With My Thoughts in the Forest

[Anonymous]

It had been a while since he had last passed through Ketra, but Gavin soon found himself heading back in that direction. He had yet to find tradesmen that could help him, and Ketra has been a city full of quality woodworkers.

Explaining his request would be rather interesting. He couldn't help but chuckle at that thought as he traveled through the thick woods, his ever loyal brown tabby at his heels.

He was certainly an interesting sight to behold. He wore multiple layers of clothing, the topmost consisting of a hooded long-sleeved shirt with the hood up, and loose and thick trousers. On his left hand he wore an odd leather glove that only covered his pinky finger, ring finger, and most of the back of his hand, extending to his wrist; there was a small piece of cord that went between his thumb and index finger to keep the glove from slipping off. On the right side of his face he wore a brown soft leather quarter-mask, covering his face around his left eye, but coming to an end upon his cheek bone.

Once he felt they were close enough to the edge of the forest, Gavin settled down against the trunk of a tree. He pulled a blanket from his pack and covered his legs, his feline companion jumping into his lap and nestling into the blanket. He then retrieved food and drink from his bag, and began to slowly nibble at it, offering little bits of it to the cat every now and then.

[Anonymous]

Dakila had been out in the forest mainly for his job, he was searching for a desirable tree that would be best for any upcoming jobs. In anticipation he had his large hammer/ax tool leaned against his shoulder, his right hand holding near the not-sharp end of the shaft. This, with his normally somewhat ragged clothing and large powerful body made him look more like a bandit searching for easy prey rather then a simple man looking for a good tree to cut down.

As he was walking he happened to spot Gavin, though of course he did not know that was his name. All he knew is that the person was a strangely clothed person with a cat upon his lap. Dakila's attention was at first focused for a split second on the cat, he hadn't seen one in a while and found it fun to look at. His fear though, specifically of the person quickly drew his attention to the person. Dakila decided that he would try to simply not make eye contact and continue walking along past the person, hopefully this person would not in fear lash out at him, he didn't want to have that happen, today had been a good day so far. He couldn't help but keep looking as he came closer and closer, the clothing and the cat being quite interesting to him.

[Anonymous]

Glancing up when the rather large man came into sight, Gavin made no sign of interest until he was certain the man was really coming his way. Once he was sure that he wouldn't be pulling him out of his way, Gavin began moving. He first took a piece of both his cheese and bread, then moved the blanket from his lap, his cat a bit displeased, but not making any move to stop him.

Getting up was a bit awkward, and he had to use his arm against the tree trunk to help him move until his legs were at an angle easier for him to stand from. Once up and steady, he walked towards the man, though he was careful not to seem too purposeful. He hadn't missed that the man had appeared frightened of him.

Yes, this world was accepting of other beings, but...certainly prejudice still existed here. The mages in Connlaoth were oppressed, certainly it could happen in other places. Gavin wasn't afraid of this large man or his large weapon, or even the sight of them combined. No, Gavin had learned early in life that appearance had absolutely nothing to do with what a person was truly like, and often the most attractive people were very dangerous.

Cat at his heels, he pressed on until a little more than a yard away, where he offered a tired but gentle smile, and extended his hand that held the pieces of breed and cheese. "If it isn't too much to ask, how much farther is Ketra?" he asked politely, brown eyes gazing up at the massive man. "It's been a while since I was last there, and I can't remember how much farther it is."

Tiki, however, wasn't about to be as polite as her master, and continued trotting towards the stranger, stopping only inches from his feet. She looked up at him with her bright green eyes; a proud stance about her that clearly showed she believed herself to be something much larger than an average tabby cat. She let out a loud, demanding sound. Almost as though she expected him to stop and admire her and to introduce himself as though meeting a noble.

Gavin chuckled softly under his breath at the sight of the cat confronting the stranger. Well, she had always been a rather bold animal, he didn't suppose that her behavior was all that surprising. He just hoped that their current company wouldn't be too put off by her blunt greeting.

[Anonymous]

Dakila stopped when the individual approached, his gaze shifting between Gavin and the ground. He did not make any move to accept to offered food, he was afraid to make the attempt. Many times people had jokingly offered him food then yanked it just as he was reaching for it. He hated the piercing laughs...He'd rather suffer through hunger then to hear them.

"It's not far from here." said Dakila. He lifted the hand that was not holding the tool-weapon and pointed behind him. "My hut is in the direction, it's on the outskirts of Ketra. I can take you there, if so needed. Forest isn't always the safest of places." It was to him, not very many animals or people dared to outright attack him due to his size, but this other person...he seemed weak, quite fragile. Many animals and vicious humans would willingly take him down. After he was done talking he looked down at the cat again, clearly fascinated with the animal.

[Anonymous]

Lowering his hand that held the offered food, Gavin frowned a little. Nodding softly, he turned away to return to his pack. Pulling a scrap of fabric from inside, he wrapped up the food he had tried to offer the much larger man. He then returned the larger portions of food and his blanket to his pack, then pulled it over his shoulder.

Gavin headed back to the other man, stopping a few feet in front of him and gently placing the small bundle of food on the ground. "Thank you for your help," he said, slipping off his mask before standing and lifting his head to look up at the stranger. "I'm sorry I couldn't offer you more, I don't have very much."

He then moved to walk away in the direction he'd been pointed in. Putting his mask back on, he let out a sharp whistle and the tabby cat immediately darted after him while letting out a loud meowl of protest.

[Anonymous]

Dakila was not shocked at all by the scars that Gavin's face bore. He had seen worse, especially with his bloody past. He winced not once, the only special attention he gave it was a glance, just noticing it was there. As Gavin walked past him Dakila bent forward, picking up the small bundle of food then turned and began to follow the person. He watched both him and the cat, still fascinated with the animal.

As he followed him he made no conversation, just simply continued to look at him and the cat. He would occasionally look around at the edges of the path, but those breaks in his concentrated sight did not last long. Most people may try to make small talk or say why they were following the other person, but not Dakila. He was certainly strong physically but he was not strong at all socially.