Closed A Long-Overdue Thanks [Ricky Maze]

[Kendhl Pilkvist]

6th of Winter, 514 AV

Kendhl had been searching for almost whole day now. Searching for what, might one ask? Well, for Ricky, of course. She'd begun the day before, shortly after her bondmate had told her that his best friend was the one who buried her. She would have gotten along fine, except for the fact that she had absolutely no clue where to start.

The ghost walked the streets of Zeltiva. Who knew that it could be so big? And when you looked for something, it always seemed to disappear. She sighed and ran a hand through her hair several times. People had been giving her weird looks a whole lot lately. Evidently they'd never seen a ghost before. It made her bitter.

"Ricky! Ricky! Where are you?" Shouting like this hadn't done much good so far, but there was always a chance he'd hear. For Laviku's sake, she'd checked everywhere! She'd checked the Kelp Bar, the docks, West and East Street, the Fish Market, everywhere! Why was it so petching hard to find one person?

She was over by the docks again. Maybe he was swimming or fishing or something. The docks gave her a good view of the coastline in case he was on the beach, too. Kendhl sat down right before the pier began. She didn't know if she'd slip through the wood panels. It was better to be safe than sorry.

"Petchin' hard to find." The spirit put her head in her hands and mumbled crossly. It'd help if she knew where he lived.

"Gods damn it, Ricky! Where are you!?"

Common - Fratava

[Ricky Maze]

Bitterly did the stark winds blow in their drop to frigid temperatures that loomed over the city, the sudden cold made a need for layers dire for those that were out in the streets as well as the docks. For Ricky there was no case of difference in terms of necessity, he needed to wear his new coat to keep warm as well as the thin wool gloves that slightly prodded at his nerves. Their presence of course wasn't taken for granted as he rubbed his hands together with chills in his breath, the air already soaked into his clothes and skin like a blanket of ice. Laviku's beard it's a cold arse day! He beckoned in silence as he picked up his rod to make sure its reel wasn't frozen.

At this rate he was probably better off at trying to fish with a net, seeing as how his rod could only haul so few fish at very large intervals. How very fortunate he was to go about making the choice to take a break from the Wave Guard, at the start of the very season it decides to turn cold. W-well at least Oi served fer 'bout two years o' so. He sort of grimaced as he thought about when he first joined, if he were to be technical he would've had his two year anniversary back before Martin's birthday. Either way it didn't matter to him now, what mattered was working for a living so he could feed his family. What better way he knew do it other than fishing! By Wysar's blue balls! It's petchin' colder than a witch's own tit out 'ere. He grimaced as he tried to shake off the endless horde of shivers in his spine.

Surprisingly there had been a few catches while he expected none, still though even if the bait seemed fresh that wouldn't have been enough for a large amount. To his surprise the bait wasn't actually frozen just yet, although it could've been given the water had to feel pretty nasty. Just the thought of the frigid temperatures in the depths made his stomach hurt a bit, seeing as how he practically threw himself into it almost a couple years back. G-Gods! What was Oi t'inkin?! Oi m-must'a been a real idiot back t'en! Another grimace as the memory turned sour, his hook cast out to the open sea once more as he huddled his limbs close. He sat at the edge of the dock with legs and arms brought in close, almost enough to make a perfect ball were it possible for humans to do such a thing.

As he sat there though he heard something, above the usual noise of the city's life, there was a voice that sounded out. Somebody in the distance sounded like they happened to look for him, although he couldn't quite figure out who since the tone wasn't found within his memory. D-de petch does dis person want wit' me? He wondered as he looked over his shoulder, unable to see who it was that called out in earnest to locate him. "Depends on which 'Ricky' ya be lookin' fer lassie!" He hollered over his shoulder with hopes he wasn't sounding crazy. "De only Ricky Oi know is a tallish handsome devil d'at ain't got not'in better t' do ot'er dan freeze his arse off while fishin'. D'at de one ya lookin' fer?" He called out with a wish he could grin and chuckle, his face practically felt numb enough to where he cared little to try.

[Kendhl Pilkvist]

OOCRicky you gotta stop showing me up with these posts, dude. I'm embarassed.

He's probably at home or somethin'. Nice and warm. I should probably head back home. 'Home' meant her grave, since it was really the only place she'd resided for a good while. Kendhl stood and began to walk the route back to her grave, humming a tune she made up on the spot.

Just before she'd finished walking along the coastline and turned west towards Mirahil Pass, however, she heard a reply. It was difficult to hear above the noise of the city, but it was there.

Kendhl pivoted and scanned the docks again. The sound gave her an idea as to where to look. She squinted, and while it didn't do much to aid her vision it made her think it did -- which was the important thing.

