It always smelled like fish. Salt, fish, and water. Which, in turn, made Ayami hungry. Shifted into an auburn cat with bright gold eyes, she lingered on a moss covered, low wall near the water. Small ships were pushing out from weathered docks so they might start their catches early, before the sun rose too high in the sky and the heat became too unbearable.
Ayami wished she knew how to fish. When was the last time she'd even had a bite to eat? A real meal? Small bugs caught in the grass just weren't cutting it. Tail flicking this way and that, she watched until the last, small fishing boat pushed away from the shore before she jumped down and padded her way toward the small market streets.
The small coastal town wasn't big but quaint. Wide, cobbled streets enabled carts and people to pass freely as they started on their day. Chores and work to be done.
For Yin, it was about getting something to eat. Finding something that would fill her larger self's belly and not tiny crickets and grasshoppers. Maybe a mouse? No... That wasn't big enough.
People barely paid her any mind as she dashed and darted amongst their feet and invariably found her way toward the stalls. They were still setting up, with polite chatter between owners about the suspected weather, how the morning was, and whatever else was included in normal conversation. She wandered between a couple, nose lifting with each pause to find something that smelled like food. Like appetizing food.
It was only after she caught the whiff of a grill being started and meat being put on that she realized, to her dismay, a flaw in her plan. Yin was still a cat. There was only so much she could get away with as a cat. A small piece, maybe? But that was hardly enough food. Moodily, she sat on her haunches and eyed the meat grill stall with golden eyed intent interest. Something would come to her. Some opportunity would present itself.
Or she'd drive herself insane and eventually go eat some bugs.
Rhyske trailed after Rubiyah as his mother drove a path between the people gathered in crowds along the merchant's street in the newest town they had entered. Whatever his mother was after, she was relentless right now, and Rhyske was left following her to make sure she didn't hurt herself or anyone else while she was trapped in whatever mood she was trapped in currently.
But that didn't stop him from looking around to see what there was to see. There were so many people, so many strange sights and smells and Rhyske found himself wanting to go explore the town on his own. He had enough money to give himself a cushion even if his mother went off the deep end and spent every last bit of coin he'd given her, so he wouldn't have to steal or con people into giving him money. But exploring would have to come after he made sure his mother wouldn't cause trouble.
As he walked, he caught the scent of grilling fish, and his stomach rumbled. Rhyske hadn't eaten anything since the wee hours of dawn that morning, and that was just a handful of nuts and dried fruit. And he'd been moving since then, so he knew the moment his stomach started arguing with him he was done. He glanced at his mother's back. She wouldn't miss him, and so long as she didn't cause a scene or cause trouble, Rhyske decided she would be okay if he wasn't there to watch over her for a little while. Besides, she was easy to find, and if she had a moment of clarity and looked for him, the young Horizon wasn't hard to find either.
So Rhyske changed course for the smell of the grill and the fish, and stood there watching the grillmaster perform his art. There was a small crowd around the grill, so Rhyske knew the food was good. No one would crowd if the food was terrible. Locals knew, and to Rhyske, these people all looked like locals. The tourists or strangers probably would be closer to the docks or the nicer parts of the city, where they could find things that catered more to their sensibilities. Rhyske, however, was used to being assimilated into the local life, and was far more comfortable with it, unless he was grifting and needed to look the part of a noble. Even then, it wasn't his favorite thing to do.
When it was his turn, Rhyske dug into his pocket for a coin and traded it to the fishmonger for one of the cooked fish. Even as the coin and fish exchanged hands, Rhyske glanced to the side as he caught movement out of his peripheral, and found that he was being stared at by a cat. It was a pretty cat, he decided. Pretty, with its auburn and dark fur. And he didn't miss the way those soulful eyes stared at him, or more accurately, his fish.
Rhyske dug into his pocket again for another coin. "One more," he said to the fisherman.
Obtaining the second fish, Rhyske lifted it to his mouth to blow on the fish to cool it as he walked toward the cat. He didn't want to scare it off, so he didn't get too close, but he crouched down and held out the second fish, hoping it was cool enough.
"Here you go," Rhyske said, his voice soft and friendly. He set the fish on the ground between him and the cat. "Just be careful. It might still be hot."
Tuyet remained off to the side, watching the crowd slowly gather around the stall. She could be patient, if the situation called for it. Waiting for an opportunity. Maybe someone dropped a coin she could collect. Money was a common thing she knew she'd could use to exchange for food, even though she did not carry any normally.
Didn't mean she couldn't collect it otherwise, if the situation required it.
Was not the case thus far, though. She remained sitting off to the side, quite observant. It might've been odd for any other animal, but it could be passing for a cat. She went through different phases of thought. Waffling between whether or not she should just jump up and catch one in exchange, between the stall owner and customer, or if she should keep watching. Or, gods forbid, Tuyet scamper off to hunt down a mouse or other tiny creature.
That would probably be the answer, were she a real cat. The obvious answer. But Tuyet was aware she wasn't and she did want something different, something more today. Fish would be great.
She should really learn to fish.
Tuyet was so wrapped up in her thoughts of food that she didn't realize someone was approaching her until they were. Her gold eyes searched them for intent. Not everyone liked strays, after all, but it was immediately apparent that it was not their intention to chase her off.
But to offer her food! What a delightful person!
When he crouched not too far off, Tuyet meowed – because that was all she could in this form – her excited thanks and moved forward to accept the lovely gift. She didn't wait to see if it was too hot, Tuyet just bit into it. It was hot, but she was so hungry and it smelt heavenly.
Even better that she hadn't had to steal it and run off! There was more here than her small cat self could finish, but that wasn't going to stop her from keeping it until there was a place for her to change and finish it. But! Neither did she want to lose track of her new, generous friend.
She'd scarfed it down pretty quick, what she could eat, before moving close to Rhyske and rubbing herself along his leg. What a lovely person. No one had been so nice to her before.
