Carantathraiel

Wanderers

Ysaryn arched her eyebrow, noting Kire's avoidance, the elf chasing her up the stairs. She was in her combat leathers, the fabric wrapped around her again. Despite Kire's words, Ysaryn could tell she was bothered by the exchange, and likely disappointed in the conclusion they had arrived to. She rolled her eyes when Kire wasn't looking at her, wondering how long until the two of the realized they were wrong. "If you insist." She replied indifferently, strutting into the caves with the empress.

~

"Come in." Envy invited. Already awakened by Ruli nearly a half hour before, Envy was sitting on his large bed, which had finally been upgraded from the pile of straw and blankets. Envy turned his head when Gavin approached, his hair unbound. Ruli, sitting in one of the strange cushions in the corner, nodded in greeting.
"We're going over the finer details." Ruli informed the lad. His eyes fell on the dagger at his hip, and his expression hardened.
"Your charm?" Envy asked pointedly.

Wanderers

By sundown, Ruli had rested very little, unable to settle the pit in his stomach that argued with his brain all night. He felt it stupid to be so caught up with a woman he barely knew, despite finding her incredibly intriguing. And, despite wanting to learn more, he saw no reason to. Not when she was so far out of his reach in every sense of the term.
He finally gave up on focusing on any packing and bathed, pulling what little hair would obey into a tail at the back of his head -a style he'd seen Zeke wear and actually liked. It never hurt to have his hair pulled back when the sea invited wind so often here.

Dressed, with his pack, sword, and supplies in tow, Ruli made his way to the caves to find the others, crossing paths with Ysaryn first. The instant grin on her face told him she'd noticed their absence. "Not now." He sighed.
"Oh, not ever." She purred back, falling into step with him. "Where did you leave her?"
"Her house. And don't you go-"
It was no use, Ysaryn was already bouncing up the steps toward Kire's house. Ruli shook his head and went to find Gavin and Envy.

"Kirai?" Ysaryn pounded on the door. "You are back, yes? Not inside with your pants down, are you? That won't deter me." She added with a teasing laugh.

Wanderers

Yeah, he'd ruined it. Kire all but jumped up, and Ruli felt guilt wash over him. Still, he remained sitting, teetering between trying to explain or letting herbert annoyed.
"I don't," Ruli began, then hesitated. So what? He didn't have to invest. He could toss up his defenses and entertain her when she needed it. What was the worst he'd get out of it? More relaxed now and then?

Defeated, Ruli got up, offering his hand to her.

When they were back in Űvano, standing outside of the house offered to her. "I told you, I'm no good at this." He excused apologetically. "Getting involved isn't my thing." He took a step back, toward the steps that would lead through the cliff to home. "Goodnight, Kire."

Wanderers

When she turned sharply toward him, Ruli froze, realizing right away he'd stuck his foot in his mouth and fucked up their chemistry. Tense, he watched her face as she answered, understanding, in part, her words on having her life pushed and pulled by others. "I'm sorry." He said, looking away again. "No, I ... I mean, sure. We can see." Which made him all the more uneasy. What if he developed feelings for her? And she turned around to bed someone else, someone of her class, her world? Ruli watched the water, already feeling the walls in his head rise to protect himself.

After another pause, he sighed again. "We should probably head back to Úvano. Someone's bound to have noticed we're gone at this point." He was suddenly very intrigued by his thumbnail, using his fingernail to clean the non-existing grime beneath it.

Wanderers

"Truthfully, I'm glad you didn't." He admitted. "Even if it was doing harm to the villages or people of its world, whatever, its still a dragon. As you said. And beautiful. Not that I'm saying dangerous things should get a pass if they're pretty to look at, considering my ... recent events. But I feel like killing it would have been a crime on its own."

Ruli sighed, watching the water devour the pebble she'd thrown. He was quiet for a long time, thinking. "Is there a real point to this?" He asked cautiously. "Us, I mean. You're an empress. You'll have to marry some dick noble one day. So are we just... fun while you can?"

