Crossroads

[Paladienne]

Tourmaline smiled, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. The question was intensely personal, but he also understood why Citrine was asking the question. For him to assume that his future would be exactly what he thought it would be was extremely pretentious. For a moment, he thought about what his answer would be. If he answered too flippantly, he was sure the Flame would hear and become upset with him. So, Tourmaline took his time in answering.

He lifted his arm, allowing Citrine to see the dazzling combination of blue and pink scales along his forearm. "This is why," Tourmaline said quietly, his voice somewhat subdued. "When I was born, the Elder told my parents that he'd never seen anyone like me before and had said they were blessed by the Flame to have me. So... I heard that a lot, growing up. How special I was. How blessed I was. So... the logical path for me to follow is to care for the one who made me this way, don't you think?"

He hoped he didn't sound arrogant. Tourmaline knew that his words could be taken as such, even though he said them with conviction and truth and full belief that this was where his destiny lay. Of course, Citrine's beliefs might be different than his, as not all tribes were the same, and so he hoped that maybe the other Kulshedra might forgive him for his thoughts.

[DragonSong]

The young warrior allowed his eyes--for really the first time--to roam unabashedly over Tourmaline's scales, tracing the way they spiraled over his skin in whirls and waves, glinting in the dim light.

No two kulshedra really had the same pattern to their scales, but with colors like that... No, it wasn't surprising that Tourmaline was chosen of the Fire. He must be, mustn't he?

"Beautiful," Citrine murmured without thinking. The word seemed to hit his ears a full second after he'd uttered it. A very slow blush began working its way up his neck to color his cheeks, heating the skin beneath his own scales. Rather delayed, he blinked, then his slitted pupils blew wide and he stared at his companion for a moment with his mouth partially open, face by now very red.

"I, uh, I mean..." He swallowed thickly and all but lurched to his feet. "You're probably tired, I just-- I'll go. Sorry. I shouldn't have-- I'll go."

[Paladienne]

Tourmaline flushed as he heard Citrine's murmured word, and he ducked his head, pulling his arm close to his chest as if to protect it. He didn't know what to think of the other Kulshedra's description of him. It wasn't the first time he'd heard that word used to describe him, but it hadn't come from any other Kulshedra. Mostly it had been humans that had used the word to describe him. And just like all the times before, Tourmaline's first thought was that he didn't think he was beautiful at all. He didn't think himself attractive in any way. The colors and patterns of his scales were just different from others', and that was what made him unique. It didn't make him more beautiful or more ugly than anyone else.

He glanced up at Citrine and saw that the other man's face was bright red, even under the orange scales that covered his face. Tourmaline quickly looked away and back at the food in front of him. He didn't know what to say. There was a strange awkward silence before Citrine suddenly stood, and Tourmaline looked up at him, his heart skipping a slight beat even before his ears registered the other Kulshedra's words.

"Um, yeah, a little." Tourmaline replied, his voice subdued. "It's... it's okay, really. It's not the first time I've heard that... Thank you. If you have to go, go. I don't want to keep you from your duties."

[DragonSong]

So deeply embarrassed that he wasn't sure he'd even be able to get proper words out, Citrine mumbled something like, "'snotaproblem," under his breath and bobbed a quick nod in Tourmaline's direction before he all but fled the little hut, in such a hurry that he accidentally let the door slam shut behind him.

Fire preserve me. The young warrior shook his head as he made a beeline for the borders of the little village, hardly looking up from his feet as he set himself on guard near the eastern perimeter. Sure, he wasn't actually on duty tonight, but he had absolutely no idea what else to do with himself. He certainly couldn't stay in the hut with their guest, not after making such a complete ass of himself.

[Paladienne]

Tourmaline watched Citrine go, uncertain of why he seemed so flustered. Was it because of what had been said? Tourmaline flushed, his heart beginning to pound with uncertainty. He could remember the sound of Citrine's voice, that sound of awed reverence, speaking that single word that described Tourmaline's appearance. He shook his head, squeezing his eyes shut. That word had been said in many ways before to describe him, so why did it sound so different... so wonderful... when it was said that way by this person? Tourmaline lifted his hands to his face and pressed the heels of his hands to his eyes. His chest expanded as he inhaled a deep breath, and he let it out just as slowly. He pulled his hands from his eyes and opened them, staring at his lap.

It meant nothing. It didn't mean a single thing. It was just a reaction to seeing them. Tourmaline told himself. I doubt they've seen anyone like me before.

Shifting, Tourmaline moved to finish eating the food that Citrine had brought - he didn't see the sense in wasting the food, and he didn't want to insult the tribe that had so graciously taken him in - and then looked for a way to clean himself up. That done, he pulled a blanket from his pack, shifted to lay down on the pallet that had been set out for him, and covered himself, closing his eyes tight to try and sleep.