Rhyske smiled as the cat rubbed herself against him once finishing what she'd wanted of her fish. He'd assumed that she'd been hungry, but he hadn't expected her to be so hungry that she'd wolfed the fish down. With his free hand, he reached to pet her, stroking his fingers through her fur.
"Did you even taste your food?" he asked, laughing. He reached to scratch her ears and under her chin. "Silly thing. You take care now, okay?"
Rising, Rhyske walked away, eating his own fish. He walked slowly down the street, ostensibly looking for his mother, but just as much was he casing the patrons on the street. It was a habit he couldn't break, and a habit that served him well, in most instances. It wasn't hard to "accidentally" bump into someone and lift their wallet or some valuable of theirs, slipping it into his pocket and continuing on before the person realized what he'd done. And he kept moving, so he couldn't be caught, trying to cut through alleys to break line of sight.
He continued to walk, finishing his food and turning his attention to the serious task of finding his mother. Still, he couldn't help but feel like he was being followed, despite the fact he saw nothing when he glanced over his shoulder.
He even had such a nice laugh. It was nice not to have someone trying to chase her away, throwing things and causing such a loud fuss. Someone to speak nicely and be so kind as to feed her. A very nice, delightful person.
When he said she should take care, Yin peered up at him. She recognized the 'good bye' for what it was, but she wasn't particularly ready to say goodbye herself. When he stood to walk away, she trotted over, picked up what remained of her fish, and darted amongst the stalls. No reason not to take whatever bites she had left with her, after all.
Somewhere during her follow of him, she dashed under the fluttering cloth of a stall and transformed. Just like that. A simple wish, a simple want, and she went from the auburn, gold eyed cat to a small girl, on her hands and knees. Partially eaten fish still in her mouth, she crawled out and didn't even bother to dust off her knees as she skipped after him, the six slender tails entangling themselves behind her to look like one, large one as she did.
Yin didn't exactly look like a local, but she was short enough she didn't particularly stick out either. With one hand holding the stick of the grilled fish, she happily finished off the remainder of her treat while she followed her newfound friend, red ears perked forward so she wouldn't lose him in the small crowd.
Rhyske continued walking, ducking down different alleys and taking crowded streets, slipping between people like a shadow. He wasn't sure what he was trying to do - lure out whoever was following or lose them - but whatever happened, he would deal with it. Of course, he hoped he could lose his pursuit. He didn't like confronting people after stealing from them, because that was a danger in and of itself. He could survive most of what they did to him, but it hurt, and Rhyske wasn't a fan of being hurt.
He stepped quickly and quietly, ducking finally down an alley that offered a clear view of a new street. He hurried down it and took the corner sharply, but instead of continuing in a predicted direction, Rhyske pressed himself flat against the nearby wall. If he was lucky, his pursuit would come into sight and he could figure out exactly why they were following them, or he could slip away in the opposite direction if they ran away from where he stood. He wasn't expecting what he saw at all. A girl, somewhat shorter than he, with red triangular ears and a huge fluffy tail, bounded out of the alley way and began to peer around, obviously looking for something.
Looking for him.
Rhyske was so stunned he couldn't even make himself move. Who was she? Why was she looking for him? A tick of anger bloomed in his chest then, fiery but cold. He didn't recognize her at all, didn't recognize her as anyone he'd encountered before, so...
"Why are you following me?" Rhyske snapped, his blue eyes narrowing to glower at the strange girl.
Following someone was pretty easy for Yin. It was almost like a game, really. She finished up the remainder of her fish while she tailed Rhyske through the crowd, then tossed the stick to the ground. It didn't occur to her that she should go up and say hello or make her presence known. Sometimes, as she did when she was a cat, she just followed. Let someone lead. Humming under her breath to herself, she did just that.
Let him lead.
Rhyske was going to have to jump in a river and have a quick current take him away to really lose her. In a city, it would be incredibly difficult. Between the smell, the sound, and her sharp eyesight, she didn't worry about losing him.
So she knew he'd wandered down an alley and when he was out of sight, she stopped and let her ears and nose do the work.
Cept, he was there. Talking to her. Yin made a happy noise and smiled, her tail swaying to and fro slowly. "Because you're going this way." It seemed the most obvious of answers. Then, tilting her head just a little while she continued to watch him. "Would you prefer I walk with you?" His glare didn't phase her at all. Maybe his face just did that sometimes. There was absolutely no reason for him to be unhappy with her, so it must be something else.
Rhyske stared at her, one dark eyebrow steadily climbing higher and higher on his face until it couldn't possibly go any higher. What the hell was she saying? Was she insane? Who in their right mind followed strangers around a city without having an ulterior motive?
But apparently the girl did have an ulterior motive, only it was one Rhyske hadn't been expecting. "Because I'm going this way?" he asked, incredulous. "Who are you? Why are you following me?"
He knew better than to approach the strange girl, even though he wanted to get in her face and try to make himself as intimidating and scary as possible to warn her off. After all, there were creatures in this world that pretended to be one thing and turned out to be another, and they would be more than happy to eat him first and ask questions second. He didn't want to become prey, and he certainly didn't want the girl to think that he was getting closer to her because he liked her, or anything like that.
"You know what? Never mind. I don't even know who you are," Rhyske pointed out, "so you need to leave me alone. Go bother someone else. Stop following me."
He began walking again, almost stalking down the street to get away from the strange girl with the fluffy tail and the large ears. He wanted to find his mother and get out of this town. He'd gotten enough coin to pay their way for a while, so there really was no other reason to stay. And he really didn't want to stay in a town where weird tailed girls randomly decided to follow boys around. More than that, though, he was already noticeable, what with his black hair that seemed to absorb surrounding light and his dark skin, and he didn't want to become even more memorable by having some girl follow him around. It would be impossible to work with someone like her around.
