Encounters [Social/Ayero/Riku]

The redhead walked down the street checking out the produce at the market. There was no work for her to do today, currently the members of her troop were on the day off so she couldn't train them which is what she would have done and her daughter was playing with the kids from the orphanage like usual so she didn't have much to do at the time. The redhead gave a sigh wondering how she would  pass time. She picked up an apple examining showing her image as her thoughts dwindled on things that would pass the time hopefully. She thought about ideas for training, things she could possibly do for fun or maybe how she could earn some money since she was starting to lack at the moment.

She brushed her sides to get rid of any dirt and looked around. The day would most likely be boring by the looks of it but oh well that happened some time. Maybe she could go look for one of her friends and have some friendly chat to pass time. She hadn't seen some of her companions since the shrouded isles, a lot had happened so she was worried about confronting people since there were things she didn't know about. She never saw Ariella so she wasn't sure if she even made it out in the end.

Ayero waded through the hustle and bustle of the market, a cloth bag slung over her shoulder. The Fanalis woman was slowly working back into the swing of regular life after spending nearly a week holed up in her home. After Bahir’s visit, she had decided to try and resume her life as normally as possible. She would start with simply purchasing food, realizing that her house was mostly devoid of anything edible.

Her bag was filled with produce, fresh seasonable fruits and vegetables. She was thankful for the diverse climate of Reim as it allowed for lower prices on produce than in some more barren areas of the world. I wonder what I can find for grains…I should pick up some bread before I go home. Isn’t that near the butcher’s? I need meat, too. Ayero had a decent amount of experience cooking meals, having been partially responsible for cooking for her siblings. While traveling on her own she tended to rely on inns or food carts for her meals, but she had been in situations where she had to prepare her own quick meals. Now that her life began to stabilize, she figured it would do her some good to cook for herself when she had the time.

A head of red hair reflexively caught her attention, causing her to turn to see who it was. After being involved with the Corps, Ayero was introduced to more Fanalis and wondered if anyone she knew was here. Focusing on the other redhead, she soon recognized the young woman and approached her slowly. ”It’s good to see you well, Merrze. How are you?”

The black haired girl stood in front of the butcher stall, wondering what kind of meat she should buy today. She remembered that she already made a lot of cooking since she came home to Reim, pleasing her own palette by using Reim’s authentic ingredients. Should I buy...beef...? Potato and beef stew... or... stuffed chicken.... The black haired girl pointed her finger to her own chin, closing her eyes and thinking hard what to buy while holding her cloth bag filled with a lot of other ingredients. After spending a few minutes of intense thinking, the girl finally made up her mind and asked the butcher for whole chicken meat. I can stuff the chicken and bake it so it has crispy skin...

Right after she turned away from the butcher stall, she noticed two women that she recognized at the spot not too far from her own spot. Noir saw at the woman with her hair tied up and she was not sure if she should approach her or not, the girl touched her cheek that had been slapped by that very Fanalis woman and felt a slight pain. The black haired girl needed to get a hang of herself, so she inhaled and exhaled air slowly and started walking towards Ayero and the other Fanalis woman. “Hello...” She said hesitantly, giving them a little bow and waited for their response.

As she looked at some other fruits she heard a familiar voice and looked over to see on of the first people she met when she first came to Reim. She greeted her with a smile on her face since she was glad to see her since they hadn't talked since the island despite the both of them being Colonels in the fanalis corps.

"Hi Ayero, and I've been okay, lots of things have been swelling on my mind but besides all of those things seem to be going well. How've you been, I haven't seen you around the corps recently, has everything been okay?"

She was curious why she didn't see her at all in the past weeks but she probably had her own reasons for what she did. As she talked to her fellow redhead the girl heard a person approach and a voice she believed she had over heard a while ago. When she looked at where the voice was coming from she noticed the black haired girl, Merrze was sure that she had seen her on the island, her name was Noir she believed but wasn't sure.

"Hi, I remember you from the island I think, what brings you here?"

