Human Interaction is Nice (Lyra)

[Elloria]

Samar picked up a cabbage in a market stall and eyed it critically. She was planning on making a rich stew for Master tonight and had no ingredients for it. Master had told her that he had other slaves for that sort of work, but she enjoyed the mentally freeing nature of cooking. That was one of the good things about being with Master. He allowed her to indulge in all those activities Hinewai had forbidden. It was nice, to follow her desires rather than her mkail’s. She replaced the cabbage and selected another. Satisfied with this one, she added it to the basket she carried and handed over 6 bronze coins before moving on to the next stall. She already had most of the vegetables she desired, but felt it best to explore the entire market.

She wandered for perhaps an hour longer until she was satisfied there was nothing more for her to buy, save for the meat. Once satisfied, she entered the main thoroughfare. There was some jostling, a few curses cast in her direction. But she made it about halfway out of the market before she ran into any trouble. It was just outside a large fish vendor that she was jostled quite rudely by someone and stumbled into another person entirely. The result was that whoever had jostled her disappeared into the crowd while everything she'd just bought was now splattered all over the other person's clothes. She mentally cursed her clumsiness. She bowed low before the person. “Please forgive my clumsiness.” Her voice was tinged, as always with an exotic accent - rich, slightly slurring, but still understandable.

[kyou]

[/color][/b] the girl smirked to herself when hearing the boy grumble tiredly. of course he would be. he liked sleeping in. she quickly fastened on her golden belt that hung at her waist, making her dress look as perfect as ever. peering out, she watched him put on a shirt, his expression looking tired. walking up towards him, she placed a hand on his back. he turned around a little before lyra let her hands travel towards his shoulders and gave it a hard squeeze. he gave a small wince before lyra sighed and let go of his shoulders.

you really need to rest more, brad. your muscles are so tense.[/b] the boy made no reply for he just rolled his eyes at her. lyra found her heels and put them on as she then announced. let's go to the market. i hear that they're having some sort of sale![/b] the girl was excited and bradley couldn't help but roll his eyes once more. the noble was always excited about shopping trips. more like buying more dresses than she should, bradley thought dryly to himself while watching lyra skip towards her bags, trying to find her coin purse. the boy wasn't all that excited, since lyra was the one who bought clothes for the both of them. for some reason, she treated him as if he was younger, which totally irked him sometimes. the dark haired girl grinned at him while grabbing his hand and saying, what's with the gloomy face? cheer up. i'll get you a treat or something.[/b] she held his hand with a pleasant smile on her face. he let a small tired smile out which caused lyra to beam even more. they walked out, without any of their servants. the two looked ordinary for they were more under disguise than looking anything like a noble. half the time, it was lyra who was dragging him through the streets to look at something. while the other half, he just wandered off to see what was so interesting with a few daggers and swords. while walking, he lost sight of lyra. shrugging it off, he headed towards another direction while peering at some interesting swords. lyra, on the other hand, was looking at some fabric for the both of them. how interesting! the girl let her hand smooth out some fabric before saying,

i'll take this and this one.[/b]

she turned, hoping to see brad, but saw nobody. where were the servants when you needed one? the girl rolled her eyes while picking up the fabric and walking towards another stall. while walking, she felt someone bump into her. something felt wet...lyra cursed darkly while frowning at whoever had bumped into her. looking up, she found bradley walking towards her. the girl apologized to her and lyra blinked at the sound of the girl's voice. bradley was taking the fabric out of her hands now and lyra frowned once more. it's alright. accidents happen. though, is there any way you'll be able to...fix this dress?[/b] the boy now looked at the dress that was now ruined by the ugly looking splatter on the front. he gave a small smirk before whispering to lyra,

it's about time you got a new one, anyways.[/b] he was rewarded by a glare at him while she looked back down at her dress.

