[Silver Lake] A Place to Rest (Open)

[Quelen Dran'Sora]

At Cilaes' offered arm Quelen smiled and gently ran the rubbery touch of her fingers along his marked skin, surprise showing clearly on her face at the fact that the marked skin didn't feel any different than his unmarked skin.

When Cilaes' smile vanished Quelen regretted how casually she had brought up his falling from Leth. She should have remembered just how much Dlight had been upset about his situation as well, "Sorry, I should have thought before I brought up something painful..." she dropped her gaze in embarrassment.

Cilaes' question drew her eyes back up again, and she tilted her head slightly, "I met Dlight on the shore not far from Charbosi. He said he had fallen near Abura, the city of Akvatari," she hesitated a moment before asking the question she wanted to know, not wanting to upset Cilaes again, but decided it was safe enough, "You said you're mortal in daylight, does that mean that you are different when it is dark?"

[Cilaes]

Quelen’s skin was slick and moist as she ran her finger over his forearm, and her finge had a texture unlike anything Cilaes had felt before. Her surprise was amusing, though Cilaes could understand it. The dark knots that covered his skin had been strange to him too when he had first fallen into this body. “No, it isn’t a problem, just a fact of life,” Cilaes said quickly when he noticed Quelen’s eyes fall. He didn’t want this cheerful Charboda to be upset. Her questions had made him feel happy, and if his sour outlook had managed to taint her mood the rest of the day would be a depressing experience. With this in mind the Ethaefal attempted to answer her next question with a more cheerful voice. “I’m a little different. I look different and I grow horns and I never feel hunger or thirst under the light of Leth. But the reason why I call this my mortal body… Please understand, it’s a bit strange and I’m not entirely sure this is correct, but I feel as though under Leth I am as near to my true form as I can be. When Syna lights the sky my body changes to this, and it feels very much to me like a borrowed form. People aren’t born with tattoos, but I was. I have dreams and memories that seem to reflect this body. I think it may belong to a past life… Before Leth accepted me into his presence.” Cilaes was very uncertain about this idea, but it seemed the only explanation. He had no other way to explain the two bodies, and their seeming lack of connectedness. He had no childhood, but in the daylight his body bore the markings of a life lived much longer than his own. And recently, in the past months he had had dreams, short, brief and blurry and of places he had never seen. They were always filled with tattooed men and women, when he could see anyone at all. I wish they were clearer, it must be a past life. If only I could know more about it… About why I’m here.

[Quelen Dran'Sora]

Quelen was glad to hear Cilaes' assurance that her words had not upset him, and she smiled pleasantly in return. She certainly didn't want to cause problems with her questions, but Cilaes did seem to be enjoying the conversation.

She listened quietly and with wide eyes as Cilaes tried to explain not only how he looked beneath Leth, but the strange life he found himself in. She could only imagine how strange it would be to be "born" fully grown, with vague dreams and memories of a different life. She imagined it would be quite sad, which would explain why Cilaes and Dlight had both seemed sad at times.

"I would like to see you in your true form sometime," Quelen said with a smile, "I imagine you look quite impressive," not wanting to be rude and ask about a sensitive subject, as much as she wanted to know more about the similarities between Cilaes and Dlight, Quelen shifted the focus of her questions, "What is it you do here in Mura? How do you spend your days... or would it be nights?"

[Cilaes]

”Perhaps…” he said with a soft chuckle. The man rubbed at his wrist, watching the change in skin tones as he rotated his hand slowly around. His other body was paler than the light skin the peaked out between the tattoos on the underside of his wrist. “If you’re staying on the island for a while you’ll probably see me. I’d be happy to give you a tour at night if you’d like, though I’m afraid you have more access to the city than I do, half of it is underwater.” He grinned and thought about her next question. “I’ve taken classes at the Opal Temple for some time now. And worked doing odd jobs for the Konti. You’re right though, I try to sleep through most of the day if I can, I’m afraid it’s made me a bit of a hermit.” A small seabird settled on the surface of Silver Lake. Ripples flowed away from beneath its white feathers as it paddled and bobbed around on the surface. “What about you Quelen? You said you can here to learn the songs of the Konti, and to dance. Do many Charodae dance?”

[Quelen Dran'Sora]

"A tour would be very nice," Quelen replied to Cilaes' offer with a bright smile, "Especially during the night. It is very different on the land at night than in the ocean. It's so much brighter here than it is within the water."

As Cilaes spoke of his activities Quelen tilted her head slightly, "The Opal Temple? Is that a place of worship? What kind of classes do you take there?" she then gave a smile, "I guess I'm lucky that I managed to find you when you were not sleeping then."

At Cilaes' question Quelen thought for a moment before answering, "Many Charodae dance, but not all. When we are young and in school we are taught the basics and encourage to pursue what interests us. One of my sisters didn't like dancing at all, and instead prefers to make sculptures out of coral and pretty rocks she finds. It's much different dancing here on the land though."