The warrior thought the girl had a strange tone maybe as if she was nervous. She didn't talk to her when they were on the island so there was a chance that this girl was shy but she would welcome her, but she seemed different then someone who was shy, it was as if she was afraid possible. She seemed to look at Aye in a away, maybe they didn't get along or maybe it was something else. All she knew was that if there was something wrong or on the girl's mind they would definitely find out soon.

Ayero produced a tired half-smile when Merrze returned her greeting in kind. ”Good to hear that things are well on your end. I’ve been busy myself, but things should be settling down, hopefully.” It was not an outright lie, as Ayero had been busy…and she was aware that Merrze had her own dealings besides the Corp, so it would not be uncommon for the two women to miss eachother for a few weeks.

The older Fanalis was silently thankful when a new voice approached, glad that the focus would be off of her despite the fact that she didn’t think Merrze would try to dig into her business. When she turned to see who it was, that feeling of relief instantly faded and her eyes hardened to give the dark haired newcomer a cold look. A grunt and a nod was her only acknowledgement towards Noir, as she was afraid to speak out of fear for what would come out. For now, it would be best to let her anger simmer and not get out of control. A part of her felt bad for the young magician—it was likely that she didn’t mean for Ariella to get killed and was undeserving of her hatred—but an even stronger part of her longed for her deceased friend.

The black haired girl dared herself to look directly to Ayero’s eyes, but quickly averted her gaze to another redhead as she said that she recognized Noir. The magician bowed down, “I’m Noir...” She said, then straightened her body before continuing, “Shopping... for dinner...” She lifted up her shopping bag which is filled with many kind of ingredients, but then averted her gaze to Ayero again. Sadness was what Noir interpret after seeing directly to the fanalis woman’s eyes. As she saw that, her chest began to hurt, the same feeling she felt all the time after Ariella was gone because of her. She must be very hurt... Noir wondered, didn’t think that saying anything would help soothing Ayero’s pain.

But then she remembered something she learnt from a book she read, the source of her knowledge until now. In the book, there was a man with a lot of wounds and was healed by the princess kiss, and at the end, the princess saved the man from a pain inside his heart by softly pecks his chest. Noir, at the very least knew it was all the magic works and wondered if she could actually do that. She stepped to get closer to Ayero and then leaned herself a bit towards her, making her face a little bit closer to the fanalis woman’s face. In the instant, she brought her own face to the woman’s chest and kissed it softly. She would then say, “I hope this will heal your pain...inside your heart...” Then continue her kiss without even bother to look at the townspeople reaction.

When Merrze saw the young girl make contact with her friend she felt shock at first. She was mainly surprised by what was unfolding before her eyes at the moment, based on both of their attitudes she knew they weren't in any form of intimate relationship and what did Noir mean by heal her pain. Was there something that fanalis hadn't known about, had she crossed her like she had thought. The warrior just stared at them blankly with her face slightly pink, she could face the most dangerous of beasts without a break of concentration but when it came things like this she wasn't very knowledgeable, sometimes she felt jealous when she saw such things because she wondered what it was like to experience it despite the fact she has kissed people before.

The fanalis regained her senses in a couple of minutes but she was still confused on what she should do. The redhead wondered if she should say anything to them or just sit in silence. The fanalis thought it was best to say nothing and let the two talk out whatever they would need to talk out but if things possibly got heated she would step in. If there truly was something going on between the two of them there was a chance that the other Colonel could get consumed by anger if it was bad enough but she didn't believe that would happen. She just kept to her thoughts listening to the people, there was always the chance that they would have to move to another location where they wouldn't interrupt the flow of the talking people, if needed Merrze would take them to a bar or something where they could all talk about things. Then again she wasn't sure what Aye might do or how things will go.

Ayero watched the dark haired girl carefully but made no move to stop her, a cautioning look in her eyes. She didn’t know what Noir was up to, but what happened next was something that she did not expect. The young magician leaned forward and placed a kiss on Ayero’s bosom, verbalizing that she hoped her gesture would heal the pain in her heart before continuing to plant kisses.

What the… Ayero’s body stiffened out of reflex and her eye twitched, unsure of how to handle the situation initially. While she was no stranger to carnal affections, this…was definitely strange and unexpected. Anger initially flooded her, but she willed it away after a few moments when she realized that Noir’s intentions were innocent. The lightning mage must have known that the loss of Ariella caused her grief, but this was certainly a bizarre way of showing it.


