[The Docks] Songs Unsung (Ireth)

[Naia Whitewater]

Speach | Thoughts | 13 Winter, 513 AV | oocYou can go where ever with it Whether it was Ireth she bumps into, or she just happens to have witnessed it. I just wanted to give you something to work with

The smell of the sea was something that Naia failed to treasure as a child, and her longing for the oceans had only increased tenfold since she'd taken up work in the Celestial Center of Nyka. She felt her body take up an even sway, moving slowly as she took up the rhythm of the soft waves - something which quickly proved rather hazardous, the little slab of Svefran paradise quick in tempo and hurried with motion, the sound of Fratava spoken enough to bring a small semblance of a smile and quell her irritation.

She weaved her body in and out of the streams of people and cargo, keen to begin one of the days she was granted leave on a high note, her gaze caught between the sights of towering dunes and ship's masts as she made her way towards the later. It took her a little more to warm up to the feel of the place, unable to recall the last time she'd ventured out of the city itself without a companion of some form. It was strange, she concluded, to walk alone in a place so full of life and movement. She shot a glance at the sun, figuring the time for a few bells before midday, the sky a beauty of blue of white. It was easy to forget on such days the general strangeness of the city when the skies were like that - normal, beautiful, the same as any sky Naia had ever had the pleasure of living under.

She pressed her lips and slowed her pace, wandering the docks with her sights then firmly set upon the small bay. She could do it. Simply and easily, at that. She could leave Nyka and find a pod, fall into the life and ways that was a Svefra's once more. She had a brother or sister, at least, that she was yet to meet, then many more in the Svefra's sense of the word. She let out a heavy breath, the chains of life in Nyka not quick to allow her to leave. She had a small apartment of her own, then. She had a job and family and obligations, and a strange love of the thrill that came from living in a place so bizarre. She wanted to explore every inch of Nyka just as much as she wanted to throw herself into the sea.

Her mind wasn't quite with her, and she couldn't help but drift closer and closer towards the water, apparently not paying much mind to whose paths that she was crossing. She had enough sense to steer clear of a cart and several others, but she came to a small little patch of hard pressed, rushed people, and found herself slamming into one as she sought to avoid another. Shyke. She stalled for a moment, face drawing in confusing in regret. "Sorry," she began, grinding her teeth as she found her words rung hollow. "Are you alright?" Yes, much better. She sounded like she actually cared there. She gave the best she could muster for an apologetic look, deciding to mix truth with falsities for a genuine ring. She could work with words on paper, though speaking them never seemed to be her strongest point. "I got a little distracted by sights - again I am beyond sorry."

[Ireth Telemnar]

Oh, in Rhysol's NAME! Is it totally impossible for me to NOT run into somebody every petching time I go out?! Ireth shook her head and attempted to regain the breath that had been knocked out of her chest, more upset with herself than with anything else. It's as if some god has it out for me... Who did I upset and what the petch did I do? She took a deep breath and put her head in her hand to steady herself, knowing that she was making a scene. But somehow, the woman that had hit her had plowed some part of her body directly into Ire's stomach and made the young busker feel as if the meager breakfast she'd eaten that morning might come back up. Look at it this way... You wouldn't have met Savio or that shopkeeper in the Flaxen District if you hadn't bumped into them.... So Ireth shrugged it off. "Trust me, 't isn't the first time it's happened, nor, I'm sure, will it be the last. In fact, you might laugh, but it seems to happen to me often." People swam all around the two pausing women, going about their jobs or shopping or whatever it was their busy lives mandate that they attend to. It was dizzying almost, the flow of bodies that were pushing against Ireth and the woman who had bumped into her, eager to get to where they were going and not at all happy to have their paths blocked by two girls stopped in the middle of the boardwalk. Gulls wheeled in the air, cawing and looking for a meal amongst the people. And then there were the fisherfolk, lugging huge nets of the day's catch on their backs, which in turn caused several people to dodge the odoriferous cargo or to get smacked by the scaly burdens. She hadn't been paying much attention before, so Ire looked up at the stranger before her. The woman sported pretty dark brown hair and brilliantly blue-green eyes. There was something about her... Oh. She's one of those sea folk. What were they called? Sawafra? Sevearfa? No no... Svefra. The nomads that lived in boats on the sea. Ireth had seen a handful or two around Nyka, but then again, she was still getting used to seeing all these non-human people free and walking about. Had this been Ravok, anyone not human was usually enslaved. But here, people like the Svefra and people of mixed blood lived the same lives as humans, making them all the more interesting to Ire. She put a hand on the woman's shoulder. "Are you alright? I hit you pretty hard. Here, lets get out of the flow of traffic." Ireth turned and, as though she were in on her own city's docks, she walked down a flight of wooden stairs and out onto a ship's pier that was currently vacant. The simple boardwalk jutted out into the murky water, the area before it large enough for a ship, should one come in. But there were no sailors or fishermen here today, and Ireth was taking this opportunity to get as close to the salted sea as she could. Sitting crosslegged near the edge, Ireth gazed out into the water. "Forward or not, I had to get out of the middle of those people. Sometimes, I understand it. They have places to go and people to see. But to be rude enough to... Oh never mind. Vengeful thoughts never made for a crystal heart." There was a moment's pause. "My name is Ireth. A pleasure to bump into you on this fine day." She giggled.