When he asked who she was, it didn't occur to her that was an odd question for someone she was now friendly with. Instead, she just answered, "Tuyet Ayami Yin." Always her full name, because to her, it was her name. Her entire name. She went by pieces and parts of it, but it was her name entirely. She forgot a lot of things, but never her name.
As to why she was following, that was something she'd already answered. "You're going this way?" she repeated. Her ears pricked forward when he said she should leave him alone. She wasn't actually doing anything, so she could easily leave him alone. And if he didn't want her following him, she could do that too. Easily.
Making a happy sound, Tuyet bounced in place before she skipped after him and moved to walk next to him. Not following, like he'd said. Certainly leaving him alone, as she made sure not to pester or ask him anything. Just walking near him. Bouncing a little between each steps. Her tail swayed and she was quite happy to tag-along next to him. He didn't want pestered, so she didn't ask where they were going, but it didn't really matter though. She didn't have anywhere to be.
She also didn't really know anything about the world, as it were. Tuyet tended to take things as they came and react accordingly, with no thought or foresight to the future. She just didn't function that way. Rather, she'd follow her new friend and see where he took her now.
Rhyske blew out a breath and tried not to get angry at the weird girl. Tuyet Ayami Yin. Or whatever she wanted to call herself. Maybe she really just didn't get the hint. He didn't want her following him, didn't want her walking beside him, didn't want her doing anything with him involved. He glanced at her and her happy face, her quick steps and her flouncy manner in which he moved. His heart sank. Did he really have the heart to ruin her happiness? What if she was just another street rat like he was, hoping that maybe he'd help her survive? Granted, there were better ways of getting yourself attached to someone in hopes that they'd take care of you, but maybe this was the manner that worked for her.
Either way, the two of them were far too noticeable and the populace was starting to give them both sly glances that made Rhyske feel incredibly uncomfortable. He wanted to find his mother and get out of there, just go somewhere else where their faces weren't so memorable, and just get at least one more day on this earth. It was the same mantra he told himself every time he felt like the heat was beginning to increase and people were looking far too closely at him.
"So what do you want me to call you?" Rhyske asked, finally addressing the girl at his side. "And what will it take for you to go far away from me and leave me alone?"
If people were looking sideways at her, she didn't notice. Tuyet tended not to unless directly confronted and, if backed into a corner, she'd most definitely run. Since she was largely harmless though, the most she would attract were those narrowed eyed looks unless someone was going to target her because she was a foreigner.
For her, though, it was less about how they looked at her when they did and more about simply finding someone who would actually talk to her and treat her with kind actions. That was meaningful and important, especially in a world where she was either largely ignored, treated with suspicion, or thought of as a target. Tuyet couldn't remember specific instances or moments, but her instincts were sharp and she knew better than to follow unsavory strangers down dark alleys.
When he asked about what she should be called, Tuyet glanced his way and offered him much the same, delighted smile she had before. If he wanted to talk, she most certainly would oblige. "Tuyet Ayami Yin." Easiest answer. It was her name, she knew, though she didn't know who gave it to her. As to the last question, she giggled playfully and actually linked her arm with his. "I can go back to following you, if you'd prefer." It wasn't a real answer and she didn't seem to grasp what he was really trying to say.
Rhyske blew out a long sigh again. Well, if that was all he was going to get out of her as to what she wanted to be called, then that was fine. He'd just call her whatever. Ayami. That sounded better than calling her Tuyet or Yin. But it was clear to him that she didn't understand anything else he'd said. When he'd told her to leave him alone, she'd said she could go back to following him. He didn't think she was stupid, but he also didn't think she was quite understood the world around her.
Naive.
That's what she was.
Rhyske had met few people who were like Ayami during his travels. He supposed he'd been like her once, when he was younger. But he'd learned, quickly, that naivety only got you hurt and allowed people to take advantage of you. And Ayami seemed like the kind of person who was so naive that she would believe anything anyone told her. Rhyske, though, wasn't that kind of person. He knew how much it sucked to finally realize that the world wasn't completely sunshine and roses and those that you thought were your friends were simply using you for their own advantage. That didn't mean everyone in the world was - there were people who genuinely cared about their fellow beings, and would give you the shirt off their backs if you needed it - but enough of the people that Rhyske had encountered in his long but young life had been enough to jade him and look for the other shoe to drop when a particular situation looked too good.
The moment she linked her arm with his, though, Rhyske quickly shook her off. "Don't touch me," he growled, a little more forcefully than he'd meant to.
It wasn't just that he didn't want the touch, it was also because he wasn't used to being touched, at least not in such a way. His mother gave him hugs sometimes, but only when she was lucid and feeling particularly motherly. Otherwise, Rhyske tried to avoid touching her. And he didn't want anyone touching him for fear that they might actually hurt him. He'd survived wounds that would normally kill a lesser being than he, but doing so just made him even more averse to touching.
"Look," Rhyske said, stopping to focus on Ayami to the exclusion of all else, "why don't you just go back to wherever it is you came from? I don't want you walking beside me. I don't want you following me. I just want you to disappear. Besides your name, I don't know anything else about you. So just leave me alone. Okay?"
He just stared at her, his bright blue eyes staring into hers, a scowl on his face. He hoped she understood now. Otherwise, he wasn't sure what he was going to do.
When he seemed unhappy at the contact, Yin easily bounced away. It didn't faze her in the slightest that he might be
upset with her. People got upset. She'd had things thrown at her when she was both a girl, and a cat, so that wasn't really upsetting to her. Sometimes, people were skittish and snappy.
Just an observation.
Instead, she watched him with her tails idly swaying behind her. Eternally patient, infinitely observant.
When he faced her and suggested she go back where she came from, Yin glanced down the street toward where the vendor had been. She wasn't hungry and she didn't want to go back, so... that wasn't happening. Yin also couldn't disappear – she had no magic besides turning into a cat – so that wasn't happening either. When he finished with the remark that he didn't know anything about her, she smiled just a little and dipped a small courtesy.