Standing up she took a few steps away from Cilaes before she gave a little twirl on the sand, her arms going out to swing through the air, "Dancing here is much flatter. Even if you jump you must return to the land," she illustrated by stopping her spinning and giving a little leap forward, "In the water you can swim and dance in most any direction."

[Cilaes]

Cilaes smiled enthusiastically at Quelen, a rare expression for the melancholic Ethaefal. “You’re in luck then. It’s almost a full moon, and Leth will be out large and bright in the sky. The Konti’s buildings truly shine under his light, it is beautiful.” A contented, almost dreamy look slipped into the man’s dark brown eyes for a moment, but he shook visions of moonlight shining on Silver Lake from his mind to answer Quelen. “The Opal Temple is where Rak’keli lives much of the time. It’s more a place of healing and learning than outright worship, I’ve taken classes in medicine and herbalism there,” he paused and watched Quelen spin in the sand before him. What happened to her arm? He thought, noticing the scarred limb that flew through the air as she twirled. Cilaes bit back his curiosity, not wanting to bring up a painful subject in such a pleasant conversation. Instead he said, “It must feel very confining to move about on land, Quelen. But you do so very gracefully. I wish I could see you dance in water someday, it must be unlike any sort of land dancing I’ve been able to see.” OOCSorry it took me so long to write such a short post.

[Quelen Dran'Sora]

"It sounds very beautiful," Quelen agreed with a nod of her head and happy smile, "I'm looking very forward to that tour now," the dreamy smile on Cilaes' face seemed to Quelen to show just how much he enjoyed being beneath Leth's light, much like how Quelen had smiled back in Charbosi when she talked about journeying to distant places and learning interesting and strange dances.

Tilting her head slightly at Cilaes' explanation of the Temple Quelen thought a moment, "So you're a healer then?" she smiled warmly, "That's very impressive! I know a little of plants, but mostly just for eating them, so I don't accidentally eat something unhealthy or dangerous."

Quelen gave a bright smile at Cilaes' compliment, "Thank you Cilaes, but it is not confining to dance on the land, just different. In the water I can move in many directions, but it takes much more work to move in the water. I can move much faster here," to illustrate Quelen gave another twirl, much faster this time, and then moving forward with fast steps that weaved her body back and forth, almost like a serpent moving.

Giving a little giggle she turned and smiled at Cilaes as she walked back to him, "You must forgive me for not doing more, it is hard to do Charodae dance on land, and I do not know much of Landwalker dancing yet. Maybe we can work out a way for you to watch me in the water sometime? I'm sure it would be more enjoyable."

OOCNo worries!

[Cilaes]

”Healer is too noble a title for what I can do, but thank you,” he said as he watched the Charoda move quickly across the beach. It was truly impressive how light on her feet she was. Quelen seemed to have a very fine sense of control over her body, and the way her limbs swayed looked practiced and comfortable. “No, I understand, there are some things that cannot be properly expressed out of their element.” Cilaes thought of his own true name, that he could hear echoing in the back of his mind but would never be able to speak or share. “Certain things are beyond translation.” The man’s grin began to fade as he felt the familiar lethargic pull in his gut, his mood falling like a weight inside of him. Stop mooning after what is impossible; this isn’t the time to grieve. With a deep breath he looked back at Quelen. “I would like that very much. Until then I’d like to officially offer you a tour of Mura tonight, though if you have other obligations I would be happy to postpone it.” OOCDo you want to wrap this thread up and then we can start another with the tour (since I think it’s mid-morning so sunset is probably pretty far away)? Or is there more you’d like to have happen?

[Quelen Dran'Sora]

"I would enjoy that," Quelen said with a bright smile as she came back over to Cilaes, "I'll just need to finish my little resting spot first," she gestured back to the water that she had emerged from, "If I'm to fnishin by tonight then I should get back to it soon."

Looking around the nearby area Quelen thought for a moment, and then returned her gaze to Cilaes, "Should I meet you here, or is there somewhere else in Mura that would be better for you? I know a few places, like the Inn and the Suvai Pavilion, so I could probably find somewhere else if you give me directions."

She was really excited to receive a tour from Cilaes. Not only so she could see the city at night, but also so she could see his other form. She almost wished she could be there when he changed, to watch what happened, but that would probably be impolite to ask about.

OOCWrappin it up sounds good to me.

[Cilaes]

“Of course, good luck with your work,” he said with a smile. Cilaes stood, and dusted the sand off of the back of his trousers. “Here is a fine location for me, and it will be simpler if you don’t have to search a new place out. I’ll come back for you thirty chimes after sunset, if that’s agreeable.” The dark haired man bowed ever so slightly as he dismissed himself, “It was a pleasure meeting you today Quelen. I look forward to our tour.” He gave the Charoda a soft smile and turned toward the bridge he had come over before their meeting. It was bright and brilliant out and finally Cilaes could feel himself growing drowsy. He was looking forward to a quiet afternoon napping in his tent before returning in the evening.