"That sounds like the one!" The spirit closed the distance between her and the sought-out fisherman, pausing a few paces away. A warm smile lit up her face. The possibility that Ricky didn't know she was a ghost failed to cross her mind, and on impulse she ran up to him as if to give him a hug.

Kendhl materialized and wrapped her arms around the ursine man's torso. Her cheek rubbed against the material of his coat, the feeling foreign to her ethereal form.

"Long time no see, Ricky." she whispered, dematerializing and stepping back to look up at him.

Common - Fratava

[Ricky Maze]

oocNo intention to show you up really, just getting back into the posting saddle is all. Besides you're doing great yourself.

After a simple glance over the shoulder to determine if anyone had heard him, Ricky felt sure he had merely been hearing things and concluded the notion with but a simple shrug. His body felt the need to move about thus he finally gave in and stood to his full height, his limbs stretched as the frost like air still nipped at his clothing. He hardly felt warm even if he stood still and mainly the wind was to blame, but as he felt his nerves quake just a bit the last thing he expected turned out to be the first thing somebody did. Hands that looked nearly white as snow came about from behind him, wrapped around his body in a ethereal haze as their temperature seeped into his clothes and his flesh, in turn Ricky stiffened at the initial shock of surprise as his heart dropped into a frantic pace.

The beats were faster and the hairs on his neck rose higher than Priskil's own tower at that moment, and when they drew back to allow him the freedom to see who had the element of frigid surprise on him. Before him stood that which he in all his days never expected to see, the face and form of Kendhl the Kelvic Otter rested before him with but a murmur to share. What in de Zeltiva is d'is shyke?! He thought as his eyes widened, his jaw nearly hit the deck as he realized just what exactly this form actually was. Kenny had turned into a ghost. How this came to be he wasn't sure, but given that it was him to buried her, he figured she would've probably appeared sooner than she did. Or maybe she appeared after he left her... He couldn't say for sure, but for this much time to pass, and her spectral form only to show up now and greet him?

The idea alone scared him just a little, and to make it worse he then held a secondary thought. Oi ain't bein' haunted am Oi?! What de shyke is d'is? He couldn't allow his mind to freely assume such things, even if they were at whim he still had to consider other possibilities that existed as well. "K... Kendhl?" He finally spoke after much of the shock had settled in. "It... It h-has been a while at d'at. What 're y-ya doin' 'ere?" He inquired of her between shivers as he laid his fishing pole down, only to cross his arms as he tried to generate more body heat with them.

[Kendhl Pilkvist]

Aw, petch. Petch petch petchity petch. He didn't know I came back. Gods damn it! the ghost swore, her smile disappearing in a flash. And it'd only been a day since she'd done so, so Gale didn't have time to find and tell Ricky what happened. She'd caught him completely by surprise.

He was, clearly, shocked. He was the one to bury her, after all. It had also been little more than a year. Kendhl scratched the back of her neck, and if she had been alive she'd be blushing. Gods, this is embarassing.

She looked up at his words, grey eyes focused on the man before her. "Oh! Well, I've been in the Wildlands for a long time. I dunno why he decided yesterday was a good day to visit my grave, but Gale visited me. Or rather, my body. I kinda scared him, a lot. Then we went and had tea -- well, he had tea. I can't drink tea.

"Anyways, he had tea and we talked a little bit. Then he told me that you were the one who buried me! So, I came to thank you." Kendhl went still and quiet then, a stark contrast to her lively hand motions and pacing that she employed along with her speech.

"Thanks for burying me, Ricky. I owe you. Also, sorry for scaring you. I kinda forgot that you didn't know. How's the baby? Martin, right?" she said, placing her hands on her ghostly hips and standing with her legs akimbo.

Common - Fratava

[Ricky Maze]

He listened to her with dumbfounded awe as he still had to accept the fact she became an apparition, there she stood right before his very eyes talking about where she'd been and how she'd scared Gale, the man that not only loved her but also proved to be a brother to Ricky, and soon afters shared tea together although she couldn't really drink it... it was a lot to swallow for somebody who wasn't used to seeing dead people he knew come back from the grave. Damn... poor guy's probably been shocked outta 'is mind. She then seemed a little less energetic as both a thanks and apology followed, her curiosity about Martin soon followed which surprised Ricky just a bit.

