Two weeks. That's how long Zeviana's been missing her father. It's also how many days she's been considering how utterly stupid his death was. Not something big and dramatic, he wasn't stabbed or jumped or hanged - he got sick. Then he got sicker. Then he died.
Adarin's more of a wreck than she is, he was the one that hovered, the one that bartered for various potential cures, the one that kept looking for a doctor or something to fix their father. Obsessively, without rest. Zeviana helped, too, she had a bit of money saved from fights in the ring, it was supposed to be pocket money but now it's not. She got into more fights than was probably safe - made bets on herself, won every one, and handed her brother the money. He'd go and find things to fix their father from there. It wasn't enough.
It's not fair. They tried their hardest, he should have lived. If things were fair he would have.
Neither of them wanted to stay in his house after. So they decided to leave. They're going to Casasha, where Adarin can probably find work for his abjuration thing. Zeviana doesn't need to go to a specific country, she's likely to find work everywhere. No one wants to take bets on a girl in a fighting ring, and with how she wins - well, she can make more than pocket change betting on herself, if she wants. She doesn't mind, the fights are fun, the money's nice. Maybe when she's thirty and less spry she'll need to do something else, but for now, this works.
What doesn't work is how absolutely miserable her twin is. She needs to take breaks from him, because he's just - so utterly destroyed by grief. She leaves him alone, gives him space, and when she can, she cheers him up. But not right now, right now, she's on one of those breaks. He's back at the wagon, doing - whatever. But she's in the woods, on a walk.
The trees are pretty. Zeviana's almost disappointed that they haven't met any bandits in them, but she's not disappointed by the scenery. Vaguely, she wonders if Casasha looks like this, because if it does she might have an opinion about moving there after all.
Generated:
Post last updated:
Happenstance
Zeviana Taviri Sorelas
try_me
If it's Casasha, it's a pretty deserted part of Casasha -
No, there's a house, over there. A fairly large house, at that, A-frame in front and a couple stories, newer-looking, attached at the back of it. And a large garden around it sprouting all kinds of vegetables and fruits.
No, there's a house, over there. A fairly large house, at that, A-frame in front and a couple stories, newer-looking, attached at the back of it. And a large garden around it sprouting all kinds of vegetables and fruits.
Zeviana Taviri Sorelas
try_me
Well that's interesting. Maybe they can avoid sleeping on the ground after all. There's no reason Zeviana can't investigate.
She walks up to the house, and knocks on the door.
She walks up to the house, and knocks on the door.
Chelasi
close_knit
A pretty blonde woman, maybe thirty, opens the door.
"Oh! Oh, hello, who are you?"
She's fidgety, hands twitching like she's petting the air.
"Oh! Oh, hello, who are you?"
She's fidgety, hands twitching like she's petting the air.
Zeviana Taviri Sorelas
try_me
"Hi!" says Zeviana. "Sorry to be all - random person in the wilderness-like. My brother and I are heading to Casasha. I happened to walk by here - you have a pretty house!"
Chelasi
close_knit
"Oh it's no trouble at all - thank you! My friends and I all built it together. Why don't you come in? Is your brother with you? I don't see anyone."
Zeviana Taviri Sorelas
try_me
"Sure," says Zeviana, stepping inside. "He's back at the wagon. You all built a house together? That's cute."
Chelasi
close_knit
"Well, we all helped decide what it ought to look like, but one of my friends is a building-mage and she did most of the work. Anlon! We have a guest, I'll bet you she wants tea!" she calls into the kitchen.
The house looks lived-in but tidy. Past the A-frame entrance, currently empty but for the odd box and a lot of shoes, there's a couple of people snuggled up together on a sofa off to the left, one with an embroidery sampler and one with a book; to the right is the kitchen, where a man sets about putting the kettle over the fire for tea.
"What's your name?" the blonde woman asks Zeviana.
The house looks lived-in but tidy. Past the A-frame entrance, currently empty but for the odd box and a lot of shoes, there's a couple of people snuggled up together on a sofa off to the left, one with an embroidery sampler and one with a book; to the right is the kitchen, where a man sets about putting the kettle over the fire for tea.
"What's your name?" the blonde woman asks Zeviana.
Zeviana Taviri Sorelas
try_me
"Zeviana! Tea would be great, 'Rin's the one who's addicted to the stuff but I like it, too." She looks around. They all look so nice! Her hostess especially, it can't be safe out here to accept strangers into her home like that. She hopes that the nice woman doesn't get taken advantage of out here.
