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MARKETPLACE - EARLY EVENING
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Scilla wanders into the marketplace, having just left her stuff into the Minnow after arriving into Respite. The short genet is fairly limber in her build and wearing a loose set of travel clothes, her overall look clearly of someone who doesn't care all too much about appearances. "Ahh, Respite Falls... land of tea and lemoncurd and opportunity. At least, I hope so. Although not sure about the lemoncurd, not sure why I said that."
Mirriam is standing at a vendor just outside the bakery, apparently promoting a short supply of fresh spreads as she peruses idly. The vendor is calling out past her into the crowd, since the roo seems indecisive at the moment. 'Fresh strawberry preserve! Orange marmalade! Lemoncurd from Sarn lemons, made today!' Mirriam gives the shouting salesman a bit of a look, as if asking 'what, am I not here?' without saying so much.
Scilla pauses at the vendor calling and definitely hesitates for a moment, before sharply shaking her head: "No! Bad genet! Bad Scilla! Job first, then tasties with tea!"
Mirriam hums, her tail twitching left and right as she tries in vain to decide on a spread to buy. "A... A-all of them. One of each please, ay?" She sighs, handing over the money for them, "And a few sweet rolls to spread them on, please an' thanks. And now I definitely need t'buy more tea..."
Scilla blinks as she walks behind the roo, pausing at the words: "Wait, am I hearing things? I hope not, wasn't fun the last time either." The genet is talking out loud, although seemingly muttering to herself.
Mirriam chirps a happy thank you to the vendor before turning away with her bag of goodies, taking a distracted step toward the genet. "Now if I only had a really stunnin' fast way t'toast these buns up..."
Scilla 's eyes widen as the much bigger roo steps towards her: "Hey, watch it Sis!" She barely fails to step out of the way too, bumping into Mirriam as she flails.
Mirriam blinks, pausing in her step as she looks down to the voice. "Ah! Sorry there, vren, di'nt see ya! Little distracted t'day-oof!" She manages to keep from dropping her shopping, just.
Scilla takes several hasty steps backwards, only to end up falling onto her butt: "Oof!" She grumbles, wiping imaginary dust from her face before looking up: "Mmmrf... d-distracted indeed."
Mirriam giggles nervously before taking a few steps toward the fallen gal, bending and offering a hand up. "Sorry! Hope ya didn't jus' get a bruise cause of clumsy ol' Mirriam."
Scilla takes the offered hand with a frown: "Guess you're at least helpin' me up." She gets up with Mirriam's help, totally not eyeing the pastries that smell divine: "So what's got you so distracted anyway you can't look where you're goin?"
Mirriam sighs as she helps the stranger up. "Oh ya know... Thinkin' about which'a these spreads a certain cute lizard'd like ta have on breakfast." She looks to Scilla. "Ya jus' arrive? Or ya work one of the farms? Not judgin', but yer outfit's a bit rough for a normal day about the market."
Scilla tilts her head slightly, glances at her loose shirt and seen-better-days overalls: "Just arrived, really, coming to Respite after work. Am a bit of a fixer of sorts, kinda know my way around metals, reckon'd this place would have quite a few chances to use my skills."
Mirriam hums, scratching her chin a bit. "Well.. WE got a ah... Kobold of wild rumors, though most seem ta say he's skilled... Quite a few magitech types and a couple more in the trade'a enchantin', and a few smiths and whatnot... Not sure there's much the lot of 'em couldn't fix, but hey, more fresh faces is always welcome!"
Scilla grins confidently: "Well yeah, but none of them are ME. Therefore, Respite could use some of me. And that's why I am here."
Mirriam laughs, patting Scilla on the head. "Well I love the attitude ya got! Confidence like that is a hell of a good thing. What's yer name, then?"
Scilla waves away to the patting: "Shoo! No touchie, it's embarrassing and stuff." She blushes but her expression stays fierce: "Call me Scilla, though."