"Y-ye know 'bout Martin?" Of course she knew! Gale had to have likely told her about him, granted he's done so much in playing part as Godfather. "O-Oi mean, don't worry 'bout it. Gale needed 'elp an' ye deserved a place t' rest." He looked to the side in a modest fashion, a bit bashful about the whole situation altogether. "An' dun worry 'bout scarin' me, Oi just didn't expect de cold. It's already f-freezin' out 'ere!" He pointed out as his nerves rattled from the chill the air soaked him with. "Really t'ough, Martin's doin' just fine. Already a year ol' an' he's tryin' t' walk, poke int' shyke he shouldn't too." He added with soft mirth before he looked back down to Kenny, a slight grin on his face while he crossed his arms once more. He then figured that they should make the best out of her visit here while they could, thus he held his left hand part of the way toward and waved towards him, a gesture to join him in having a seat at the docks edge.

That is if ghosts could sit after all, he didn't really think about that until just now. Which pretty much made him feel like an idiot, yet all the same he still figured she could at least join him, while he continued his work with fishing up nothing as the bitter cold froze his bones. "Oi'm pretty sure Gale told ya 'bout de trip t' Syliras Oi had t' take den, if he's talked 'bout Martin any d'at is." He leaned down with a slight bend to the knees to pick up the rod he placed on the wooden planks, hands gripped around the handle as he flicked the tip around to cast the frozen bait into the water once more. "Apart from d'at t'ough Oi've not really been up t' anyt'in else, decided Oi needed a break from the Wave Guard fer a bit. T'ough Oi admit Oi wish Oi'd waited 'til it was warmer." He reckoned with a yawn and shiver, a look over to the spectral girl after his line seemed settled.

"So what've ye been up t' in de Wildlands? Any particular reason why ye're back?" He asked the question with curiosity highly present in his tone, hopeful that she didn't find offense in the question... granted she was dead and all.

[Kendhl Pilkvist]

Kendhl listened to Ricky speak. She missed his voice, the way he formed words and how he pronounced his consonants. It was good to hear it again. She thought about mimicking his barrel-chested self in conversations.

"Yeah, he mentioned something about a sickness you had. It's nice to see that you're feeling better." she told him with a smile. The ghost knelt beside the ursine man at the edge of the dock. She watched him raise his arm, preparing to cast the fishing line, then the fluid extension of the same arm to fling the bait out into the ocean.

"Well," she began, "usually at this time I'd be somewhere warmer. Somewhere south, maybe. I never did like the cold, but I suppose I haven't got much of a choice now, do I?" she added with a chuckle, looking down at her hands.

"All I've been doing in the Wildlands though is hanging around my grave. Keeping people away from it, y'know? I don't want them messing it up or anything. Not that they would, I hope. Oh, and I looked for Gale last summer, but I couldn't find him. That was the first time I'd visited Zeltiva since I died. Yesterday was the second."

Kendhl looked up from her hands. "How's Telion? Is she alright? D'you still have Fenvur?"

Common - Fratava

[Ricky Maze]

He nodded in random intervals when he listened what Kendhl had to say, the fact of her having been returned as a ghost for a while now rather a puzzling thought for him to wonder. Usually ghosts that remained in this world were attached to something in it, or at least that's what he understood in terms of ghosts and their existence. They weren't a very common subject to come across, yet they weren't foreign to him either since they tended to crop up in unexpected places. Kenny was a Kelvic so what other reason would she have for returning, other than the fact she too held deep inner feelings with Gale. Could that have been it? Gale loved her enough to where her death tore him to pieces, Ricky remembered good and well the emotional and spiritual damage it did on him after all.

That could be the only explainable reason behind it, the love the two felt served as her attachment to the world. That's what he theorized anyway, it didn't keep him from keeping in mind, that there could be other reasons or possibilities behind the occurrence. "She's been fine! We've 'ad a couple o' rough spots but nothin' she's not tough enough fer." He shared with an soft honest grin, his mind already traced back on the day he learned of her miscarriage. That would've been their second child, had she not stressed or overworked herself. Maybe that wasn't it entirely, maybe there were other reasons involved, reasons beyond their understanding for the matter. Ricky just figured it wasn't time for another baby to join the family yet, though that didn't keep him from wishing the event happened. "Fenvur now..."

The cute little kitten that always loved his pocket had indeed grown, grown up and leave the nest to be out on his own. "Oi honestly couldn't tell ya, he just decided t' one day leave when he 'ad de chance. Cats y'know, d'ey 're so damn independent." He mused as he suddenly realized he missed the little fur ball. "Ot'er D'an d'at its just been Telion, Martin, an' me. Oi can't tell ya how much it amazes me t' watch d'at boy grow..." He looked to the waters with his mind lost in a trail of thoughts then, the memories of Martin from the moment he was born to now, and the wishful dreams of who he might become in the future. These were all things Ricky had to consider precious to remember, because he already felt that an instant had passed by since Martin's birth. So much growing, so much learning. It made him proud yet at the same time broke his own heart, since he wasn't ready to see the child grow up just yet.