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[Elloria]

Samar straightened up to her full height and looked down at the considerably shorter woman before her. She was, unsurprisingly, pale like all the rest of the people Samar was perpetually surrounded by - making her own midnight black flesh stand out in sharp contrast. Despite the pale flesh, however, this woman seemed quite pretty in her own way. Perhaps eccentric, if the faded and old-looking dress was anything to go by. But considering Master's odd hair and even odder disposition, who was she to judge? She had been considered eccentric in her own tribe, at that.

Samar met the gaze of those striking blue eyes with her own calm, brown doe eyes. It then dropped to contemplate the large splotch her produce had made upon the woman’s dress. She completely ignored the tall light-dark-pale man standing beside the pale woman. He appeared to be something of a servant or bodyguard to the pale woman. Which meant she was someone of some importance somewhere. Samar was sure of that. “I would offer to take you back to Master’s estate, but it is several hours ride south in Belatona. I do not think you wish to wait that long for something to be done. Also, I do not think he would be pleased if I were to bring strangers there unexpectedly. He is a private individual, as is his right,” she replied. Her tone was polite as always, her words rich and as carefully pronounced as she could achieve. Still, it was always obvious this was not her first language.

She knelt down to pick up her basket, tilting her head slightly so that her shoulder-length wavy hair fell forward to help obscure the ‘view’ of her bosom. Why Master insisted on having her wear this sort of gown was somewhat confusing to the teen. It always seemed to draw the eyes of every male in her vicinity, despite the fact that she was clearly a foreigner and a slave in this land - and wasn’t really showing much. Well...it wasn’t much in her mind. But she always seemed to forget her own figure was the type many men and women coveted - an almost perfect hourglass. She rose, basket in hand, and looked at the woman again. “There are a few places in town that I know of which might be able to help. They are good friends of Master and will treat you fairly. What you might wear in the meantime, I am unsure of. But I can show you the way, if you wish?”

[kyou]

[/color][/b] lyra looked up at the cold face of bradley. shooting him a cool glare of her own, she snapped at him,

watch your manners, bradley. it's fine. she won't need to buy me anything. besides, what are you waiting for? help her pick up her things![/b]

the dark haired woman rose a brow at him, challenging him to say something back. the knight glared at her darkly before kneeling down to help with the items that had been scattered on the ground. he placed them into her basket, his cold grey eyes showing no kindness whatsoever. he saw her bosoms, but didn't blush. he didn't care for women's 'items' for it was almost animalistic to think of such things. well, for him. he rose back to his full height, his arms shuffling to keep lyra's fabrics upright and clean. people were still bustling around them and with a sharp glare from him, a few people were beginning to move away from them. lyra then heard the woman speak again and nodded. her blue eyes were staring right into the other woman's chocolate brown eyes, unafraid to keep staring. lyra already knew that she had a bad habit of scaring people by just looking right at them without blinking. so, she blinked for a moment before saying alright then. that would be lovely, thank you. i suppose one of your master's friends will need to provide me with some clothing. thank you for your kindness. i'm lyra, by the way. this is bradley.[/b] she introduced herself with a small curtsy to the other woman. lyra smiled kindly at the woman while she let a hand usher towards bradley who rolled his eyes and looked gruffly away from them. lyra then asked curiously,

is there anything we can help you with? perhaps bradley could carry your basket for you?[/b]
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[Elloria]

Samar clucked her tongue in extreme annoyance as the pale man spoke harshly to her. These pale ones were always in such a rush. Perpetually scurrying about as if everything they did was the end-all, be-all of everyone else's existence. Always demanding, always wanting more, always dashing from one thing to the next without properly enjoying anything. It frustrated her to no end - and that is quite a feat to achieve, considering her almost unnaturally placid nature. She said nothing, however, for the pale woman was now scolding the man and making him pick the scattered food up off the ground. Samar wrinkled her nose in disgust. She had just made this basket and now it was filthy from the muddied vegetables. She would have to clean everything exceptionally well before she served Master's dinner tonight. She did not wish to poison him. She did, however, return the cold gaze of the pale man with a look of her own that said quite clearly she held no love for him either. At least he didn't stare like other pale ones. In this regard, he was almost like the men of her tribe who held such respect for those who gave them life.

