[IC] Mirror Worlds

[Azure Flame]

Lucas noticed Naomi talking to the woman who came with Odum and wandered over to them. "Hey Naomi, what're you up to?" he asked, noticing what she was doing.

[Zaphander]

“Ah, a rich girl aren’t you? Going to school, being an independent woman, ah I’m sure you’ve had plenty of men try to earn your favor. Your family certainly sounds like a wealthy one. Makes me a bit jealous!”

Enta emulated Naomi’s stitching with the rest of the women and was learning quick. Needles were passed around and Enta made a quick coin selling iron needles to the womenfolk. Enta was very curious however; she’s never heard about this family (based off the design Naomi stitched) or school Naomi came from. She wondered if she was lying.

“Where did you come from? It’s rare to find a nice woman like you who’s given so much freedom and privilege. Me, I had to scrap by with what I got.”

@RumikoOhara

[akirashadow]

As Lance walked through the village with Tawny the way villagers were avoiding them was becoming steadily more apparent. It wasn't as though he could convince them that the wolf was no threat to them, heck he didn't even believe that himself. "We need to find something... something that will help everyone be not so on edge with each other. I don't know if it's fear, excitement or a mixture of the two, but everyone seems to be so different." Lance stops and turns towards Tawny. "Even if it's not on the surface. So, what made you pick the spear?" Lance wasn't even sure why he was asking, there might not of even been an answer to that question.

@Raptra

[Raptra]

Tawny snapped out of her thoughts when Lance spoke again. It seemed that she was not the only one who had noticed the strange change in the behaviors of some of their friends. Lance had realized it too, and it appeared that he was still concerned about the matter. Something that could help alleviate the edginess, let's see... Looking around, she spotted a vendor that seemed to be selling sweets. That might help a little.

Her companion then said something else that caught her attention. What did he mean by 'Even if it's not on the surface' when he turned to her? Was he implying that there was something different about her too and she had not shown it yet? She hoped not, for Lance still seemed like himself and she wanted to remain in her right mind as well. Some of them still had to be, at least. She did not have the time to think about it for long, as he suddenly asked a question.

"It cut me while I was rummaging around in that crate, so I picked it up for a better look and then decided to keep it. It actually is quite pretty," she replied as she took a look at her fingers where she had gotten cut, finding that the wound had started to heal. She then gestured to the vendor she had seen earlier. "It's been said that sweets like chocolate and honey tend to cheer people up. Shall we bring some back for the rest?"

@akirashadow

[Azure Sea]

Reina blinked and tilted her head as she looked around wondering if she could find someone or something to help her out with her magic.

[Lucius Cypher]

Donny was walking through town to check on everyone when he spotted an odd sight. A handful of druids were in town; normally they stayed away in their own conclaves, coming only during emergencies and even then, not in such big numbers like this. Something must be going on. Donny, along with the Elder, approached the group. "Wiress Lumeria. What brings you into Wayward?"

An older women dressed in ragged furs adorned with feathers, bones, and berry-based pigments turned to Donny with a grim look. "We have sensed new winds on the horizon. It's flow disrupts the natural order... Or rather, it comes to change the stagnant air that has permeated for so long." Always with the riddles, though Donny had a good idea of what this woman was talking about. Surely it was no coincidence that there is a "new wind" around the same time he's escorting these strangers somewhere.

"I see. Though I take it that since you're here with your coven, that's ain't a good thing?" The women nodded her head. She looked towards the others who brought forth the mangled remains of a deer. Except it wasn't mangled as if it was torn away by monsters, but some sort of sickening, grotesque fetish of flesh and bones. Donny wondered why they brought it here. "A dark effigy. Flesh Horrors. A maligned influence from the fey has come to investigate, balance, and interfere with this new influence. Something far greater than what I can stop. You, young man... Hmm... Yes, I can sense that you're more involved than the others here. I will not ask further, but I have a request. Please, take these." The old woman then handed Donny a bag. Inside of the bags were stiff leafs.

"Your fate is intertwined with the tides of change. Even though you are but a leaf in the wind, you will go further than anyone else. Take these Snapleafs. You know what they are, and what you must do with them. They may help you on your journey." Donny looked at the woman wide-eyed. These were magical objects; snapping one of these leafs made one into the wind itself, allowing them to fall from a great height without danger as well as turning invisible for a short duration. Just one of these was expensive enough to support a farm like Donny for years. And how he had a bag full. He carefully closed it and put it away, bowing his head to the druid. "Thank you, Wiress Lumaria. I understand... But what will you do now?"

The elderly woman turned to her coven and with a wave of her hand, they dispersed. "These are dangerous times. Not only due to the greed of men, but this eldritch influence as well. Neither the village of Wayward, nor my clan, will survive the coming times on our own. So we must work together, for just a chance to survive." Donny wasn't so sure about that. The village and the druids were able to work so well together because they were often separate; the lifestyle of Wayward was outright blasphemous to the Druids, and the druids themselves have showed no issues using their magic powers to enforce their point. While he could understand the necessity of working together for survival, Donny wondered who exactly will they be protecting themselves from?

Didn't really matter to Donny. As much as he liked Wayward, soon this place was just going to be a memory to him. He doesn't have the time to stick around and try to fix everything, or else he'd be an old man before he'd ever reach the city. Without another word he bowed his head to the Wiress and left to find the others. It's about time they all left anyways.

[RumikoOhara]

[Azure Flame]

"Who's your new friend?" he asked, smiling at both of them. "I'm Lucas, by the way."

[Zaphander]

"Ah, have I not introduced myself yet? Terribly rude of me! My name is Enta, I just arrived into town on my way towards the city."

Bowing her head towards the other two Enta stood up and stretched her back. She let out a yawn and walked a little bit away.