"Tell me Kenny," He addressed her without even looking away from the water below, "If ye ever 'ad de chance would ya go back t' before... y' know, de incident?" He didn't want to just blurt out and say "Kenny's untimely demise" seeing as how that would've definitely sounded more like an ass thing to say, yet he couldn't help but wonder if he were the only one who sometimes wished he could go back in time some days.

[Kendhl Pilkvist]

Kendhl gave a halfhearted laugh. Ricky was avoiding the word 'death' and replacing it with something he thought was kinder. The ghost didn't know if it should be insulting or not.

"Just call it what it is, Rickster. It was my death. But, to answer your question, I would go back. I miss being alive, y'know? Being able to touch people without making them cold? Especially being able to change. I definitely miss being an otter. And swimming."

She adjusted her legs so they extended in front of her. The girl wiggled her feet, sighing. "I dunno. I mean, I suppose this is alright. I got a sort of second chance. At least I get to say goodbye if I decide to pass on, right?"

The ghost finished her answer. Her grey eyes became unfocused. She missed the feeling of Gale, being able to hug him. Being able to hug anyone without feeling their shiver just beneath the skin.

Even the downsides to living she missed. Feeling hungry, being cold. All of it. Death was just static, unchanging. She was never hungry, the cold didn't bother her, she didn't ever feel like she was in danger. It was maddening, sometimes.

Kendhl looked over at her friend. "What about you? D'you sometimes wish you could go back and change things?"

Common - Fratava

[Ricky Maze]

A "Er" moment soon followed with Ricky once Kendhl bluntly expressed what her situation had to be, little to no regard to the fact that her condition truly bothered her or upset her really. He supposed that she didn't offhandedly feel bothered by her condition, either that or she seemed more than willing to accept the facts as they were. Either way it surprised him in a sense he didn't expect, so while he'd been caught off guard by it, he didn't wholly disapprove of the idea that she'd come to terms with her own death. "R... Roi." He agreed to the notion with a soft nod and then a simple grin, a bit of sentiment felt in her words when she expressed what she missed while she lived. Indeed he could understand that there had to be quite a few things she'd had to do without now that she lived as a ghost, and the fact her spirit still lingered here left him to wonder more or less.

"Passin' on would be yer choice, wouldn't it? If ya found peace with whatever regrets ye left behind, d'en maybe..." He hadn't understood the capacity of ghosts after all nor their lingering will, but Kenny had been a simple being even when she had been alive. To linger as a spirit now meant she had to have at least one or two things that kept her bound to this world, though he could only think of just the one thing that served as that key of attachment here. Then there came the mirrored question of whether or not he would do the same, if he would go back and change anything he could should the chance had cropped up. "Oi honestly dunno." He chuckled for a moment with a mixed opinion on the matter. "No doubt Oi'm happy where Oi am now, got me a beautiful wife an' adorable son. Sometimes t'ough... Oi do wonder what could'a been, if Oi'd done somet'in different rather d'an handle everyt'in de way Oi did." He had given an honest answer there.

Often did he imagine what other possible outcome could've happened, like if he hadn't chosen to marry Telion, or if their drunken night together never occurred in the first place. Where would he have been now? Where would his path taken him then? He had no way of knowing anything, thus the simple idea of a daydream could only serve as the answer to these questions. Yet he even if he wanted to do some things differently, like handle the smuggler's assault better, or maybe made a better effort to stop the Coup from happening. Sure there were just some things beyond his control, but if it fell into his power he'd most likely consider the outcomes of things if he did them differently, but when it came down to his own family it always somehow remained the same. Sure he could've done more, maybe held a proper ceremony for their vows, or Tanroa only knows what else he could've done in the past that was better. Better than the decisions he made anyways.

"Oi guess... while Oi can say d'at Oi might wanna change one o' two t'ings, Oi'd rather accept d'em as how d'ey 're. Ot'erwise Oi wouldn't be here roi now, fishin' fer a livin' so Oi can support me family at home." He compromised with a soft grin as his gaze returned to Kendhl, a low chuckle heard from the fisherman as he glanced back to the line a couple of times. He'd hoped he felt a tug and that his nerves weren't just shivering on him again, although it became likely that hope was just wishful thinking all the same. "But Oi've 'ad plenty o' experiences t' say d'at fer me... if Oi were t' reflect upon ye Oi'd say ye died t' soon lass. It was definitely 'afore yer time, an' Oi wouldn't wait a second t' try an' change what happened d'at night." He confessed it with a deep sincerity found in his tone, the memory of Gale and his bloody injuries while the head of the dog rested on the floor.