After he had finished, Samar chose to not hold her tongue any longer. With eyes that were once more unexpressive, she said, “Please forgive me. Where I come from we do not speak hastily, whether the matter is grave or trivial. My people did not have the luxury of a life that allowed hasty discussion and hastier action.” She then turned her attention to the pale woman who was now staring steadily into her eyes. She was undaunted by the sharp blue eyes that seemed as if they would pierce through her own and look straight into her heart. Instead, there was only confidence in her gaze. She knew the place the Mother Wolf had given her in this world. What had she to fear from these godless pale ones who knew nothing of the Mother Wolf's love and compassion? “Alright then. That would be lovely, thank you. I suppose one of your master's friends will need to provide me with some clothing. Thank you for your kindness. I'm Lyra, by the way. This is Bradley.” The pale woman - Lyra - did a strange bob as she introduced herself. Samar had seen other pale women do the same and wondered what it meant. A greeting of some sort, obviously. These pale ones were so strange. A kind smile crossed pale-Lyra’s face while the pale man Bradley rolled his eyes and looked from them. Samar’s eyes narrowed just the slightest bit, but there was no other indication as to how deeply offended she felt at his dismissal. Pale-Lyra then asked, “Is there anything we can help you with? Perhaps Bradley could carry your basket for you?"

Samar turned her gaze to pale-Lyra once more. Her voice remained polite and submissive, though frustration and hurt pained her heart. She sent a silent prayer of strength to the Mother Wolf as she said, “Thank you, Lady Lyra, but I do not require assistance. I am quite accustomed to bearing my possessions from location to location. Such is the life of a nomad.” She gave a slight bow this time. “However, I appreciate your offer.” She turned and began walking back the way she had come, gesturing towards pale-Lyra and pale-Bradley to follow her. “Please follow me. The shop is but a few minutes away.”

[kyou]

[/i] look, my lady's dress is ruined because of you--.[/color][/b] he stopped at the look of lyra's dark piercing glare. he was speaking up for her! besides, he was just as noble as she was. it was just that he was a knight! grinding his teeth together, he continued on in a low tone, who is your master, anyways?[/b] lyra looked back at the woman, clearly annoyed at bradley as she spoke in a kinder tone. if he really is too much of a nusiance, please just ignore him. i understand your position and please don't apologize. you don't need to.[/b] the dark haired woman smiled once more to her. lyra had just introduced the both of them and bradley merely rolled his eyes at her kindness. god, were women all this soft? what was up with them? the dark haired man saw the dark skinned woman narrow her eyes at him slightly and he gave a small smirk, arrogance clearly shown on his face. lyra then asked if she needed any help and he was just about to object before the woman spoke politely to her. thank god he didn't need to carry anything else. why did he have to carry something that belonged to a serving girl? she was a servant, for crying out loud. she should be carrying her own things, he thought darkly. the woman was polite, but not polite enough. why did they not know her name? bradley was about to ask for her name in a more demanding tone before lyra beat him to it.

that's fine then. i'm sorry to ask, but would you mind telling me your name? it would be nice to know the name of the woman who was kind enough to help me.[/b] lyra's kind smile continued to shine, much to bradley's disgust. why were they being so nice to her? wasn't it her fault in the first place? lyra was too nice for her own good, bradley thought while walking with this woman to the place. the two had nodded silently while following the woman when she spoke about taking them to the place. was this some sort of trickery? he hoped not. he wanted to protect lyra, but he also knew she could take care of herself quite well. the knight then shuffled his arms slightly, keeping the fabric off the ground with his strong arms. lyra followed silently beside him, glancing up at him. brad...don't do anything...stupid. please.[/b] she told him quietly. the boy raised his eyebrows. stupid? how? she was silent for a moment before her eyes looked away from his. she replied simply. you know what. just think before you do anything.[/b] her tone was cool and almost cold. was she angry at him? well, it wasn't very surprising since they got into fights alot, but recently, not that many. they clashed, but because they were good friends, they stuck back together. he gave a small sigh, annoyed but replied in a dull tone, whatever you say, my lady.[/b] lyra seemed to smile a little bit at that before reaching up to take one of the fabric containers. here. let me carry one. they look rather bulky...[/b] he passed one over towards her while they continued to follow the woman.
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[Elloria]