”Alright, enough.” With an exasperated sigh, Ayero grabbed Noir by the back collar of her shirt and tugged her away from her chest, setting her back a respectable distance before releasing her. The tone in her voice was one of annoyance and compromise. She was tired of being angry and it would do no good to lose herself in rage here, in a public place. Thus, the Fanalis woman decided to let go of her anger, or at least try to. ”You can’t just go around and kiss people on the chest like that in public. It’s indecent.” Ayero’s voice took on a slight scolding tone as she flashed Merrze a look that said she had no idea what the hell was going on either.


Rubbing the back of her neck with her hand, Ayero closed her eyes and exhaled sharply. After a few moments, she reopened her eyes and focused on the two women in front of her. “In any case, it’s good to see you both alive and well. Been up to anything interesting since the island?”

Noir looked down when Ayero pushed her back and told her that her act was indecent, she didn’t know about that nor did she feel that it was indecent at all. She wondered if she just made the Fanalis woman angrier because of that and frowned a little bit. The black haired girl knew that her act in the island before was unforgivable, but she wanted to, at least, making the woman felt slightly better. Noir wouldnt mind if Ayero wanted to hit her again, all she knew about anger was it should be dealt by hitting someone until that angry person was contempt. I should learn more about how to socialize in public... She mentally took a note and lifted her head up, answering Ayero after giving a nod. “King Lagi visited my house... I dont know... a royal would be such an interesting person...” Actually Noir remembered something, she blushed a little bit, “A-and...do you know where to find a place that sell nice Ale?” The taste of Ale that she tried on the boat before still lingering in her mouth, she wanted to drink some and wondered if she actually can cook by using Ale.

Merrze just looked over everything and noticed that Ayero seemed to be confused by the girls actions then again most people would be surprised by such an action. She was slightly glad that she had decided to change the topic as if nothing had happened, that way they wouldn't have to focus on the magicians strange action. When she was asked what she was up to, she had been training a lot but there were other things like preparing for her eventual leave even though that was still a while away from now, she didn't want to let anyone in the fanalis corps know about her plans until later, because it was as if she was betraying her family.

"Well I've been slightly busy, I've been training recruits about every other day and I have my own personal apprentice who I've started to train on some of my days off. And as you probably heard a good while back I was kidnapped by some slave traders, I've been doing some research into them, I encountered them again not to long ago and I'm starting to think they might be bigger than I thought thought Octavius might have told you that."

As she was talking to her fellow fanalis she heard Noir mention Lagi which caused her to twinge slightly. She hadn't seen him since the island either so she wasn't sure how he was but she did slightly miss him, and based of the girls facial expressions she assumed they might have done something but that was none of her business, nonetheless she was interested. After she was done speaking to Aye she heard the magician also ask if she knew a place where they could get good drinks, the warrior thought this was great since it was an excuse to go to her favorite bar.

"Sure I know a wonderful place for drinks, if you follow me I can take you there if you don't mind?"

She wondered if the two girls would be open to going to a more friendly environment instead of standing in the middle of the street.

Ayero was relieved when the other women seemed willing to look past the strange affections of Noir for the time being. When Noir mentioned that the King had visited her private home, Ayero arched both brows. That certainly seemed strange…well, not really. Lagi was known to flirt with pretty women, and she only hoped that the King didn’t seduce someone as innocent seeming as the young mage. A frown crossed her face at the thought, and only deepened when Merrze mentioned the slave traders. ”I’ve heard. I’m sorry for what they’ve put you through, Merrze.”