"You already know my name. We met at the fish vendor. You gave me a fish. Which was sweet." She straightened and smiled sweet, but her attention was fixated. "I don't
want to go back there and I rather like being in your company." So, that was that. Yin added, almost as an after thought, "I can go back to being a cat, if that's what you'd prefer."
OOC
I missed that you'd replied. :C I'm sorry.
Rhyske's eyes widened. She was a cat? She was a cat? The cat? The very same cat that had looked so plaintive and hungry that he couldn't help but feel sorry for her and spend his money to buy the poor thing a fish? That was why Ayami was following him? Because he'd given her a damn fish?!
His breath escaped him in one long rush.
Rhyske pinched the bridge of his nose. "Yeah, why don't you go back to being a cat? Since it's obvious you're not gonna stop following me around, you might as well follow me around as something unobtrusive. And Mother might take to you being a cat better than she would with you being a girl."
Rhyske wasn't sure what he'd gotten himself into. How had he suddenly ended up with some strange girl - a girl who could turn into a cat nonetheless - following him? He couldn't even begin to believe it. Had it not been happening to him, he wouldn't have been able to believe it. And since he couldn't figure out how to get rid of his second shadow, nor could he figure out what to say to get her to leave him alone, he had no choice but to let her follow.
He wondered if she was simple. He'd met several people like that while traveling. There was just this innate sweetness to them that other people just didn't possess. They truly didn't comprehend the meanings of the words spoken to them, and often took the words at face value, or even mistook the meanings of the words, where someone else might not. He didn't want to hurt her feelings - and he was beginning to doubt that he really could, considering her current attitude - and he really didn't want her mad at him.
Sighing, Rhyske kept walking, uncertain what to do. It was clear what he couldn't do, so, he supposed he would just have to make the best of it. Ayami wasn't about to get distracted and run off and leave him be. He was stuck with her, for however long it took for her to grow bored with him and leave on her own.
"You really have no idea what I mean when I say 'leave me alone', do you?" Rhyske asked her, his hands on his hips. "You really don't know what I mean, do you?"
It did not bother Tuyet at all that someone would prefer her cat form. To her, it was all one in the same. Two sides of the same coin. It was like if someone preferred another person with their hair up or down. A minor physical change, to the shapeshifter. It was still who she was, so it didn't make any difference to her.
She smiled, quite happy she could do something that wouldn't make him so... upset... but before she could bounce away to do just that, he had another question for her. Her amber eyes narrowed a little, catching the light while she considered. "I suppose you mean to tell me that you don't want me in your company." Her hands clasped behind her back and she took a step forward, invading his personal space for just a moment. "But I did say that I didn't want to go back where I came from, and I like being around you."
Tuyet stepped back, smile still in place. "So, I can follow you as a cat, should you like. We can make a game out of it, too. I like games." Her smile widened a little more. Nothing like a nice game of 'chase' or 'delivery'. Tuyet liked bringing random things to people and hiding them on their person, waiting for them to discover what it was she'd brought. It was always a challenge to see if she could do so without getting caught. Doing it while they were asleep or while they were distracted.
@Paladienne
Maybe she did understand what he wanted, but she certainly didn't seem to comprehend that he wanted her as far away as possible from him, and he didn't want to interact with her anymore. Rhyske really wondered if she was simple. But, for all he knew, it was an act, and she was some sort of dangerous being that would just as easily kill him as entertain herself with him. When she invaded his space, he stiffened and leaned away from her, not enjoying the fact that she was so close to his face.
Her words sounded more like a threat than a statement to him, and he knew then, for sure, that she was never going to leave him alone.
So Rhyske sighed. "Do whatever you want, Ayami. I can't stop you. That's very clear to me. But, look, just don't draw attention to yourself? Or me. It's bad enough I already draw enough attention to myself just by existing. Now, I need to find my mother, and then we're going to leave this town."
He took a step back from her, and then headed back toward the last location where he'd seen his mother. Once he found her, and was able to drag her away from whatever it was she was doing, then he could convince her to leave, and maybe she wouldn't notice that there was a strange cat trailing them. She didn't notice a lot of the world if it didn't have anything to do with her, after all.
Rhyske found Rubiyah sitting in a tavern, surrounded by empty steins of alcohol and empty plates of food. She looked as if she were half asleep, and maybe she was. Rhyske approached her cautiously, ignoring the looks the other people in the tavern were giving him. He spoke to her in soft tones, then gently pulled her up and out of the seat, and left on the table the bag of coins that he'd given to her when they had arrived. He had to fish it out of her robes, which embarrassed him beyond all reason. But he did it, and then he pulled her arm over his shoulder and walked her out. He didn't care what Ayami thought upon seeing them. He looked nothing like his mother, after all. But she was his, and she was his responsibility to take care of.
"Come on, mom." Rhyske said softly. "Let's go somewhere quiet. You can sleep."
If Rubiyah said anything in response to her son's words, they were inaudible. Her head lolling on a limp neck, the woman allowed Rhyske to guide her through the street and toward the outskirts of town.
Tuyet was quite happy now that they both seemed on the same page, though she'd have been quite happy to continue as she had been anyways. Life was generally simple to her. His sigh made her perk up, ears upright, and she smiled. All she seemed to hear was the
do what you want.
Lovely.
She would do her best not to draw attention though. So she walked just a step or two behind him and idly looked around as she followed him. The town itself wasn't particularly interesting to her and she was definitely ready for something different. Wherever that might be. Since it seemed they'd be leaving, all the better.
What she was certainly not expecting was the odd smelling woman in the tavern. Her face crinkled up as Rhyske took the time to tend to her, fishing out coins and then hauling her away. That Tuyet certainly did not understand. Having no family of her own, the obligation or attachment was foreign to her. In a way.
But she followed, attention a little sharper on the woman and son. Like she was trying to figure out a very complicated puzzle. It was only once they'd reached the outskirts of the town, well out of the cluster of people and earshot of such, that she asked, "Why did you not just leave her?" It wasn't a malicious question, but one asked out of pure curiosity.
