For the most part, Rilana was doing her best to create a distraction, both for herself and for Alya. Something as simple and ultimately boring as having tea and playing with the half-elf's hair was one step away from letting the fog of emotions overwhelm her. 

While Alya wrote, the pen scratching fluidly against the paper, Rilana let her long fingers work through the silky locks of the Songweaver's hair, sliding them along Alya's scalp as she seperated the silvery curtain into many equal-sized strands. There was gentle tugging at different parts of Alya's head as the Moon Fey began weaving back and forth with her hair, the pattern indiscernable at first.

And in between, when she could hold the hair securely without losing her place, she glanced over Alya's shoulder to see what she was writing. She occasionally commented or asked for clarification, her voice soft and friendly in her friend's ear. If she wasn't too upset by her own inner turmoil, Alya might have noticed that Rilana was just as troubled.

[color=00aeef]"I don't understand how you get this Purpose. Who gives it to you? It has to be another elf? Are...are both of your parents White Elves?"[/color] Rilana didnt know that Alya was a half-breed, but her small stature seemed at odds with what little she did know about White Elves. [color=00aeef]"Is it just magic that defines your Purpose?"[/color] The entire concept felt a little like telling the future, which, frankly, hurt Rilana's head to think about.

When Alya began to describe her vision, Rilana felt the way her shoulders tensed and watched how her hand flew across the page, and she paused in her braiding to rub her hands up and down Alya's arms, trying to comfort her. [color=00aeef]"It sounds beautiful, but terrible. Don't cry Alya. I can't stand to see you sad."[/color] She hugged the smaller woman, making nonsense shooshing noises into her hair. [color=00aeef]"I know it's scary." [/color]And she did know, having just received a similarly distressing insight into the world.

[color=00aeef]"Unfortunately I think it is some kind of rule that people who are gentle and nice end up having to fight things that are the most dark and horrid. But you're braver than you know I think. You're here when most people are safe in their homes with their fires and furs. I think you can do it. And if I can, I'll help you!"[/color] She pulled away for a few minutes, retrieving the honey jar from her shirt and mixing them both a cup of tea. She offered one to Alya first and then sipped her own.

[color=00aeef]"Wow. Every time I have a little bit of honey it's like the first taste all over again. It's so wonderful! We don't have bees this far north."[/color]

Setting her rough cup aside, she resumed working on Alya's hair until all of it was bound up in a [url=https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/af/29/e2/af29e2bec2dc9eb15e09d67aad786215.jpg]fancy braid[/url] that coiled prettily around the half-elf's head like a delicate crown of her own hair. Rummaging around, she found a small mirror for Alya to use to look at it.

[color=00aeef]"See? Very pretty, if I do say so myself. It looks way better than what I can do to my own hair."[/color] Currently, Rilana's hair was pulled back into a long fishtail braid that draped over her shoulder when she moved the right way. Her eyes fell on Ortha, who was trying to grab the end of Echo's wagging tail with her clawed paw without getting up from her spot.

[color=00aeef]"Yesterday was my birthday,"[/color] Rilana brought up suddenly. [color=00aeef]"I had a long talk with Lord Svarak. It turns out that he is a much different man than I had originally thought."[/color] For a brief moment, her composure faltered and her lips twitched into a rueful sort of smile. [color=00aeef]"I found out a lot of things I didn't know either, including how the Death of Magic happened. Looks like we're both going to be a lot different when this journey is done, right?"[/color]

[i][color=fff200]I think she should be happier now that the drunk isn't with her.
[/color][/i]

[color=00aeef]"Oh, and I'm sorry about Lyle. I hope...I hope he turns up."[/color] It was quite clear she didn't expect that to happen, but she was trying to be nice in spite of Kona's ascerbic commentary.