Mirriam scoffs. "Please, would love ta get a head pat once in a while, but yer right, won't do it ever again. Promise." She straightens up, grinning. "Well then Scilla, where ya stayin'? And ya gonna set up shop somewhere? Imagine you'll need more'n a market stall for repair work."
Scilla shrugs: "I figure I'll find work sooner or later just going about, that's how I usually do it. M'not really the shopkeeping type." Her striped tail twitches in mild annoyance at the thought of just sitting around and waiting for work to come find her.
Mirriam hums, glancing at the twitching tail for a moment. "Sounds good ta me. Fixin' stuff right on the spot sounds like a heck of-a talent."
Scilla shrugs: "Talent schmalent, I just do what I'm great at and get paid."
Mirriam: "You do it for- Oh paid!" She coughs away the misheard words. "What do ya work on? Maybe I c'n point ya to whatcha need t'be pointed to?"
Scilla shrugs again, looking to the side: "Does it work on some sense of mechanics and/or is made of metal? I can probably fix some of that. M'not picky."
Mirriam hums, chuckling after a few moments. "Well I mean, ya wont be lackin' for work, then. Almost every house in the farmlands has a water pump of some sort, 'n a lot of the houses have the same, if they're not fed offa the main lines. And of course, some places got machines workin' fer their own craft. lotsa magitech around, but also a lot of older archaic stuff."
Scilla grins: "Like I said, not picky. If it worked once, I can probably poke it around and make it tick again. It's sorta my thing." There is a degree of excitement in her voice as she talks: "Well that, and workin' with metals is just fun."
Mirriam hums. "Ya might wanna brefriend a coupla the smiths in town, then. They ones I know of sound pretty generous in general, could probably get spare bits to tinker or use fer repairin' stuff for a pittance, if not free."
Scilla shrugs as her eyes wander towards the pastries in Mirriam's bag once more: "Mm, something like that usually works out..."
Mirriam catches Scilla's gaze, glancing at her food. "I know, they smell fantastic, ay? Really lookin' forward ta tryin' some when I get home~ Be hard to remember I gotta save a few."
Scilla blinks off her hungry reverie: "Oh? Oh yeah, gotta get some for... me too, probably." Her stomach lets out a noise of 'do want' as she smells at the pastries, and the genet blushes just a bit.
Mirriam shrugs, stepping aside and nodding toward the bakery vendor she'd just been at. "I mean, they're right there. I kinda pushed ya away from 'em, sorry."
Scilla looks aside: "Eh, no worries. I'll get to them later. G-gotta find that work first."
Mirriam blinks. "Well ya can't work hungry... They got fresh spreads and everything. Even some kinda lemon one I ain't never had. Which is weird, I mean, lemons are grown well in Sarn, and I was born 'n raised there, but I jus' never tried it 'til I heard the keep talkin' bout them."
Scilla shrugs: "Mm, lemoncurd is good... gotta get some when I can." She pauses, frowning: "...and I can when I have some work done. Sheesh." She turns to go, giving Mirriam a small grin: "Gotta go locate some of that hopefully still today."
Mirriam tilts her head a little, humming. She fishes into the bag, pulling the lemoncurd and one of the packages of buns out. "Well here then, a way of apologizin' fer runnin' ya down in the street there. 'Sides, gotta have your energy up ta fix stuff, right? Don't want ya losin' focus cause yer a little hungry."
Scilla pauses in her stepping way, turning almost on a dime at Mirriam's words: "You would? I mean, I couldn't ask but I am so very much not going to say no either." She just barely stops herself from making grabby hands at the bun right away.
Mirriam chuckles, nodding. "Sure. Know what it's like arrivin' and not knowin' who anyone is or where ta get stuff ya want." She doesn't say anything directly about affording anything. While she's assuming Scilla is dancing around the topic of being broke, she wouldn't want to claim so in case of embarrassing either of them.