@Paladienne
Rhyske glanced back at Ayami and wondered, yet again, about her intelligence. But then, maybe it was because she wasn't really a girl. Maybe she was just a cat. A cat with the ability to turn into a girl. Cats were a law unto themselves, after all. They did what they wanted with impunity. Kind of like nobles. His own joke made him crack a smile, but he did his best not to let either the cat-girl nor his mother see it.
Honestly, he didn't know how to answer Ayami. He could at any time abandon his mother to her vices. Just leave her somewhere and never look back. It was strange, but each time he thought about doing that, he just... couldn't. As much as his mother acted strangely and gave him a strange sort of attention, she was his mother. He couldn't just leave her. And if he didn't stay and take care of her, who would?
So he finally said, "She's my mother. I'd be the worst kind of person to just leave her behind. Besides that, she took care of me all of my young life, and now that I'm at an age to take care of her, it's only fair that I look after her."
He readjusted his grip on Rubiyah and half turned to look at Ayami. "Isn't there anyone that you want to take care of? Anyone whose side you want to stay beside, even though it may be strange in the eyes of others?"
Yin could not begin to imagine the sort of beholden obligation one might feel toward a mother. She didn't remember her own family, after all, and could only feel the flighting attachment to those that were kind to her in some shape or fashion, until they too were forgotten.
A frown etched itself across her face at his answer, then, because it was both unsatisfactory and something she didn't understand. The woman that was his mother seemed more a burden than someone who might be kind – which mattered the most to Yin.
Not that she was going to suggest Rhyske do anything he didn't want to. If he'd asked, she'd have helped. As of yet, though, he seemed still leery about her presence in his life. So she kept her distance and followed.
At his question, she tilted her head a little and contemplated. Only for a moment. "I don't really remember anyone. Just the faces of the people on the street, but I don't know their name. They have no significance in my life. I know your name." It might've been said with sadness by anyone who understood how much it might mean to lose everyone in their life, or be unable to remember them, but because she couldn't... Yin couldn't be sad over anything she couldn't remember. So it was just a statement, simple and uncomplicated.
She added, trying to be helpful, "You were nice though, so I do want to help you. Is there something I could do to help?" Yin didn't want to distress him, as she had earlier, or upset him. Her tail swayed a little faster, perked up at the thought she could do something in part to repay the kindness he'd shown her earlier.
@Paladienne
Rhyske frowned slightly as he listened to what she had to say. She didn't remember anyone? She didn't remember anything at all? That seemed like a sad existence to him, to make friends and then forget them soon after making them. To move on, never knowing where you were from and who you'd left behind. Rhyske realized now that Ayami's inability to remember contributed greatly to how she acted. If she had nothing to feel sad over, why should she feel sad? If she had no happy memories to remember, why should she feel happy? Her world was simple and easy. She lived day to day, taking everything that happened to her at face value. That was why she didn't understand him when he'd told her to leave him alone. It had to be.
Sighing, Rhyske shook his head. "You wanna get her other side? Just hook her arm over your shoulder, like how I have this one. Put your other arm around her back, like me. We're going to get her out of town and to somewhere nice and quiet where she can rest for a while."
Honestly, Rhyske didn't know where he was going or what he was going to do when he got there. He just knew that eventually, Rubiyah would fall asleep and become dead weight, and then it would be all but impossible to carry her until she woke up. He wasn't expecting Ayami to stick around that long, considering she seemed to find his devotion to his mother extremely strange. But... once he got used to the idea of Ayami being there, Rhyske found himself feeling almost ashamed that he'd told her to go away and leave him alone. She was as alone as he was. The only difference was that she didn't remember any of the connections that she made, and he did.
"We'll figure out what to do from there, okay? It's just gonna be one big adventure."
Tuyet would never understand his sense of obligation, not really. She only liked to be around people who were nice to her, and thus far... that did not seem to be the case. But
because he had told her how she could help, Tuyet was quite happy and willing to do just that. She smiled sweetly at Rhyske and moved to mirror his own placement, on the other side of his mother.
She wasn't heavy to the shapeshifter. Tuyet likely could've carried the woman, but she didn't offer. It was better that she help and not overstep any bounds that might further upset her new friend.
When he made mention that they'd be having an adventure, her ears perked up more so and she nodded, though did so in a way that did not jostle his mother. This was important to him, so she was careful. Mindful. Accepting most of the weight, if she could.
"I think an adventure would be fun. Have you been on many? What do you do with your mother when you go on an adventure?" The questions were said quick, but quiet. Like she was afraid she might wake up his mother by speaking too loud. Which, as far as she was concerned, might very well happen.
@Paladienne
Rhyske sighed as some of the burden of his mother was lifted off his shoulders. Having help with her, that actually made him feel a little happy. Maybe Ayami wouldn't be so bad to have around. Actually having another set of arms and another pair of eyes would help when it came to taking care of his mother and making sure she was safe. That they were both safe. Rhyske still didn't know what to do with Ayami, nor what really to say to her, but she seemed content enough to do whatever he asked her to do. She seemed like she genuinely wanted to help, but at the same time, Rhyske thought he sensed an air of separation from her, as if she was there but not there. Like she'd rather be doing something else than doing what he'd asked of her. But since she didn't show any sign of wanting to leave, nor did she seem to show any sign of not wanting to do as he'd told her - after all, she'd made the offer, why wouldn't he take her up on it? - then Rhyske wasn't about to complain.
And, more so, it was nice to have someone to talk to who didn't yell at him or throw things at him or hit him or whatever else because he was too loud or too quiet or, or, or.
At her questions, Rhyske took a moment to think about his answer. After all, she was being quite accommodating to him, and he didn't want to make her angry or upset her by answering her flippantly or by lying. He glanced a Rubiyah and found that she was in her typical fugue state after consuming so much food - or not enough, he never was sure - so even if an explosion happened in her face, she'd never notice.