Chelasi
close_knit
"I'm Chelasi! And this is Anlon," Chelasi steps into the kitchen and gives him a little kiss, "and over there are Tima with the sampler and Jony with the book, Jony's the gardener here if you saw."
Zeviana Taviri Sorelas
try_me
"It's great to meet all of you! You did some gorgeous work," says Zeviana to Jony. "Wow, I hope no one gives you any trouble out here, I mean I wouldn't mind but 'Rin's been jittery about bandits."
Chelasi
close_knit
"Oh, we don't have any problems with them. Jony's actually a plant mage. And Kesaven - he's up in his room now, I think - is the building mage, but you can scare off a bandit with that. We're nice and safe and snug."
Zeviana Taviri Sorelas
try_me
"Aww! That's cute, I'm glad. If you have trouble, pretty sure I can help, and also guilt trip my brother. Adarin - sorry, forgot to tell you his name - is a shield mage, bandits haven't messed with us but we could handle them just fine."
Chelasi
close_knit
"Ooh, lucky you. Does he want tea too?"
Zeviana Taviri Sorelas
try_me
"Eh, I can defend myself all right, too. But he probably wants tea! You won't be put out if I go get him?"
Chelasi
close_knit
"No, of course not, I'm sure your brother's lovely."
Zeviana Taviri Sorelas
try_me
"All right, I'll go get him, then. Be back before the tea's ready."
Zeviana waves and then heads off to go retrieve said brother.
Zeviana waves and then heads off to go retrieve said brother.
Chelasi
close_knit
"Mm-hm!"
Chelasi leaves the door open for them.
Chelasi leaves the door open for them.
Zeviana Taviri Sorelas
try_me
That's convenient, because Zeviana returns with a confused looking brother soon after.
"They're nice, I swear!" she promises, as they arrive. "See? Lovely little house with lovely people. Hi, lovely people!"
"They're nice, I swear!" she promises, as they arrive. "See? Lovely little house with lovely people. Hi, lovely people!"
Adarin Evaniel Sorelas
in_tatters
"Hello," says Adarin, faintly amused. "Apparently you are 'lovely people?'"
Chelasi
close_knit
"I'm Chelasi!" says Chelasi, waving with one hand, fidgeting with the other. "Come in, come in, the kettle's just boiled. Zeviana says you're a mage! Or a raveler, which term do you like?"
Adarin Evaniel Sorelas
in_tatters
"Nice to meet you. Either's fine, mage feels more accurate, though. Because I don't really unravel anything, it's all - dropping blankets over people."
Zeviana Taviri Sorelas
try_me
"Which continues to be the most hilariously cuddly description of magic ever," snorts Zeviana.
Chelasi
close_knit
"Aww, that does sound cuddly." Chelasi introduces her immediately obvious friends again. Anlon pours everyone tea.
Adarin Evaniel Sorelas
in_tatters
Adarin snorts. "Apparently I am the cuddliest raveler of all. Me and my magic blankets."
Tea is drunk. "This is excellent tea."
Tea is drunk. "This is excellent tea."
Chelasi
close_knit
"Isn't it? Jony does the blends. We're all so lucky to have her."
Jony grins and spontaneously hugs Chelasi.
Jony grins and spontaneously hugs Chelasi.
Zeviana Taviri Sorelas
try_me
"Awwwww. That's cute. You're all so happy here!"
Chelasi
close_knit
"It's nice! I find cities kind of overwhelming, so I moved out here with just Anlon first and more of our friends accumulated over time."
Adarin Evaniel Sorelas
in_tatters
Nod. "That's very kind of you, to accept people in like that. Apparently stories about bandits and ruffians were false?"
Chelasi
close_knit
"Oh, I won't say there are none out here in the wilds, but we were lucky to start out and now we have two ravelers living here."
Adarin Evaniel Sorelas
in_tatters
"Two?" says Adarin, surprised. "Wow, that's - very lucky. Absurdly so. I've only met one other raveler, from home, and she was in her fifties. Were they also heading to Casasha?"
Chelasi
close_knit
"No, no. Jony I met in Antaurb when I was doing a bit of shopping, and was having an argument with her boyfriend at the time and decided to come stay with us to cool off - never left. And Kesaven was leaving Casasha for nowhere in particular and stopped to help us out with expanding the house in exchange for some of Jony's delicious berries -" Jony beams with pride. "And kept coming up with excuses to stay. Hasn't run out yet!"
"And we're not all ravelers," puts in Tima. "Chelasi and Anlon aren't. I'm not. Dayree and Quel and Netse aren't."