[Naia Whitewater]

Speech | Thoughts

Naia blinked twice. Of all possible responses, a simple 'Yeah it happens to me a lot' was well within the ranges of things she hadn't expected. Perhaps a sigh, or an amiable 'no worries,' but not a word of trust and a shrug, nor a question to Naia's own well being. "I'm... fine," was her response, her expression drawn in confusion. Even more so than that, with a hand on her shoulder she was practically lead towards the water. Not that she minded that little development so much, given she'd have found some way to such a place on her own.

The stroll she kept was rather slow, not too keen to throw herself into a situation with a woman she hadn't even formally met. Soon enough it was not the woman who held Naia's attention, it was the bay and the sea beyond, and she shortly found herself half listening as she spoke onwards, herself taking seat right on the edge of the pier, her legs dangling over the edge.

She wasn't quite sure what to make of the woman's remark - a crystal heart not being something that she herself had ever wanted. If she understood what the woman meant, of course. "Ireth," She repeated, playing with the word and how it rolled off her tongue. "-Naia, a pleasure." She pressed her lips and kept her gaze towards the horizon, eyes drifting from the rolling waves to the ships in the distance.

She wasn't all too sure what there was to be said, but she scarcely thought that sitting in silence for too long was the best option. "There a very few things as beautiful as the sea," began, such words of adoration requiring little effort. She felt her breathing quickly slow, and a small smile hit her lips. "Have you ever been on the open seas?" She asked, pulling her legs beneath her, a story ready to spring from her lips, and mind eager to hear one.

[Ireth Telemnar]

Ireth watched as the woman, Naia, got comfortable. It was almost as if she were eager to speak. Not that Ireth minded. If there was one thing that she enjoyed doing, it was listening. Be it to the stories and conversations of others or to the twittering of birds and the falling of rain. Rain, something totally foreign to her before coming to Nyka, was one of her most favorite things now. "Me? On the seas? Oh no." She smiled over at the woman. "I... know my way about the water, but I'm not very good. I prefer to keep my feet on the... land." Her attempting to keep her being Ravokian from the things she was saying made it sound like Ire had a stutter. Perhaps she could learn something. "However, I know almost nothing of your people." She hoped, nay, prayedthat that was an appropriate term. She'd hate to offend Naia. "I've heard that you live at sea, constantly on the move? I guess it's obvious that you don't spend your entire lives out there, because you are here, but others?" A large ship was moving in to anchor in the bay. Ireth watched as, from her point of view, the beautifully wrought ship's crew swarmed around her as ants would do a piece of food. They called to one another, tossing rope and answering the orders of their superiors. A breeze blew in, a reminder that winter was in full swing. Though the water beneath her feet was tempting, Ire knew that it would be frightfully cold.

[Naia Whitewater]

Speech | Thoughts

So Ireth wasn't a sea fairer, then? Naia would be lying if she claimed that she did not feel an inkling of disappointment, nor felt a slight sinking to her excitement. With eyes such a brilliant blue hue, she thought that perhaps a Svefra's blood might be prominent in her. But no matter, there at least seemed to be an appreciation for the rolling waves, and that was more than enough for Naia.

Ireth's following words were quite interesting. Naia's people. Even bound to land my loved ones and obligation, the ocean was still in her blood. She still saw sisters and brothers when she saw a fellow Svefra, and any sound of gushing water was quick to bring up thoughts of the sea. She found it strange that there were people who lived so close to waters, and knew so little about the tales of the high seas.

That being said, how often did the Whitewater Pod dwell close to coastal town and city, only for Naia and several others to go no further than than the docks? "Every pod - family group - is different," She kept her words rather quiet, but not so much that strain had to be taken to hear them over the sounds of the waves of water and people.

Soon enough, however, she found a small smile on her lips, and rocked back and forth by the way of the waves, her tone taking a sound akin to how she heard a bard speak. "Some live their lives in the Suvan, from city to city and back again. From what I know, they are those far more active in terms of their contact with land." She gave a small giggle, something not that quite common for herself. "They're your typical pirate, for the Suvan is their love and life. You cannot cross her without their blessing."