It was long in coming, because his heart and mind simply wouldn't stop racing, but Tourmaline finally managed to fall asleep, curled up tight beneath his blanket.

[DragonSong]

Citrine did not return to the hut until nearly dawn, just barely beating his brother home--because Fire knew the younger kulshedra would quite literally never let him live it down if he found out that Citrine had forgone almost a full night of sleep because he'd embarrassed himself in front of their guest.

Carefully, he opened the door a crack and peeked inside. Tourmaline still seemed to be asleep, curled up on the extra mat they'd dragged in for him. Exhaling quietly, Citrine crept inside, shutting the door as quietly as he could before all but tip-toeing his way across the small space to his own cot.

[Paladienne]

Tourmaline woke when the door opened. He'd become a light sleeper in order to protect himself in the wild where there was no one to keep watch. He didn't know if that would change when he returned home, but waking up enough to identify the source of the noise was probably something that would come in handy. He didn't know how, though. Perhaps he'd figure that out. But that was neither here nor there.

Tourmaline cracked his eyes open just a pinch to watch the door swing inward. He watched Citrine peek in and look at him, and he supposed he must have done a good job at pretending to be asleep, since the other Kulshedra entered the hut and quietly padded across the room toward his own bed. Tourmaline remained still until Citrine had settled, and then he shifted slightly, rolling over just to be able to Citrine's face.

The other Kulshedra still seemed to be ruffled, Tourmaline thought, but he didn't say anything about it. Perhaps it was just one of those things to be forgotten. After all, they were strangers to each other, from completely different worlds, and perhaps that was just how things were. So Tourmaline rolled back over and closed his eyes, and tried to fall back asleep.

[DragonSong]

Blue was only an hour or so behind his brother, and he was not nearly so concerned with keeping quiet.

"Morning, everybody!" He made his way cheerfully into the hut and across the floor to his cot, giving Citrine a quick nudge with his toe as he passed.

"Oh Fire preserve me." Citrine groaned and rolled to face him, scowling. "I hate you," he mumbled.

Blue laughed as he flopped onto his bed. "No ya don't. C'mon, you weren't the one who was up all night; Elder's got your assignment for you."

Citrine couldn't very well argue with that, not without revealing that he had in fact been up all night, and for a very embarrassing reason. With another groan he forced himself to his feet and stumbled to the door.

He managed to mutter a quick, "Want breakfast?" to Tourmaline as he passed.

[Paladienne]

Tourmaline woke with a start when Blue entered the hut, his eyes going wide and inhaling sharply. He watched as Blue started across the floor and nudged his brother to wakefulness, wondering if that was a local occurrence between the brothers. Tourmaline hid a yawn behind his hand and shifted to push himself upright. He was stretching when Citrine stepped over to him, and he tensed as the other Kulshedra passed close.

Then he heard the question and shivered, hoping that Citrine and Blue hadn't seen. "Yeah, breakfast would be nice."

Pushing himself to his feet, Tourmaline was glad to see that his ankle would support his weight, though he still had a limp. Even still, he moved after Citrine, taking his time so as not to aggravate his injury.

[DragonSong]

Citrine glanced back when he heard the uneven tread to Tourmaline's gait. He winced and cursed himself internally. He shouldn't have let his own insecurities get the better of him, override basic decency.

"Here," he muttered, stepping closer and offering his shoulder for the other man to lean on. "You should be taking it easy. Maybe I can find a sturdy branch to make you a crutch or something..."

Blue's eyes flicked back and forth between them--luckily behind Tourmaline's back--and his eyebrows slowly crept up toward his hairline. Citrine caught the edge of his brother's expression and frowned. Don't you fucking dare.

Blue smirked and raised his hands peaceably. I'm not saying anything!

[Paladienne]

Tourmaline blinked as Citrine came up to his side and offered his shoulder to lean on. For a moment, he hesitated, unsure. He could, after all, walk on his own. It was with a limp, but he still could walk on his own. But he realized that he would heal faster if he accepted the help of others, and so he reached out to take hold of Citrine's shoulder, allowing the other Kulshedra to take most of his weight. He thought nothing of it, merely a kindness the other man was showing him. Despite that, his heart gave a little flutter, and there was a flash of heat that went through his frame, there and gone in a rush and leaving him cold for the briefest of moments.

It didn't mean anything, the offer. Citrine was just being considerate.

"A crutch..." Tourmaline said at last. "That would be a good idea... I don't want to be a bother to you when I want to move around on my own."

[DragonSong]

"Oh, its's not a bother, I just figured you'd rather be able to move about on your own that have to be clinging to me all the time," Citrine replied quickly.

The second the words were out of his mouth he winced and looked away. Great. Now you're making him sound like a burden. Which was the exact opposite of what he'd been intending to do. Wonderful. He really was just mucking this up spectacularly, wasn't he?

"Ah...I just mean, seeing as you're not exactly planning on being here very long, it's probably better if you can get around yourself, yeah?"