Wanderers

Ruli stuffed his suddenly empty hand into his pocket, somehow feeling strange for having held hers for so long before he noticed. When Kire sat, he sat himself down with some two feet between them, his eyes on the lazily approaching water before slithering away again. She spoke about the stories where some entity sent the hero on a path, and he had little information on the genre. Most tales in this world began with someone just getting tired of being under anothers thumb and raising hell against them. Few deities involved. But he didn't say that, figuring it wouldn't help her current revelation.

"Rambling is fine." Ruli reassured her. He couldn't get over the dragon, his mind still circling back to the fiery eye and its deadly looking head. "So, you didn't actually kill it? The dragon?" He glanced sideways at her. "Doesn't that mean it could wake again?"

Wanderers

Ruli had no words. He had never seen anything so brilliant before. So large and magnificent. It moved with the sort of grace elves would envy. The glow of its eye was brighter than the way Ysaryn's and Envy's glowed. It's like seeing a God. Ruli's own heart echoed Kire's as he stared in awe through her memory.

When the memory faded, Ruli withdrew his magic, gazing down at Kire. "Holy Gods." He breathed, trying to recall the dragon's form in his mind, now. "After that, this war must barely scare you." He breathed, his hand still holding hers. "Are you descended from them? I mean, that one?"

Wanderers

"Envy was always careful to keep the more violent topics away from the kids he raised." He offered as a shared common. "Only breached it if the asked first. Although, everyone had to learn basic combat for self defense." He admitted. He fell into the pattern of small talk, the conversations about food, the places he'd visited -one of which, to his distaste, was in the north where there was no sign of snow but the ground constantly cold and wet. It became easier to relax during this, being unafraid of interrogation or prying.
Or it was the alcohol.

When Kire asked about walking on the beach, Ruli naturally agreed, always willing to visit a beach and look over the ocean now that he'd been introduced to them. When they were finished and he'd paid the leering woman who served them, they wandered out again, across the street and into the thick for the brief time before they came across to the soft sand. Already barefoot, Ruli watched her remove her shoes and wiggle her toes with amusement. "Thank you. I've no skill yet with seafood. Not to Ysaryn's standards, anyway, but even she likes their cook, so I figured they're good." He admitted.

When she offered to show him a dragon, Ruli froze, for a moment wondering what sort of Amrian slang that was and what it really meant. When she clarified, he still looked uneasy. "Erm, you're not going to show me you getting bitten, are you?" He asked cautiously. "I really don't want to feel that. Nor more you relive it."
When she once again clarified, he nodded, then, rolling his shoulders. "Alright." He agreed, raising his hand to offer to her in silence. When her hand fit into his, he closed his eyes, worming his way into her memory.

Wanderers

It made sense, indeed, Ruli realized. Envy's scent definitely clicked, but he wondered what Gavin or anyone else would smell like. Ysaryn's, he recalled Kire mentioning. What about each of her cousins? Or was it only people with active magic? That made more sense to him, considering she never mentioned Zeke, who had no magic, or her family.

As she blushed, Ruli tore himself out of his thoughts in question, before she answered. "Is there cinnamon in that?" He asked, suddenly realizing that was why he had enjoyed it so much. Then he chuckled. "I really did make an impression, didn't I?" He grinned at her. "I can't say I'd object to seeing more of your world. Preferable someplace warmer, but I don't exactly mind hiding inside with warm wine." That sounded too much like an invitation. It was his turn to clear his throat. "I wouldn't mind baking for you or your cousins. When we go back, I'll make something for them to gorge themselves on while we're off with the business of kick ass."

Wanderers

With a chuckle, he shrugged. "I see why theres a rule at your house against business at the table. Especially with the younger ones around." Ruli mused, stabbing a few vegetables before shoving them into his mouth to chew. Kire asked about the kinds of cakes, and mentioned Etta and her inevitable desire desire for something sweet when he returned. Ruli paused for a moment to wonder what he would try to make.

"There are a lot of cakes out there, I suppose." He admitted. "A favourite is this tower cake made of vanilla and cinnamon, with a vanilla icing. Personally, I like cinnamon bread. I'm not big on sweets, actually, in fact I rarely touch them, but for some reason I've always liked cinnamon." He tilted his head, holding her gaze. "I wonder if thats why you smell cinnamon when you sense my magic."