Scilla takes the offered bun with lemoncurd with a smile and a sizable blush: "Myeah, it's... it's a mess, was kinda only planning how to get here and figured I'd figure the rest when I got here... now I'm here and not sure where to start, eh?"
Mirriam chuckles, nodding. "Sure you'll do fine, seem like a bright one after all!"
Scilla giggles at that, waving a hand (and the bun) around: "Eh, most kinda seem I'm a bit dim and scattered, but seeing as they're wrong, that's not really the case."
Mirriam grins, nodding. "I'll make sure ta tell folks ta look for 'the pretty genet gal, Scilla' if fixin' somethin' comes up in my rounds. Dependin' on ya livin' up to that self-promotin' to keep my referrals reliable, vren."
Scilla blinks: "Your rounds? Whats'it you do, then?" She munches on the bun, mm'ing softly at the taste: "Mmm'tis good."
Mirriam nods, ginning. "Gonna make me hungry like that. 'M a courier. Ya need somethin' to reach someone, call on a 'roo. Would say I'm prob'ly the best courier in town, but the regular mail delivery crew has an eagle and a falcon and I mean... I c'n hop and navigate easy, but that still don't quite beat flyin'."
Scilla looks up to the sky and shrugs: "Yeah, I can see that. Me, I'd be useless for that stuff, with these short legs of mine. Best just keep fixin' and diggin'."
Mirriam: "Oh, you mine, too? Well that's darn useful!"
Scilla gives Mirriam a grin: "I do all kinds of stuff, I guess."
Mirriam: "Except accept head pats." She sticks out her tongue with a giggle.
Scilla sticks her tongue right back: "Well cause that's rude! I don't let just anybody do that sort of thing."
Mirriam giggles again, though with a hint of mischief. "Oh~ So head pats are reserved for a special someone, hmm~?"
Scilla nods sharply. She then pauses, blushes: "...Yeah. Something like that."
Mirriam grins, shrugging. "Oh don' worry, I understand completely. I mean, my special someone is a bit... unconventional, but that don' mean it ain't special."
Scilla tilts her head: "What do you mean, unconventional? Something cheeky?"
Mirriam: "Depends. A lizard... more'n a friend at this point, of mine's managed t'find a sizable group of ah... Non-lizards comfortable with their culture's... Openness."
Scilla blinks, then shrugs: "Huh. Something for everyone I guess?"
Mirriam grins, blushing a bit under her fur. "Ay, in a way." She clears her throat, glancing about. "So where's the lemoncurd to yer buns?"
Scilla blinks in confusion: "Huh?"
Mirriam looks back to Scilla. "Or did ya come to Respite alone?"
Scilla blinks again before connecting the dots: "Alone? Why?"
Mirriam shrugs, smiling at Scilla. "Dunno, just thought I'd ask with the way the conversation was goin'."
Scilla shrugs: "Yeah, got no one. Haven't I guess really been in one place long enough to really think about it."
Mirriam: "Ay, makes sense. Ain't important ta happiness, anyhow. Gotta be you, do what ya wanna. S'way ta be happy."
Scilla nods, giving Mirriam a scrutinizing look: "Though you I guess want to find some of that."
Mirriam chuckles, shrugging. "Freedom ta do what I want is why I came. Run my own branch of the family business 'n all that. 'Til I find a right proper husband, gonna get what've wanted fer the while when I was away, vren."
Scilla giggles, shaking her head: "Yeah, no sense in trying yourself down for no reason." She pauses for a second: "...or any reason, really."
Mirriam nods, grinning. "Got that right~"
Scilla grins at having found someone who thinks similarly. The two end up talking for quite a while before remembering their respective goals for the evening, reluctantly parting ways once they actually do.
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TRAIL OUT TO MEAN PEAK - LATE MORNING
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Nesseth walks along the trail through the plains leading up to the base of the mountain, a large rucksack on his back containing his (and Erika's) supplies for the trip. He's likewise loaded down with his hunting kit, and wearing a lighter version of his usual gear to keep the weight manageable. He seems pretty accustomed to the weight, though, and his stride is easy as he walks with Erika.
