what all the great stories from Syliras were about, what her parents felt. Marriage for the sake of children, it wasn’t one of the fonder choices. The only thing that was standing out in her mind was that there was no timeline for any of this. That made her nervous. She didn’t do relationships—and this was tying herself to someone she didn’t know with unknown expectations. In childish instinct, she rather would have hidden behind her brother. A lot of good that was going to do now…

The only thing that actually distracted her from the dreading thoughts in her head was the horses. She had seen plenty of horses in Syliras, but not like these. She wasn’t sure if she would call them wild, judging by the fact they weren’t tied down, or if they stayed willingly. Oryani patted one, and the horse seemed to respond. It would have been far more intriguing if Kalikar wasn’t trying to lead her into a tent. Ducking beneath the flap, her eyes immediately set to taking in the new surroundings. Part of her mind mapped it out, filing it away even though she highly doubted she would ever get lost in a tent—like her brother. The other half was quite amazed a tent could actually feel homely.

But it was quiet, except from the duo talking in the foreign language. The elderly woman noticed them and Kat felt intimidated for some reason. The large throng of people buying people was easier to handle than this for some reason. At their greeting, Kat tried to say something—anything—but despite her gaping mouth, nothing would come out. After a moment she just huffed at herself and tried her best to smile, though she was sure it came out as more of a grimance.

Another woman entered the tent, and for a tick Kat considered trying to dash out the tent flap. She could she get lost among the people… would they even let her? But it would have been pointless. She had no idea where her siblings were, and chances were this city of people didn’t survive by just standing there watching other people’s problems. Instead Kat took a spot next to Kalikar as he motioned, sitting down heavily. She hadn’t realized how badly her legs ached. Neither of them seemed to know where to go next. Another awkward moment before Kalikar asked what it was she did…

”Uhh…” This was a conversation she dreaded. The people here all appeared to be hard workers—they would have to be living like they did. The fact she didn’t have any kind of skills to offer made her nervous. ”I did not do much at home actually. My brother… took care of us. After our parents died.” She winced slightly, staring at the ground in front of her. ”I am decent at navigation… but that’s mostly because my brother gets lost walking past a tree… or rock.” Rolling her eyes slightly, she looked up at the two of them before she shrugged.

”I’ll learn I suppose.” Kat always took the opportunity to learn new things. Except hunting, that was her brother’s realm. ”Uhm… am I married to you already? Or is there some sort of… ceremony? And the whole thing about kids...” Kat felt her head spin again, the room actually swirled before her eyes. Closing them, she rubbed her fingers over her eyelids, trying to figure out a way to ask what was really on her mind. ”Sorry, it’s just… stuck in my head. What is it that you do?” At least that didn’t sound as rude.

”The horses outside are beautiful, do they stay of their own free will?” Glancing back at the tent flap, even though she knew she wouldn’t see anything, Kat realized she really was curious about them. Them and the curious language the three others were using some ways away. Kat pointed at them, before speaking up again. ”Is it… hard to learn? Your language?”

[Oryani]

Kalikar raised his eyebrows when Kat mentioned 'navigation' "That is still useful!" he exclaimed, obviously happy with this new skill. "You can learn other things too." He grinned widely, but it quickly shrunk at the next question. Marriage again. The Drykas sighed, but still answered the question. "Not yet. There is a ritual. That will happen soon. And kids..." he shrugged awkwardly, blushing slightly. "Later? Not now..." he shook his head sadly, before deciding to explain a little more on the situation. "Because of the population, all Drykas men need one or two wives. I had none, so..."

Despite all this slightly depressing talk, Kalikar seemed to brighten at the last question. "Well, I am a potter. I make pots, with cl..." the Drykas drifted off, frowning as he saw Kat's expression. "Are you ok? Headache? Healer? You want water?" he grabbed a water flagon from somewhere and passed it to the woman, his face full of concern. Jymocia seemed to come out of nowhere as she stood imperiously over the trio. "She's not well." she told the two Drykas, scowling. "She might have a migraine. Kalikar - ask her if she feels dizzy, or sees bright lights." The man did as told, explaining the question to Katerina. They were lucky the elderly woman had some minor skills in medicine, enough to tell if you should head to a healer or not. Though she was nowhere near an expert, she had nursed Oryani back to health more times than the Chatakwe could remember, since she fell sick so often. If Kat didn't drink, Jymocia would literally shove the water down her 'patient's' throat, but if she did, the Drykas would simply wait until every last drop went down. Then she told Kalikar to relay some more information, and he stated "How are you feeling now? You need sleep?"

OOCI'm sorry for such a short post! That felt so much longer than it really was for some reason... huh.

[Katerina Deveraux]

Day 10, Season Fall, 513 AV

Kat was a little surprised honestly. She hadn’t expected him to be so happy that she was willing to learn. But her marriage question caught him off guard and nearly as quickly as Kalikar’s grin appeared it faltered. But it actually bought great relief to her entire being. At least it wasn’t entirely a rushed deal—or it didn’t sound like it at least. A ritual that would be coming soon, but children would be later. Later was a term she could work with. For the first time though, it actually brought a blush to her face. She was going to be his first wife... why did she get the feeling this might be as forced on him as it was her? Then again maybe not ‘forced’, more like expected.

Kat finally hit a subject though that seemed to please him, and he looked happier. But her headache—while it was starting to bother her slightly—seemed to worry him more than it did her. She took the offered water and took a few small sips, but she was almost unnerved by his stare. Logically, she was just a girl he literally just bought, and she really couldn’t mean that much. Her thoughts didn’t get much further than that though. The rest of her questions fell on deaf ears as the older woman was suddenly standing over them. Kat felt the instinct to try and back away twitch in her limbs. For an old woman, she was stealthy. She said something to Kalikar before he repeated it to her.

Awkwardly, Kat rubbed at the back of her neck. "Yeah my head hurts a little. Room tries to spin now and then too. The light though,” Kat shrugged slightly. "It’s probably just from… trying to take all this in.” She squirmed under their gaze, glancing between them and tried to avoid wincing at the pain her temples. "I don’t know much sleep would help honestly. I’ve never felt like this before.” Which was true. Usually her headaches were very mild, but her frazzled emotions—especially over her siblings—just seem to make it worse.

She pushed more of the water down though. It did help with the pain a little, and Kat sighed slightly. Shifting herself a little, she swallowed her pride. "Uhm… thank you.” Kat had no idea if everyone understood her, but at least she tried.