"Um, well," Rhyske started, "I don't know how many I've been on. I've been wandering around ever since I was born. I've been to a lot of cities and towns and villages. They're all different, but they have enough similarities that you could walk into one village and find all the same things in the same places as the last village you just left. Usually, I try to earn money when we're in villages. You kinda need money in order to travel around and make sure you can buy food and things like that. Clothes. Shoes."
He tilted his head to one side so he could try and see her on the other side of his mother. "As far as real adventures, I can't say I've ever experienced those. I've never met a dragon or a pirate or a werewolf. I've never seen Ketra. I've never sailed the ocean. About the only exciting thing that's ever happened to me is being chased out of somewhere by angry villagers and trying not to get caught stealing."
Rhyske turned his gaze away from the red-haired cat girl and focused on the road ahead. "As for Mother... she goes with me. Or she drags me with her. I carry her when she's like this. When I go out to work, she usually stays in bed at an inn or in a tavern eating everything in sight."
Rhyske realized his answers probably weren't what Ayami wanted to hear, but they were the only ones he had for her. He did sometimes wish to lead a more exciting life than the one he was leading now, but he loved his mother, and he didn't want to leave her behind. He didn't want to leave her somewhere and then learn something terrible befell her. He knew that she already was hanging by a thread, and had seemed to be for some time, and he didn't know how much longer she would be around. That idea both enthralled and frightened him, because on one hand, he'd finally be free of his mother and get to do whatever he wanted to do and go wherever he wanted to go, but on the other, he would be alone. Lost. Adrift with no anchor and nothing familiar.
That he could survive on his own, he was certain.
But... he wasn't sure if he could deal with being alone.
Because her memory was so flawed, there wasn't much that Yin could compare to what he said. Villages were villages - that she could agree on, but as to their composition and placement of things, she had never made the connection that they might be roughly the same. Every village was sort of new to her. When he spoke, though, she was quite interested in what he would say. Though Yin wasn't aware, she rather lived through the people she connected to. The people she became attached to.
She couldn't remember anything, but they could. They could tell her about things and share experiences, in their own way.
Wanting to be helpful, Yin added, "I can help you get food, and clothes, and shoes." With no concept that stealing was really, really bad, she actually quite enjoyed pilfering things and trying not to get caught. Small things were quite easy, when she was a cat, and if it would help her new friend, all the better.
When he listed the things he hadn't done, she nodded a little. "Maybe we could go see those things together? Since there are two of us, we could watch your mother and still see the coast, hm? The ocean? Or a boat? Maybe?" It was all a suggestion because she really didn't know what he felt he could do and what he felt he couldn't. Then, perking up a little more, Yin offered, "I could always watch her for a little bit if you wanted to ride a boat." That's what friends did, right? Helped one another out.
Then, idly murmuring to herself, she said, "It isn't bad camping out though, hm? Maybe sleeping outside. Especially when you're not alone."
@Paladienne
Rhyske smirked and would have laughed out loud if he thought she wouldn't take it the wrong way. Of course, he probably could've laughed, and Ayami wouldn't know the difference between genuine laughter and self-deprecating laughter. She would just see him laughing and probably join in, even though she had no clue why he was doing what he was doing. She seemed awfully simple that way. But her offer... her offer, whether it was given in jest or in seriousness, made that smirk of his turn into a soft, almost indulgent smile.
"I... I don't really have any plans, you know?" he said at last, looking toward her. "I just go where she wants to go. And usually, she doesn't really know where she wants to go, either. I mean, I doubt Mother would even recognize any direction we chose to go in, so we could go somewhere we've never been before." Rhyske looked away from Ayami then, focusing on the road ahead. He hardly knew her, but traveling with someone was the best way to get to know them, right? Sure. "We could go to the ocean, if you wanted to go with me. We could find some kind of adventure to go on. I don't know what, though. Usually, I just try to make sure I have money so Mother can eat and have a decent place to sleep. But we're going to run out of that before long, and right now, there's not another town for at least a day and a half."
He felt quiet as he listened to her soft mumbling and when he smiled this time, it was amused. He showed Ayami a little bit of teeth, and a look of pure happiness came over his face, transforming his features into something handsome. "And camping out isn't bad at all. It can be fun. There's all sorts of things you can do. But it can be dangerous if you don't take the proper precautions. In the wild, beasts and monsters roam, and they might see someone like us as an easy snack."
She didn't even notice the weight of the other woman. The shapeshifting cat might as well be walking down the road with a bag of feathers. Her attention wandered toward the sky while she contemplated the things that her new friend had to say. In an odd way, it made Ayami a little sad. Not because he said he didn't have any plans - she never did so why should he? But mostly because everything predicated on whatever his nonsensical mother wanted. Since she didn't understand the familial bond that tethered him to the unresponsive woman, it just saddened her to think that he might be missing out on something he couldn't even name because of some
thing she couldn't comprehend.
When Rhyske mentioned that they could go to the ocean, though, she turned her attention back to him with a small smile. "We could. And find a boat. Big enough for both of you. I can catch you fish!" That, she knew how to do. So long as the water wasn't
too deep. Ayami knew how to swim, but cleaning herself afterwards was just a mess she didn't want to have to deal with.
At the mention of monsters out and about, though, another frown touched her lips. "Monsters? What manner of monsters?" Nothing had ever bothered her, as far as she could
remember. That was the kicker though, wasn't it? There could've been all manner of monsters she'd ran into in her past, she just didn't remember them. Nor did she have the knowledge
of forgetting. With that came a certain sort of pure innocence in that regard. Either way, she was quick to add, "We shall camp together and it won't be bad at all." She knew that much, at least.