"It was nice meeting you, but I really should finish my shopping before it gets too late into the day. It's dangerous out on these roads! You never know when you're meet some crazed, murderous hobo."

[akirashadow]

"Quite the bizarre method for making a choice." Lance chuckles as Tawny reveals her reason for picking a spear. "Won't be so pretty if you need to use it though." When Tawny gestured towards the stall Lance glances over as he listens to her comment. "Well I guess we can. I got this covered, back in a sec. Uh... maybe you should hold this for a sec, seems to be making people uneasy." Lance removes the sheathed weapon which he'd had slung over his shoulder resting its tip against the ground before leaning it toward Tawny.

Lance then made his way over to the vendor stand wearing a smile on his face as he gathered an assortment of the sweets on offer before swinging the coin purse into his hand opening it up. He peeps inside as he fetches a few of the coins from its contents before placing them down on the stall. Little surprise but he wasn't really sure of the value of the currency he'd tried to hand over. "Eh... enough?" He asks as he looks to the vendor, who simply shook his head. "More."
"Well alright..." Lance stated before handing over more of the coin. Although he had no comprehension of the currency the amount of coin he was handing over felt a little like he was being ripped off. "There you go."

Lance goes to take the goods and leave when the vendor reaches over and grabs his cuff shaking his head. "More." Was this vendor serious. Lance smiles as he leans forward toward the vendor. "Look, hehe..." Lance spoke softly as he looked back to Tawny still wearing a smile. He turned back to the vendor. "I may not understand the currency, but I do understand when someones trying to rip me off.
So here's the thing." Lance's voice got quieter with each word. "You're gonna take your coin, and I'm gonna take what I purchased. You'll let go, or I'll snap your arm in two." Upon finishing Lance yanked his arm free as he took his purchase. "Thank you and good day." He walked over to Tawny still wearing his smile. "So should we head back?"

@Raptra

[Azure Flame]

"It was good meeting you Enta." Lucas said, bowing to her as she left. "I hope you have a wonderful evening."

[Sewer Rat]

Odum had dozed off during the ride, but as soon as it stopped, he got up, quickly, and walked around the town.

[Raptra]

"I do believe the time shall come when we would have to use what we have chosen to arm ourselves with," Tawny replied her black-haired companion when he mentioned the possibility of her having to use the spear. "Whenever that may be."

She was rather surprised at Lance's next move as he suddenly passed her his sword to go over and make the purchase himself. He was taking awhile, and even from the distance she was at, she could clearly observe that his exchange with the vendor had progressively turned less than friendly as time went by. When he turned back to look at her, she waved him back, gesturing that he should leave as soon as he could. When he finally made it back to her, she handed him his sword and reached into the bag he was holding, pulling out a piece of candy before popping it into her mouth.

"What kept you?" She teased. "Perhaps you should have brought the sword after all."

"Sure, I don't see why not," she then said as a response to his question about returning to the wagon.

@akirashadow

[Azure Sea]

Reina stopped in her wandering around the town when she came across a older woman using magic to finish healing some wounded people and slowly walked up to her.
"Ex...excuse me but could you show me how to do that?" Reina asks softly as the woman smiles softly at her.
"Of course child" the woman says indulging what she though was a young woman interested in attempting magic only to be surprised when the girl she was showing some basic tricks to did indeed have magic.
"Ah....I better get back to my friends" Reina says only to stop as the woman places a hand on her should before holding a tome out to her.
"Take the tome and learn from it child" the woman says seeing as she hadn't found any magic users in the town she had settled down in besides from the girl who while young looked to be a wanderer or an adventurer and besides there could never be enough clerical magic users as most magic users went for some type of mage training.
"Th....thank you" Reina says gratefully not really knowing the motivation for the woman to gift her the tome that will hopefully teach her to control he errant magic before she went looking for her friends while hugging the tome to her chest.

[RumikoOhara]

@Zaphander

Nice to meet you? said Naomi before turning to face Lucas

@Azure Flame
I never understood why people bow and I come from a family based in Noble Formatities.

Sure its a show of respect but it strikes me as a bit Lupine; showing your throat to the pack alpha and all that. she says as the local women she’d been sitting amongst look at her with a subtle awe.

[Azure Flame]

"I suppose so, I was just always taught it was polite." he said, sitting next to her.

[akirashadow]

"Had I taken the sword..." Lance pops one of the candies in his mouth before continuing. "I believe he may of ended up losing that thieving hand." His tone was somewhat serious as he raised the swords sheath and slung its strap back over his shoulder. "Perhaps that'd an overreaction... or perhaps he'd learn something from it, who knows?"

Lance glances to their wolf companion. "So I knew you was good with animals, but what's up with this guy?" Ash just seemed to be contently following Tawny around like it was the most natural thing for a wolf to be doing.

@Raptra

[Raptra]

Oh no, not you too...Was the first thing to cross Tawny's mind as Lance started to talk about cutting off someone's hand. It was probably the paranoia from seeing some of the others lose it in this new place that initially compelled her to make that statement out to be more than just some harmless dry humor. However, after some rationalizing, she figured that it was nothing to worry about. Besides, she was the one who started joking in such a manner, and it would not have been uncommon for them to do so in any normal situation.

When Lance brought her attention back to Ash, she simply shook her head. "I'm not about to question the behavior of a wolf when we're in some strange land and we all suddenly have different magical powers."

Upon reaching the wagon, Tawny climbed back in with Ash hopping in right after. She hoped that everyone had taken some time to clear their heads and find out more about what was happening to them.

@akirashadow @Azure Sea @Lucius Cypher

[Lucius Cypher]

Donny was chewing on a stick of sugar cane when Tawny came back to the wagon. "Aye. See the others yet? Thinkin it's about time we head out."

@Raptra