Slave traders operating in the wake of the war…and Lagi being Lagi….hn… Ayero was pulled from her thoughts when the two women began discussing drinks. ”Sure.” Her response was plain, but really a drink did sound nice right about now…

Noir eyes twitched as she heard Merrze mentioned that she was kidnapped by some slave traders; she showed an uncomfortable expression just for a while but quickly changed it into her usual expressionless face. She knew how it felt to be kidnapped and it was the whole reason that she didn’t know anything about the world besides of the injustice happened. The black haired girl would try to comfort Merrze as well but she remembered that her last action was indecent and she stopped herself, afraid of making the other people angry and uncomfortable. Socializing was not an ordinary thing for her who likes to be accompanied by book and didn’t know anything about how to actually made friends. Another thought crossed her mind, I should… try to investigate about the slavery too…

But then her cheeks rose into a slightly crimson color when Merrze invited her to a wonderful place for drinks, she was happy to finally be able to taste the liquid she called as a ‘Magic Liquid’. It will makes me feel better again… just like that dragonfruit wine… and that ale… The black haired girl couldn’t wait to have a drink, she didn’t even care if she will gone wild after sipping some of that Magic Liquid, all she wanted was just another taste of it.

If they straightly went to the drinking place, Noir would be amazed to see such place. She was never go into one before so this was a brand new place for her. Her golden orbs moving around to observe the place thoroughly, carefully watching everything inside and hesitantly asked both of the Fanalis women about every unknown thing she noticed. “M-miss Merrze, Miss Ayero, what is inside that big barrel? Is it Ale like those barrels on the pirate queen’s ship? And… that purple colored liquid inside that bottle, what is that?” One might see the magician as a little child who knows nothing about the world, like she was being held captive for her entire life and never got a chance to see the world. But she was exactly like that, being kidnapped from when she was a child without any memories about her past before that was the base of her innocent, strange behavior for a girl in her age. A 17 years old girl who knew nothing about how the worlds worked and only depending on book to tell her anything she wanted to know about. I should learn more…

As they walked to the bar she noticed the strange behavior the girl displayed when she heard about her experiences and knew she probably has a hatred for it. Then again most decent people would have a hate for slavery, she would ignore the girls reaction for now since it was not the time for such things. As they walked to the bar she could see it in the distance, it was called Red's tavern and it was one of her favorites since she had came here to Reim. The drinks were good, the food was decent and the people who went there were a joy to talk to. She hoped the two of them would enjoy there time there like she did.

She opened up the door for both of the other ladies so that they could walk in, as she did this she heard the magicians question about the alcohols so the redhead decided that she would share some of her personal info about drinks so that the young girls would know more about them in the future.

"Well that purple drink is some sort of wine, based on the coloration I think it may be made of grapes from west Reim possibly and the drinks in the barrels are most likely whiskey but there is a chance that it could be ale too. I myself drink whiskey over any other alcohol but I can appreciate the other drinks too."

She had been drinking since she was younger so she had a good amount of knowledge, of all the things her master taught her the one bad thing was information about booze. When she was 13 he had her try all sort of drinks and she built up a tolerance of a time and a taste for it too. Gratefully she didn't buy it on her own accord unless she was eating or out with friends, that way she didn't have too bad of an addiction to where she would constantly be buying it.

As the group of women walked down the busy streets, Ayero recognized the building that Merrze was leading them to. ”Red’s. Good choice.” The elder Fanalis grunted her approval and gave a nod to Merrze as she held open the door for them. When Noir questioned them about different types of alcohol, Ayero arched a brow as some of the better memories from their adventure surfaced in her mind. In an effort to control the frustrating mix of emotions that bubbled inside her since that day she blocked out most of the trip. But the night before they made landfall was a joyous occasion, and the memory was easier to grasp than she had expected. She recalled suggesting that Noir try a drink, and remembered staggering over to the young woman in the corner when she felt ill. Was that her first time drinking?

As Merrze explained the different kinds of drink to Noir, Ayero took a stool at the bar and motioned for the barmaid’s attention. ”First round for me an’ those two ladies is on me.” Ayero jerks her thumb towards Noir and Merrze. She figured it would be best to try and smooth things over with Noir, even if it was only to soothe herself. ”I’ll have ale.”