@Paladienne
Rhyske smiled at Ayami, uncertain of how to respond to her. Getting a boat? Was she serious? He assumed she was, considering her expression. He wished that he could figure her out somehow, but she seemed to be that one enigma that kept changing before you had ever solved the final clue. Every time Rhyske thought he had figured her out, or at least figured out some angle to explore, Ayami tossed a wrench into it and made him reassess that angle. It wasn't difficult, really. Rhyske was used to making mental leaps and bounds, but he wasn't used to making them with another person, or because of another person. There were things that were familiar and that he was used to; Ayami was neither of those, and he wasn't quite sure how to deal with her.
But he figured, the longer she stuck with him, the closer to understanding her he would come. At least until she got bored with him and decided to go her own way. He wasn't sure how long that would take, but he was certain she'd get bored eventually. Once she did, he assumed life would continue on as it always had. But until that day came, until it actually happened, Rhyske had to deal with Ayami and what she represented.
"Camping isn't so bad. It's finding food that's the hardest part, if you aren't prepared. Eating things out in the wild could have terrible consequences." Rhyske said. "Drinking the water could be dangerous, too. So, you have to be prepared as best you can. But, sometimes, you're never as prepared as you could be."
He didn't know why he was explaining anything to her. But he often talked to himself under pretense of talking to his mother while they traveled, especially if she was in one of her catatonic states. Having someone to talk to who could actually answer back and seemed to want to answer back, that was a luxury Rhyske didn't often have.
"So, Ayami," Rhyske said after a stretch of silence. "Did you want to pick the campsite? We can make some good distance today, if we keep walking, but we'll eventually have to find a place to shelter in. We'll have to build a fire, so we can have something for dinner."
Yin nodded as Rhyske explained some of the aspects of camping. There were things that Yin instinctively knew, as a cat, that kept her from vomiting her brains out from eating the wrong thing. Luckily. So, she said with a fair degree of confidence, "I could hunt something for us!" Granted, the sort of things that Yin was likely to hunt down were small things : squirrel, chipmunk, mice, and maybe a rabbit. She might be able to change into a cat at will, but the size of the cat never changed.
The idea of a fire, though. That was a novelty. Yin never had a fire. At least, she never remembered having a fire. The idea that water might be bad, too, was a strange one. Yin would bow to his superior knowledge of such things, though. He clearly knew far more about camping than she ever would.
When Rhyske asked if
she wanted to pick a place for them to stop, she looked around. Trying to figure out what would make a
good spot, not just for her, but for her new friend and his odd mother. Some place sheltered, probably? Because that was always important to her. Yin would also sometimes sleep up in a tree, but she doubted that he would want to find a way to balance his mother on a branch.
Could Rhyske even sleep in a tree himself?
Yin didn't like sleeping on the road because people were there, and she didn't like being around them when she slept. So she gestured, with a tilt of her head, toward a small copse of trees a bit off the beaten path. "Somewhere in there?" It seemed a bit hidden, which was what she liked, but that didn't mean it was actually a good camping spot.
@Paladienne
"That works," Rhyske said, moving toward the area she had pointed out. The copse would keep them well-hidden from the road, and it would keep people from seeing them inadvertently. Perhaps, even, it would keep predators from seeing them and deciding they were easy prey. Rhyske wasn't sure if the beasts of the area would think they were food, considering they never had before, but he knew desperate things often took chances they otherwise wouldn't, especially if they hadn't eaten in a long while.
When he reached the copse, he settled his mother on the ground and stood over her, studying her for a while. Then Rhyske moved to start gathering firewood and tinder and built up a small triangular tower of wood. He didn't light it yet, though, as there was still enough light for him to see by. But he had it ready, for when it became too dark and they needed the light of the fire to see, and maybe, even to cook. When that was finished, he turned toward Ayami and gave her a small smile.
"Well, now that that's done, should we go looking for something to eat out there in the wild?" Rhyske swung his pack off his shoulder and set it beside his mother, moving then to cover her with a blanket he removed from the bag. It wouldn't do much to protect her if she were attacked, but it would keep her warm, and perhaps give her the illusion that someone was holding her, so she wouldn't wake up and freak out that she was alone. "We can go see what things there might be. Mushrooms, edible plants... maybe we can even find something meaty."
He checked his knives, then moved toward the edge of the copse, turning back to look at Ayami. "Unless you wanted to stay here, which is fine. I'll be back in a little while."
When her new friend approved of her suggestion, Tuyet immediately smiled. Quite proud of her suggestion. This was new to her – as many things were – but it still warmed her that she was picking up on it really quick. Forming attachments might come quick, but they were still very real and she
was trying to do her best for him and his mother – even if she didn't understand the attachment he had for his mother.
Tuyet helped get his mother into position then watched, curious, as Rhyske started gathering up bits of wood, leaves, and... well, what she considered scraps. It only took a moment before she moved to do the same, copying his action. Picking up sticks, leaves, bits of moss, and even dead shrubbery that had fallen off. When he was done creating his odd little pile, she had a small pile herself nearby.
When he made mention of hunting, she glanced around before nodding some. Birds, squirrels, rabbits... Those were the sorts of things that Tuyet commonly chased after. While he dug around in his pack, she easily shifted into her cat form. He had said hunting, so that meant she should go hunting! Seemed simple enough. When he turned around to ask if she wanted to stay, Tuyet was already gone. She wanted to further be helpful!
The oddly colored cat stalked through the steadily darkening underbrush, picking up the scent and sound of ground mice and squirrel retiring for the night. That would have been enough for her, for the night, but there were two of them. That meant she should try for something bigger. A rabbit would be perfect, and they would be foraging in the gloom of evening.
It didn't take her long to find one, and fight to bring it down, then return to the spot with her catch. Hopefully he'd be as happy with the rabbit as he had been with the spot she'd chosen! She sat near the pile of sticks she'd gathered with the rabbit she killed.
@Paladienne
Rhyske blinked when he found his newfound shadow suddenly missing. He wondered if she'd just wandered off, but then, considering how attached to him she'd been, that wasn't likely. He noticed the pile of leaves and sticks that she'd made, and realized that she'd made the pile in mimicry of his. He shook his head. He wasn't going to ignite a second fire, if that's what she was thinking. But he supposed he could convince her that her pile could be the spare stuff that they could add to the blaze to keep it from going out.