"And we're not all ravelers," puts in Tima. "Chelasi and Anlon aren't. I'm not. Dayree and Quel and Netse aren't."
Zeviana Taviri Sorelas
try_me
"Yeah, Rin," teases Zeviana. "The world doesn't revolve around magic!"
Adarin Evaniel Sorelas
in_tatters
"Never would have guessed."
He is being sarcastic.
He is being sarcastic.
Chelasi
close_knit
Jony giggles.
"What's in Casasha?" asks Anlon.
"What's in Casasha?" asks Anlon.
Adarin Evaniel Sorelas
in_tatters
"They're better about jobs for ravelers than Antaurb, and I am unemployed." He winces. "And we both wanted to move."
Chelasi
close_knit
"Oh, I know, I got terrible rates," Jony says. "They always wanted to pay me for time, no attention to how tired raveling makes you. Now I just let Anlon or Quel carry off a wagonload of this or that and bring back whatever the household needs and I never have to fuss about the business end."
"Kesaven still takes jobs in either country, sometimes," Tima muses. "But only one at a time and only just after snowmelt when the plants are too young to sell."
Chelasi's barely smiling. "What kind of work were you thinking you'd pick up exactly? You look so young to be worrying about it, anyway."
"Kesaven still takes jobs in either country, sometimes," Tima muses. "But only one at a time and only just after snowmelt when the plants are too young to sell."
Chelasi's barely smiling. "What kind of work were you thinking you'd pick up exactly? You look so young to be worrying about it, anyway."
Adarin Evaniel Sorelas
in_tatters
"Probably something involving protection - bodyguard's the obvious choice. I like people being safe."
Chelasi
close_knit
"Oh, that's admirable," purrs Chelasi. "But nothing specific lined up?"
Adarin Evaniel Sorelas
in_tatters
He laughs a little, looking embarrassed. "Thank you. But uh - no, nothing specific."
Chelasi
close_knit
"Casasha's farther away than Antaurb is, from here," says Tima. "And Antaurb's not close. You must've had a long trip."
"Kesaven made plenty of room when he put in the expansion," adds Chelasi. "You could stay over for a few days or so and rest up and tell us about what's new in the country."
"Kesaven made plenty of room when he put in the expansion," adds Chelasi. "You could stay over for a few days or so and rest up and tell us about what's new in the country."
Zeviana Taviri Sorelas
try_me
"It was annoyingly long. With lots of sleeping on the ground," agrees Zeviana. "Adarin, if you turn down the offer of a free bed with nice people, I will swat you."
Adarin Evaniel Sorelas
in_tatters
Adarin laughs a bit. "Well with that threat hanging over my head... Sure. It'd be nice to sleep in a bed, and have such lovely tea. If it wouldn't be too much trouble, anyway, I don't want to bother any of you."
Chelasi
close_knit
"Oh, no trouble," Anlon says.
"I do food as well as tea!" beams Jony.
"Well, she grows it. The rest of us do the cooking," says Tima, flopping her head on Jony's shoulder with an affectionate wink.
"I do food as well as tea!" beams Jony.
"Well, she grows it. The rest of us do the cooking," says Tima, flopping her head on Jony's shoulder with an affectionate wink.
Zeviana Taviri Sorelas
try_me
"I volunteer Adarin to cook. Adarin, you get to cook if they don't want to."
Adarin Evaniel Sorelas
in_tatters
Adarin snorts.
"If you'd like me to, I can, I like returning hospitality."
"If you'd like me to, I can, I like returning hospitality."
Chelasi
close_knit
"I don't know, are you any good?" giggles Tima.
"There's not really a formal chore rotation," says Chelasi. "Everything gets done. It's not a company, it's a household."
"There's not really a formal chore rotation," says Chelasi. "Everything gets done. It's not a company, it's a household."
Zeviana Taviri Sorelas
try_me
"He's quite good at it, that's why I volunteered him."
Chelasi
close_knit
"Oh, well, if he's good he should totally show off," laughs Jony.
"What sort of things do you cook?" asks Tima.
"What sort of things do you cook?" asks Tima.
Adarin Evaniel Sorelas
in_tatters
"Do you want me to tell you," teases Adarin, "or would you rather I showed you?"
Chelasi
close_knit
"Ooh, go ahead and show us," Tima says.
"I'll go tell everyone dinner's on the way. There's eight of us here," Chelasi says.
She gets up and turns away, making a subtle scissor motion with each hand.
"I'll go tell everyone dinner's on the way. There's eight of us here," Chelasi says.
She gets up and turns away, making a subtle scissor motion with each hand.