She mused to herself for a moment more, trying to word and make sense of how to approach her own homewater. "The Whitewaters and Northwinds are examples of us hardy folk in the Northern Oceans, the Southwinds an example of those who roam the vast South. Our tales," she grinned, "Are the tallest of them all."

[Ireth Telemnar]

Ireth's eyes lit up. Here was a girl unlike many she'd ever encountered before. In Ravok, all the natives had this deep, innate love for the Lake. The Lake was as much their guardian as their Lord Rhysol and his Voice were. The Lake protected them from the outside, from the people who might wish to harm the worshipers of her Lord. And it provided them with nearly everything they could ever wish for. The water they needed to clean in and drink, the fish that was the majority of their diets, the protection of a home, the Lake gave it all to them. And here was a woman with the same love, nay, near obsession with her fluid home. Where some would complain about the comings and goings, the flow of the tides, the bipolarity of the water's weather, Naia and Ire shared a love for it. It had been both their home and their lifeline, and though they were now attempting to make lives upon the dry rocky earth, they were inevitably drawn back to large bodies of water. And that simple similarity was enough to make Ire want to get to know the Svefra more, to learn about her, to become her friend. Savio did not and probably never would have such a natural love for the Suvan or her Lake, should he ever see it. But this... this bond that she shared with Naia! Why, it made her so excited! It was as if she'd just discovered a sister or female cousin she didn't know she had had. Ireth drew herself together and, facing Naia, leaned back against one of the tall wooden poles that held the pier up in the bay. She pulled her braid around, laying it over her shoulder so that it wouldn't catch on the wooden splinters and listened carefully, hanging on to every word that her new companion let flow from her mouth. But, she thought, should I tell her about me being from Ravok? How will she take it? Most of the outside world dislikes my Lord. Will she too? So she decided to keep her life to herself. At least for the moment at hand. Precaution. Letting out a chuckle, Ire asked "And what, pray tell, makes the tales of your people so outlandish? Pardon the pun."

[Naia Whitewater]

Speech | Thoughts

Naia gave an amused little giggle as Ireth got herself comfortable, deepening her laigh wholehearted as she received a pun as she egged her on. She quite the pretty little thing, her gaze eager and look keen. "Well," she began, keeping her tone grand as she brought back all the little things that made her childhood marvelous. "There is the severe lack of boundaries."

She gestured to the walls of the bay, "The Suvan Sea is like this bay, fenced in and somewhat restrictive." Her motion then moved the break in the wall, the sight of the seas on the horizon "And that out there is the Northern and Southern Oceans. On one side there is land, on the other boundless waters," she gave Ireth a short look, as if to ensure that her words were inspiring the that she thought they ought.

The seas were a beautiful, wondrous, expanse - that should be both admired and feared. "I'm a Whitewater," she said finally, placing herself into her words so familiarity could be made. "The Northern Oceans are where I called home for more than half of my life. Fierce, icy, dangerous, beautiful, overwhelming. Storms would often rock the ship, ice-burghs sometimes floated on by, and there were nights when we could dance under a sky of light and aurora."

For all the problems she had with her pod, she couldn't help the rush of pride she felt. They were a hardy bunch, and one of the few Svefra who dared to live in the expanse North of the Konti Isle, never travelling further South than Sahova - oh, there were tales about there, too. Tales of Krakens and seabeasts, and the undead taking over one's ship. They were only tales, of course. Right?

She pressed her lips before turning to Ireth, wondering about her own life and times. "And you? Have you always fancied this city of marvel your home?"

[Ireth Telemnar]

Ireth held onto every word that Naia spun about her beautiful home, her irises dancing back and forth across the whites of her stormy blue eyes as she tried to imagine the fierce beauty of the ocean. The only thing that Ire could truly compare it to was the Lake, though she knew it was somewhat more feral. Still, the Lake had its fair share of rough storms. It had been with one such storm that the Lake had taken Ireth's father a couple of years ago. "And you? Have you always fancied this city of marvel your home?" Ire hummed, her mind wavering between the safety of keeping her mouth shut about her city and that need to make a friend. It was kinda funny, having to make friends. In Ravok, it was as if Ireth had known everyone. The fisherfolk that had worked alongside her father, the merchants and wealthier people her mother had worked for, the famed noble families that everyone knew, family on her mother's side, folk she had met on the streets while piping, childhood companions, friends of her brothers. The majority of the people that Ire didn't know around Ravok were foreigners. Or kelvics. But here, in Nyka, a city of colors, Ireth had come knowing no one, save her cousin and aunt. She was having to wander around a city where she hardly knew anyone. It was thrilling and nerve wracking at the same time, especially when someone went about attacking someone else right in front of the poor girl. That usually ruined her day. Taking a deep breath, Ire cocked her head and smirked at Naia. "Nyka's not my home, though I'm growing to love it more with each passing moment. It had been rather accepting of me so far, it's bright colors and brilliant people." Her thoughts flew to Savio. "I might make it my home though. There's someone here who would very much like me to stay... But I miss my own water-bound city." She leaned forward, her elbows on her knees as she played with her braid. Ireth looked down at the thick braid of dark blonde hair, thoughts of her mother's similar hair arising. "I come from Ravok... That's how I know my way about the water. It's nowhere near as vicious or as mesmerizing as the Suvan, but it's special in its own ways." The hair bought her a distraction from the Svefra's face, though she wondered hard at what her companion's face was saying.