Samar led pale-Lyra and pale-Bradley on what appeared to be a rather meandering path through the market. She paid no head to what pale-Bradley said to her as they walked. She had already marked him as an arrogant willful man, like most pale-men were, and that made him a relatively minor side-note in the big picture of her life. Nor did she immediately answer pale-Lyra's questions either. She was intent on finding the clothing shop Master always had their clothes sent to for repairs. He had always taken this same meandering path and that seemed to be the only way of finding the place. She didn't understand why that was the only way, but she couldn't do anything about it so she just didn't worry. It wasn't until they entered the actual street the shop was housed on that she finally spoke. “Please forgive my impertinence for not answering earlier, but I have always found it difficult to find this particular shop if I allow myself to be distracted from the landmarks.” She looked over her shoulder and smiled brightly at pale-Lyra and pale-Bradley. The sun shone brightly in the surprisingly wide and open street, making her skin seem ethereally dark in the glow and her eyes all the warmer. She felt instantly soothed as the warm rays beat upon her skin. To her, there was nothing quite like the sun's warmth upon the skin. One of the few benefits of living in this colder climate was that the sun felt the same through most of the day - as warm as the sunrises in the Hadarac, but never as oppressive as the heat of high noon in the desert. “My name is Samar, by the way. It means ‘the darkness of night’ in the language of my people. Because my skin is much darker than normal and I was born in the dead of night, my mother felt it appropriate that I be called such.” As she spoke, she came to a halt outside one of the buildings. The sign above the door proclaimed the shop to be Trillian's Tailors. “Here we are.” She opened the door, the bell above it chiming softly, and entered. “Madam Trillian?” she called out when she saw no one immediately. “Are you in?”

[kyou]

[/color][/b] the noble was warm to the dark skinned female while offering her a small shrug of sympathy. bradley gave a small snicker while looking at lyra. you're terrible with directions. remember that time where you want to go that pub? you were lost for an hour before you found it.[/b] he smirked at her with a mischievous glint in his eyes before she turned a light pink color. of course she remembered that time. she had been wanting to find that pub that she had arranged for the both of them to meet at. call it a date or whatnot, but she was an hour late. he had thought that she had been robbed or kidnapped, but found her in the middle of the roads trying to find the pub that was about a meter away from her. bradley had told her to just follow the signs, but for some reason...lyra found the signs confusing and at times, she just couldn't find the signs. she was hopeless at directions and she found that bradley was almost the same. except that he could actually read signs and maps. it was a good thing that lyra was good at asking around but sometimes she found it all too much to just ask. a waste of energy, she had once said. lyra replied to him in a low whisper, yeah, i remember. no need to rub it in.[/b] she felt the pink on her cheeks begin to leave her face. he seemed to see it and he only snickered some more, like a child. rolling her eyes, she turned her attention back to the woman.

lyra smiled once more at the woman, now called samar. it was a rather interesting name, for she had never heard of the name before. when hearing about what it meant, lyra commented in a her warm tone. that's a nice name. well, samar...thank you for sharing that interesting fact with us.[/b] they stopped in front of a rather large store. bradley held the door open for lyra as the two followed the woman in. apparently, the owner of the shop was called madam trillian. for some reason, lyra expected a man. though, out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a plump looking woman coming behind one of the shelves, eyeing them all carefully. lyra blinked at her before looking back at samar. was that the woman called trillian? well, whoever it was, she was silent and didn't seem to answer. so, she walked closer towards samar before asking,

what does she look like? this...madam trillian?[/b]
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[Elloria]

“What does she look like? This...Madam Trillian?" Samar turned to find pale-Lyra uncomfortably closer than she had been. Pale-Bradley was not far behind. She tilted her head in curiosity. What had made pale-Lyra wish for a closer physicality? “Madam Trillian? She is tall and slender, with very pale skin that is spotted on her face with darker spots and blood-colored hair. She’s a very kind woman, but is very talkative. It’s usually quite endearing.” She smiled as she described the shop's proprietor. She quite liked Madam Trillian, even if the older woman just kept right on talking without much pause.