Erika cheerily walks/bounces along with Nesseth, her backpack much smaller and really mostly being a space to bring stuff back in once they find them. The two are on a trip to find herbs back for Erika's garden, and whatever else they come across out here. She gives Nesseth a warm smile: "Feels good! Like, really does, being out here and walking."
Nesseth hums and nods as he smiles at Erika, watching her walk beside him. "I can imagine. It's nice getting to come out there again on just something like this sort of trip. We can take our time, no need to rush... and it's pretty breezy out today, too."
Erika glances behind them, Respite having vanished from view hours ago: "I do love our town, it's our home but dayumn does it get stifling at times in those same circles day in, day out, you know?"
Nesseth turns with Erika to look over his shoulder as well. "Yeah... it's a lovely town, but the isolation does keep things pretty tightly knit. You can only walk so many times around it before you've seen everything and everyone."
Erika giggles to herself: "I probably know way too much about them all, honestly. People talk so much... nnnnooot that I'm anyone to say." She grins sheepishly at Nesseth.
Nesseth playfully sticks his tongue out at Erika. "People are just comfortable chatting about a lot of things they probably shouldn't be. It's probably normal when most folks know each other around for years on end." He grins a bit, "And, really, it doesn't bother me any."
Erika shakes her head with a warm smile: "I mean, me neither. I just notice a lot of stuff, being around as I am."
Nesseth gives Erika a companionable hug as the two keep walking. "Yeah, I get that. I hear all kinds of things while patrolling the town, after all. It's kind of odd, but it does feel good knowing folks trust each other around town so much."
Erika grins and hugs tightly: "I'd trust any of them with my life. Respite is my town, no doubt there." She pauses: "... I'd trust you slightly more with my life, though."]
Nesseth chuckles with a warm smile. "Well, I just have to make sure I'm worthy of that extra trust, huh? And I can start by making sure you're safe on this trip to Mean Peak."
Erika smiles warmly: "Mmm, I'm sure you'll do excellently. Can't go as badly as the last time either of us was here, at least."
Nesseth nods. "Yeah... that was a pretty big fiasco all around, wasn't it? I'm glad you were able to make it back to town after having that happen, though."
Erika smiles in turn: "And I'm glad you came back in one piece, too, finding Victoria and Garwin after that. Even if I wasn't, uh... all there to say it, then."
Nesseth leans in to rest his head against Erika's for a moment. "I'm glad we were able to find them, too." He trails off for a moment, chuckling, "Garwin still apologizes sometimes for that body slam he gave me back then. No matter how many times I tell him it's okay."
Erika shrugs with a smile: "That's Garwin I guess... wouldn't hurt a fly. He's pretty great to have around."
Nesseth nods in agreement. "Yeah, he's one of the gentlest guys I know, even though folks think he looks big and scary."
Erika grins: "He's kind of cute, the way he is compared to how new people see him."
Nesseth laughs. "Yeah, so many people think he's just a giant that's not to be messed with. He tells us sometimes in the barracks about how folks get super surprised when they start talking with him for whatever reason."
Erika giggles: "Hard to imagine why." She gives a soft sigh: "I guess I've always had a bit of a soft spot for big strong guys. Like you~."
Nesseth smiles in something of a half-smirk. "I'd argue against strong, but, well..." He rolls his shoulders a bit to show the pack he's toting, "I'd be lying about that one, I guess. Though... big? I'm shorter than you, dear~"
Erika waves her hand, grinning: "Shush, don't go ruining my daydreaming."
Nesseth grins and takes an opportunity to wrap his arms around Erika in a surprise hug. "Daydreaming about me, are we?"
Erika eep's as she is hugged: "M-maybe! Probably, yes? You're very daydreamable, and don't you go denying it."