Noir eyes sparkled when Merrze explained about all the drinks, Whiskey...? I wonder if it tastes good... The black haired girl couldnt wait to try any type of booze she could afford right now. The black haired girl took a seat beside Ayero after grabbing a nearby stool, she wondered what she should have to drink because right now she was eager to try anything. When Ayero said that the first round would be on her, the girl said, “Then the second round will be on me...” She was grateful that the Fanalis women were very kind towards her. Not to mention her fondness to the other races such as Imuchakk and Fanalis made her to be drawn more into them rather that with the same human races. Maybe because she only saw human as the villain in her past, but then again she couldn’t judge any human, since now she knew some people were not a villain. One even died because of her and her whole thinking changed because of that, human being was also the same being with others. In order for everyone to gain equality… slavery must be erased…

Ayero ordered a glass of Ale and made Noir wanted to start with something she had tried before, so she looked at the barmaid and said, “I’d like Ale too please…” She realized this was not the time to be so deep in serious thought; at least she needed to relax and made herself feel better. After her order arrived, she looked at the big mug with a very high anticipation and lifted it. She would sip a little bit without doing cheers with the other, not because she didn’t want to, but she didn’t know. In instant, she would feel her body become warmer, but since she had not gulped it all down, she was still okay and conscious, at least for now… But if the Fanalis women noticed, they would see a small smile carved on Noir's face. An unusual expression that the girl never did with her expressionless face.

She soon walked in after the other girls and was welcomed by the friendly atmosphere, one of the main reasons she chose this place was because of the friendly atmosphere, it felt welcoming to her and the fanalis thought it would help relieve any of then animosity the girls might have felt at the moment. She heard the girls say that they would pay for rounds, Merrze was a heavy drinker so she would be drinking a lot of rounds, she wondered if they were heavy drinkers. She was sure Aye was and based of Riku's inexperience she probably hadn't drank much and based of her stature she probably wouldn't be able to drink much but it wasn't a competition. This was a chance for the ladies to bond and learn about one another, possibly a chance to learn interesting things about one another.

"Well if you two got the first two rounds then I'll pay for the third round."

She said this very boisterously and with a happy face well there were people around her who tried to greet her or hit on her. She thought it was fun already and they haven't even began to drink yet which would most likely stimulate the happy feeling. The warrior wondered how many more times she would get to do this before she wouldn't be able to do it again, how much more fun would she get to have until it would be time for the constant fighting and travelling, of course she would miss it but that only meant that she would have to cherish is until she would get to do it again after her goal was met. While thinking she took a seat and decided she would strike up conversation about something.

"I'll take a whiskey if you don't mind, so what did everyone think about Reim when you first came here and did you come here for a specific reason."

Ayero grunted in approval when the two other woman volunteered to pay for the subsequent rounds of drinks and wondered just how long they planned to stay. Ayero didn’t see herself lingering for long, planning on indulging in a drink or two while catching up with Merrze and Riku. Her ale arrived shortly, and the Fanalis woman wasted no time in tilting the mug to her lips. As soon as the cool drink hit her lips, her thoughts instantly changed. Maybe I could stay for a few rounds… The taste of the brew was familiar, and familiar things were comforting.

Ayero continued to nurse her drink through Merrze’s question, her mind turning over for a few moments as she processed what the younger Fanalis asked. Reim…why did I come back here…hm…! The realization struck Ayero all at once, her sour memories piling ontop of eachother. Like a broken dam, the memories of the past she had been too busy and too proud to dwell on came spilling back into her head. For a few seconds, she stare pensively down into her half-full mug and swirls the liquid with gentle motions of her hand. She willed away the dark images, not wanting to let her emotions get out of hand during what was supposed to be friendly chatter. Merrze’s question was innocent, after all.

”I was born in Reim. I suppose I could say that I came back to find my roots…but the war was a part of it.” Looking up from the mug, Ayero fixes Merrze with a curious look. ”Considering that I came back during a time of turmoil, it’s definitely not as I remembered…but lots of things seemed to stay the same, too. And yourself, Merrze?”

Noir took a sip of the ale again and this time she was giggling happily, gulping down the entire liquid before she sighed happily. She put her mug on the table and looking around to find another ale to drink. This is it, this was what she has been wanting to feel. Her head was very light and she felt very very happy, like no burden on her shoulder at all. She listened closely when Merrze asked what did they think about Reim when they first came here and burst into laughter as she remembered clearly what was in her thought at that time. She hiccuped twice before finally able to answer, “I was... running away from a biiiiig ship! And I saw the city, amazed by how grand the city is... I remembered... *hic* that I ran and raaaan, until I met a woman... I told her my name... *hic* and she said... my family house is in Reim!” She laughed again, not knowing what her mind did to her as she was now very drunk. “They said... *hic*... my family was murdered...hahaha! Amusing isnt it? Hahaha!” She took another mug filled with ale and gulped it down all in one shot. “Miss Ayeroo was born in Reeiiiiim? And tell me more about yourself! Hahaha!”