[Naia Whitewater]

Speech | Thoughts

Brilliant people or brilliant people, Naia wondered, playing on the thought with a smirk of her own as she listened to Ireth speak of her ever growing love for the city. Taking a real look at the woman as she spoke, and listening to the way she formed her words, special note taken in how far she opened her mouth and her clearness, all the little quirks and tells that told that she wasn't native were bleeding obvious. It was in the way she carried her, the edge of her features and the look in her eye.

Ravok - so that was the city wherein she was born and raised. Naia gave a short look over the woman's features, nodding slowly as she gave her own personal little acknowledge of the blood than ran though Ireth's veins. Naia had met a Ravokian once. She was younger, then. And angrier, and louder, and just generally a larger pain in the rear end. She couldn't say the encounter had ended well, but neither was it particularly bad.

"The floating city," Naia said, the tone of her words making it sound far more akin to a question. "I've never been," the rolling of her shoulders was one of indecision, of judgements yet to be passed and opinions to be determined. From her aforementioned little encounter - she found that there was little of Ravok's lovely reputation that could quite be called into question.

Rhysol's floating city of slaves. Oh, she'd heard stories. Lovely, marvelous little stories of short stays quickly turning into nightmares, of kelvics escaping and bearing scars for the rest of her lives. But as there were tales of Ravok, there were of Svefra and Nyka. She herself was a Svefra who did not thrive on the Suvan, she'd met a timid Nykan, and there was little doubt that Ireth was Ravokian with a softer heart than those in tales. "The lake," she eventually continued, deciding that if Ireth would not ask herself why a Svefra was living on land - then she'd not ask the same of her. Everyone had their secrets, and it was their right to keep them. "I've told you a little of my seas, how about you of yours?"

[Ireth Telemnar]

Ireth thought for a moment. All this thinking of her city and her Lake made her a bit nostalgic, it seemed as if ages had passed since she last swam in the waters of Ravok's canals. "Really, the Lake is but a puddle compared to your Sea. But it's... different. It's got certain qualities about it that make it special when compared to your Sea, does that make sense?" She pursed her lips for a moment, then leaned over the edge of the wooden pier and gazed down into the water. "Here's an example. Look into the waters. It's... there's a word for it. Ummm... Brackish? Yes, the waters of the Suvan are brackish, you can't see in them, there is no clarity whatsoever. The Lake is the total opposite, the water is so beautifully clear. The deeper you peer, the darker it gets, so you can't always see the bottom. But it's so crystalline and clean, and sweet to the taste! That's the way we get our water of course, and it's not unusual for folk to simply drink from the Lake." The waters below her were frothing as they beat against the poles that held up the pier and the stone wall that held back the Sea. Ire spotted sea weeds and bracken in the water, along with refuse from the city. Farther out, birds dived for fish that had escaped the capture of fishing folk. And Naia's indifference to her being from Ravok? That in itself was like a cool drink of water for Ireth. She'd been so scared, every time it came to someone asking. As if they'd turn on her and hurt her, or turn her over to the monks. And she had no protection whatsoever, what with Savio on his self-search. As she looked out over the waters, wondering about her Lake and Ravok, a strange sensation came over Ireth. It was none too pleasant, and for a moment she thought she was going to be sick. Her stomach rolled and her vision swam. Try as she might, Naia became nothing but a blur of color before her eyes. Then, as quickly as the feeling came over her, it was gone. Ire shook her head and looked at her friend again. What the petch was that... She felt a little shaky. Perhaps I'm just hungry. But she knew, deeper down, that hunger was not the cause of such a tremor. "Naia... Would you like to come get something to eat with me? I've seen a baker about these parts a few days back." She offered up a soft smile, kind of hoping that the Sverfan hadn't noticed anything. Ireth stood up, somewhat wobbly, her heart and mind aflutter. What had just happened? Am I getting sick? Who knows what sort of illnesses I could have picked up, maybe even ones we don't have in Ravok. Maybe it's something I ate? Oh Lord... I hope it doesn't get bad before Savio comes back. I honestly don't know what to do!