Nesseth sneaks a kiss on Erika's chin, then gives her a gentle squeeze before releasing her from the hug. "Oh, I can't argue against you when you put it that way. Besides..." He smiles and takes a moment to admire Erika's appearance, though his gaze focuses primarily on her face, "There's plenty about you for me to daydream about, too."
Erika sticks her tongue out: "Well you just said I'm tall, so I'd better have plenty of me or something is odd." She pauses, musing: "I wonder what it would be like, being shorter?"
Nesseth shrugs a bit. "I dunno, depends on how short we're talking. For someone like my height, it's not much different, I'd imagine. Someone like May, though... or her sister, I think it's a bit of a challenge unless things were built specifically for folks of their stature."
Erika tilts her head: "May has a sister? Huh." She then shrugs: "Okay, so I don't know quite everything of our town."
Nesseth nods at the question. "Yeah, twin sister, I think, and she usually lives up in Vamas." He chuckles as he recalls their initial meeting, "I mistook her for May at first, thinking she got back early from her trip out. Kind of an embarrassing moment, really."
Erika giggles: "They look that similar. That must get confusing. Thank goodness my Sis can't really be confused with me, or I'd get duel challenges out of the blue or something, all the time."
Nesseth nods. "Aside from how they dress, they look almost exactly alike. Their short names are similar, too... May for Maybelline, and Mae for Maecy." He grins at Erika, "I can only imagine how your sister would get if someone tried challenging you to a fight."
Erika laughs a bit: "Fiora would probably get all defensive... she doesn't like to show it much, but she's pretty protective of me after we found out we were sisters."
Nesseth chuckles. "She must love you a lot, then. You two were exchanging letters for a while before she came here to Aephix, right?"
Erika nodnods with a smile: "It was fun!" She hums: "Suppose I don't really have anyone out there to write letters to, now. Unless you know of someone I could write to?"
Nesseth hums curiously, then shrugs a bit. "Well... could always write to my folks back in Orela, maybe? I send letters out to them once in a while. They'd probably enjoy talking with you through letters, too."
Erika blinks: "Oh... that'd be bold of me, wouldn't it? Though maybe fun! I may have to considerate this."
Nesseth grins. "I mean, bold, sure, but I think they already know about you a bit, since I mentioned you a couple of times before."
Erika blushes with a grin: "Still, it's almost like meeting the parents of your lover."
Nesseth chuckles, then sneaks another soft kiss. "I mean... you're my lover, and you'd be "meeting" my parents, even if it's just through letters, right? Not really face-to-face, but same idea."
Erika giggles: "That's the thing, right? I mean, isn't yet is and I don't know. The thought makes me all jittery."
Nesseth smiles. "If it makes you feel better, I'll hang out with you while you write it up, whenever you decide to. A little company to distract you from the nerves."
Erika sticks her tongue out: "Or distract me from the writing, I'm sure."
Nesseth puts on an innocent look. "Wellll~... mmmmaybe just a little." He smirks and gives Erika a teasing little poke on the side, "Or I could just let you write it solo, of course."
Erika pokes back at Nesseth's side: "Oh like you'd want to do that~."
Nesseth jerks a little to the side as Erika prods him right in a bit of a ticklish spot. "I mean, I'd do it if that's what you wanted, of course! I wouldn't want to distract you all the time, after all." He pauses, then adds with a smile, "Only most of the time."
Erika giggles: "Yeah, if you distracted me all the time you wouldn't have time to distract the others, and that just won't do." She hums: "Though I suppose Plume has legit reasons to not be distracted, a lot."
Nesseth hums and nods. "Yeah, they need to focus on their work a lot, since they're the only doctor in town. Of course, us distracting them here and there's a good thing for them." He and Erika continue their walk out to Mean Peak, talking about this and that, and how various methods of distraction (for themselves, each other and their partners) work, and totally not concocting plans at the same time.