"I thought Reim was nice when I first came here but tensions were high with Kou and all, I didn't think that soon after getting here I would end up fighting in a war and learn more about myself in that time. But my main reason for coming here was because I thought it was timed I moved around the world to learn things gain more knowledge, friends, experience and strength. I can say I really appreciate the experiences that I've had since I've came here. Also I myself was born in balbadd but soon after I had to leave the country."

After she had shared her bit of info she took a swig of whiskey and listened to Noir and what she had to share. She thought it sounded interesting but when she saw the drunk laugh at her parent's deaths she slightly gagged, she knew it was because the girl was drunk but she couldn't stop her reaction because she thought it was grotesque. She wondered how close they were but she wasn't going to ask on the off chance she would start saying more things that weren't the happiest for a drinking get together, as she moved on to her next drink she listened.

She wondered how Aye would react and if she would answers Noir's question as if it was like Noir had never mentioned her dead parents, she was just hoping that the carefree mood wouldn't be ruined, she wanted to keep drinkin and chat about what type of fun things had happened to them then again most of the things they've all experienced probably weren't the happiest. Even though it was most likely today she didn't want to focus on them for just one day, she was going to make sure if things got to serious she could change the mood with drunken behavior.

Ayero listened patiently to Merrze’s response, not knowing that the girl was originally from Balbadd. While she ruminated on that thought, she arched a brow at Noir’s drunken antics, but the expression on her face quickly turned sour when the girl went on to describe the murder of her family while laughing. Ayero grunted and downed the rest of her drink before she could say anything, using the brief time her face was buried in the mug to organize her thoughts as best she could. This girl…clearly has some issues.

Her grip tightened on the mug of ale and she slammed the glass down onto the counter, thoughts of her own departed family swimming in her head as she turned to Noir with a stern look on her face. ”I don’t care how fucking drunk you are, how dare you laugh at the death of your own family.” Her brows creased as crimson eyes narrowed and she jabbed a finger towards Noir’s chest. ”You are a strange girl. Learn to take responsibility for yourself and your actions, or else you’ll be eaten alive. And for god sakes, learn to hold your alcohol.”

Standing with a fire in her eyes, Ayero removed the appropriate amount of coins from her pocket and placed them onto the counter to pay for the promised round of drinks. She turned as if to leave, but angled her body towards Noir and leaned in close to the dark haired young woman.


With a quick yet apologetic nod towards Merrze, Ayero turned on her heel and left the bar.

[Exit]

Her eyes widened after hearing those very sentence, she could hear every word clearly and her head processed it faster than usual. But she didn’t move at all or even being mad, she was just carving a smile on her face, showing it to the Fanalis woman that left the bar after she said that. Noir was not being herself right after she started drinking, it was like someone else took over her and do something that was not her usual act. While she smiled, she could feel a streaming flow of liquids coming down from her eyes. She would let a sigh escaped from her peach colored lips and lean her head on the wall, slowly closing her teary eyes after gulping several more alcohol in front of her. “I’m sorry…” She murmured under her breath and could feel that her consciousness gradually fades away. I suppose I cannot act like that… but I feel happy very happy even though I know talking about that feels hurt…they said laughing is the best medicine… am I wrong…? She gulped down slowly and fell asleep, Next time I will study again so I can fit in…

[EXIT]

The fanalis was surprised by Aye's outburst and was confused by whatever she meant about a manticore but she assumed it might be a sensitive issue. She finished her drink and waved goodbye to the people whose moods seem to have been ruined by what had just happened. Merrze was mainly curious on what squabble the two girls were having but it was most likely none of her business so she had no intention of snooping. She just left the inn and decided to walk her tipsy self home so she could relax for a bit then maybe make something to eat.

[Exit]