It was then that Samar noticed the shorter woman skulking in the shadows of the shop. “Madam Elaine!” She bowed to the older woman before straightening with a smile. “Is Madam Trillian in?”

“No, I don’t reckon she is,” Elaine said sourly. “Whatchu want wiff her anyways?”

Samar frowned slightly, but quickly smoothed her face out. She would have preferred Madam Trillian - Master said her work was of an exceptional quality, whilst Madam Elaine's was only above average. But pale-Lyra and pale-Bradley didn't need to know that. Madam Elaine was still quite good at fixing messes such as the splotch on pale-Lyra's dress. In fact, Samar sometimes thought Madam Elaine was better at fixing such things than Madam Trillian. Madam Trillian made the best clothes. Madam Elaine was the best at fixing them. “I was hoping that she would be able to fix Lady Lyra’s dress for me with all haste. I was clumsy and ruined it.” She gently turned pale-Lyra around so that Madam Elaine could survey the mess. Madam Elaine clucked irritably. “But I would be quite grateful if you were to fix it, Madam Elaine.” She dropped her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “Master doesn’t think much, but I feel your work is much better than Madam Trillian’s. But don’t tell her I said that. She would probably be furious.” She smiled as Madam Elaine seemed to brighten ever so slightly.

“Well, I ’spose I could take a gander at ’er for ya, see what I can do. Shall we be billin’ it ta yer master’s account, then?”

Samar nodded. “Yes, please.” With a grunt of acquiescence, Madam Elaine disappeared amongst the shelves. She returned quickly, however, with a robe in hand. She thrust it at pale-Lyra, then jerked a thumb towards some changing stalls on the left-hand wall. “Get outta that dress so’s I can look it over, yeah?”

[kyou]

[/i] at him. of course, bradley being...well, bradley refused to notice and he was stupidstubborn enough to say that it was probably something that he was wearing. lyra followed the slave girl into the shop, her bright eyes were wide, always on the watch. bradley knew that lyra was sharp and always knew what was off and she was literally always watching something. she could go on staring at something for a long time. it was really scary sometimes. lyra had stepped closer towards the other girl and for some reason, bradley noticed, she then took a step back. it seemed as if lyra caught on to something and just stepped away from the servant girl. he didn't really care much about servants and this one particularly bothered him. he was a knight and a noble, meaning that he had lots of servants and he was a guardian of a lady. sort of a servant in a manner, but of a more higher rank.

oh, is that so?[/b]

he heard her respond rather softly while she turned to look at the woman in the shadows. he straightened up while taking a step closer towards lyra, feeling the urge to protect her from anything. lyra was turned around gently by the serving girl and bradley's eyes flickered from the older woman towards the serving girl. lyra seemed rather fine with people just turning around and looking at her dress while bradley just wanted to swipe at their hands. get your hands off her. his inner mind was screaming at them all while his grey eyes grew slightly darker while looking at them all. all except lyra, of course. lyra, on the other hand, blinked owlishly at samar while she heard her speak. so, this master of hers...was he that important? who was he anyways? she wanted to know now. she was about to ask before a robe was thrust towards her. ...okay...[/b] she slowly said while walking towards the stall. as soon as she changed out of it, she held her dress in one hand while handing it over towards the seamstress.

thank you.[/b] lyra spoke politely while looking down at her clothing now. it was ever so plain. a dark red color, making her look more like a peasant than ever. bradley didn't like it one bit. lyra could see that, but she made no comment towards that. she turned towards samar and asked in a curious, yet polite, tone. out of curiosity, how long does this usually take to fix?[/b]

note: sorry it took so long!
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