And now he sounded like he was trying to get rid of him. Excellent.

[Paladienne]

Tourmaline blinked at the words that had come out of Citrine's mouth. For a moment, he was shocked, uncertain what to say in response to them. But then he realized that the other Kulshedra was right; he couldn't constantly rely upon him or Blue to help him get around. And he was intending to leave as soon as he could, without damaging his ankle any more than he already had. Tourmaline gave a little shrug and smiled.

"It would definitely help." he said. "I can't impose on you any more than I already have. And the more time I have to get used to it, the easier it'll be when the time comes for me to move on."

[DragonSong]

"Right. I'll just...do that then. Soon. Er, I'll try."

As they made their way out into the center of the village Citrine decided to just stop talking. He really didn't know why he was this awkward--sure, they rarely had strangers visit these days, but at this point he'd like to think that Tourmaline didn't exactly qualify as a stranger, at least not all the way.

"Well, if you wanna take a seat somewhere around that campfire there, I can fetch some food and be back in a few minutes," he offered after a moment of awkward silence, indicating one of the smaller fires scattered amongst the clusters of huts.

[Paladienne]

Tourmaline looked at Citrine out of the corner of his eye, trying to puzzle him out. But after a moment, he realized that the other Kulshedra was just trying to be kind without becoming overly familiar, and Tourmaline could understand that. If one became overly familiar with a stranger, then they lost sight of what was right in front of them. That was one of the lessons his own elders had tried to teach him and the others that wanted to leave and explore the world, but until that moment, Tourmaline hadn't understood it. And, perhaps, he still didn't. But he knew that Citrine held an important position in his village, as it was his duty to protect it, and if he was constantly dealing with an invalid stranger such as Tourmaline, he couldn't give his duty the attention it needed.

When Citrine indicated the campfire and offered a seat, Tourmaline nodded. He stepped away from the other Kulshedra when they reached the fire and settled down as carefully as he could to avoid aggravating his injury, then offered Citrine a small smile. "Take your time. It's not like I can go anywhere, right?"

[DragonSong]

"Er, right. I suppose." Citrine smiled at him sort of nervously, not entirely sure if that was the sort of joke he was supposed to laugh at or not. Before he could make up his mind, he turned and starting briskly toward the main fire with a quick, "I'll be right back with some food."

The few kulshedra around the smaller fire where Tourmaline now sat all seemed to sort of cluster together, just slightly, on some unspoken cue. They eyed the stranger warily, but with some curiosity too. It had been a long time since their tribe had allowed anyone new into the village, and no one seemed quite sure how to react.

[Paladienne]

Tourmaline watched him walk away, then focused on the fire and ignored the people giving him strange looks. He knew why they were staring at him, and he couldn't blame them. His people had often stared at strangers, too, as if expecting the other shoe to drop and the stranger to do something that put everyone in danger. There was nothing he could really do to assuage their fears, but he could be a polite guest and stay quiet and not cause trouble. These people had been through too much to throw caution completely away, after all, and Tourmaline understood that.

So he stared into the fire, watching the embers glow and crackle. He could almost imagine a voice whispering to him as the fire danced before his eyes, and he smiled gently, deciding that the Flame had agreed with his decision. He would heal, and then he would continue on, and bring the story of this clan of Kulshedra back to his own.

[DragonSong]

By the time Citrine had collected some food from the main fire--fending off a combination of questions, both curious and accusatory, and stares alike--quite a few minutes had passed and he found himself rushing a bit on his way back to Tourmaline.

He slowed sharply when he actually approached their guest though, noticing how his gaze was trained on the flames in front of him. H said he thinks he'll be a caretaker...maybe he's a Seer?

Not wanting to interrupt him, Citrine approached quietly and knelt a few from the other kulshedra, two bowls of a thick porridge dish clutched in his hands, and simply waited for Tourmaline to speak first.

[Paladienne]

Tourmaline looked up as Citrine approached and smiled as he saw the bowls. "Thank you," he said softly, reaching to take one of them. He returned his attention to the fire then for a moment, before looking down at the porridge and lifting the spoon to take a tentative taste. His smile grew a little wider and he looked at Citrine, a happy light in his eyes.

"This is really good," Tourmaline said, keeping his voice low just in case there was some sort of taboo against describing the deliciousness of the food. In his travels, he'd come across such practices, and now knew to be careful about what he said. "Thank you."

[DragonSong]

"Oh, well..." Citrine smiled a bit and reached up to scratch behind one ear absently, the tip of his tail curling in just slightly. "I mean, it's not like I made it or anything, I just fetched and carried, but ah...you're welcome."

He took a seat rather cautiously beside Tourmaline. Once he had, the other kulshedra around the fire seemed to relax, even by small degrees. Evidently, the young warrior's ease with their guest went a long way to putting the rest of the tribe at ease as well.