With flint in hand, Rhyske pulled his knife from its sheath and set the steel against the pile he'd made. With quick motions, he struck the flint against the steel, trying to create a shower of sparks that would ignite the tinder. He kept at it for some time, striking over and over again until the sparks finally caught on the leaves, then he dropped low and breathed gently over the fledgling flames until they started to grow. When they began to consume the pile of tinder, Rhyske added more sticks to the pile, doing his best not to smother the flames but feed them. Soon, he had a decent campfire going, big enough to provide light in the growing dark, keep them warm, and cook their food.
Speaking of food...
Rhyske turned around to begin to gather things he could use to hunt, when he spotted a strangely colored cat trotting back over toward him. Considering he'd seen it before, he recognized it as Ayami immediately, and he realized that she must have gone hunting when he'd mentioned it before.
Well, maybe having her around wouldn't be so bad after all, especially if she could catch things in only a handful of minutes that it would likely take Rhyske hours to catch, if he was lucky.
When she dropped the rabbit by her pile of sticks and looked at him, Rhyske couldn't help the smirk that etched itself onto his face. "Not bad. Although it helps if you tell me where you're going next time, so I don't get worried about you."
He didn't want to make her feel bad, and he in turn felt a little selfish in the fact that he'd missed her a little bit after all he'd done to try and make her go away. He was a jerk. He'd been self-reliant for so long that having someone else around who could actually do something was unthinkable. He didn't want to get used to his cat-shadow being there, only to have her vanish to parts unknown and then miss her fiercely. That wasn't fair to Ayami.
"I take it that's dinner?" Rhyske asked, indicating the rabbit. It was a fair size, with a decent amount for two, no matter what form Ayami decided to wear. "Should I cook your share too, or do you prefer raw?"
It pleased Yin immensely when her friend was pleased with her catch. Her ears perked forward and she sat up straighter. It also warmed her, though she couldn't say why, that he might worry if she were gone. That was a good sign, was it not?
Yin shifted fluidly, the form of her girl-self replacing the oddly colored cat quickly. Though she was still sitting. Her ears perked forward as she contemplated. "Cooked?" It really didn't matter, but she couldn't cook on her own, so it seemed like a good opportunity to both have something new and watch him do it. "And I will remember to tell you if I leave." To the best of her ability, of course.
Then, her attention wandered to the fire he started, so she crawled a little closer so she could study it. The construction of the fire was beyond Yin, but she hoped what she had gathered would be useful. Never mind how pretty and warm it was! She had slept next to other people's campfires before, but she'd never had one that might be considered hers before – not to her memory – nor a camp that she'd help set up. It was oddly heartening. "You know so much," she murmured, the fire catching her amber eyes when she glanced his way. "How did you learn it all?" It seemed incomprehensible to her that his... mother... could have taught him much of anything.
@Paladienne
Rhyske tried not to laugh at her apparent eagerness. She held the air of a child about her, but also seemed very worldly. She wasn't like anything he'd ever encountered before. Of course, he wasn't like anything most people have encountered before.
"Be careful," Rhyske said, when she began to get closer to the fire. "You don't want to get burned. That's pretty hot, and it could really hurt you."
He reached for the rabbit and began to prepare it for cooking, somewhat expertly gutting the creature and skinning it. When it was ready, he took some of the wood that they had gathered and began to skewer the meat, leaning it upright against the rocks he'd gathered to ring the fire in.
As the fire cooked their dinner, Rhyske found himself watching Ayami, fascinated by her fascination with the fire. Then, when she looked toward him and asked her question, Rhyske found himself rocking back on his his heels - figuratively, not literally. Her question was one he'd heard before, but in different ways.
Most people assumed he was much younger than he actually was - something that he felt Ayami must have done, considering her question - and often believed that he couldn't do anything on his own. He looked like he was in his early teens, but more accurately, he was only a little over one hundred years old. Rhyske didn't debate it with anyone; he just accepted it. People weren't used to seeing someone like him, and that was just fine. Oh, they might know an elf for an elf, but there were so many kinds of elves, just like there were so many kinds of humans. To a human, all elves looked the same. To elves, all humans looked the same. It just was.
Rhyske looked toward his mother where she lay on the ground, oblivious to everything. Then he looked back toward Ayami. "By watching," he said. It was the simple truth, but extremely loaded with so many nuances and innuendos that it couldn't be summed up as neatly as he'd said it. "My mother, believe it or not, actually taught me most of everything I know. She wasn't always like that. And other things I learned over the years, either by being taught by someone else or figuring out for myself."
His gaze went to the fire then, staring into its golden depths. "There's still a lot I don't know, though." he said softly. "Maybe one day I'll learn everything there is to know."
Tuyet watched her new friend when he explained, to her surprise, that his comatose mother was actually the source of most of his knowledge. Eventually, she smiled and simply accepted it. The cat wouldn't have a solid argument and she didn't think he'd lie. There was no reason for it.
She crouched with her arms resting on her knees, watching the meat cook. It
smelt wonderful. She'd not realized that she was actually hungry until it'd caught her nose.
"Do you think you could teach me?" Tuyet looked from the cooking meat to her new friend. She couldn't
remember having anyone she could talk to like this and she definitely didn't know how to construct a fire. Cooking seemed easy enough once the fire was made. Put the meat on some sticks. "I promise to watch." If that was the secret to it, then Tuyet could certainly promise as much. Her attention didn't easily wander, not when there was something she actually wanted to do.
@Paladienne
Rhyske blinked at her request. Teach her? Why would she want him to teach her? Shouldn't she know how to do all this already? After all, she was a cat. A cat-girl. She didn't need him to teach her anything. But then he realized that maybe she didn't know, that the skills she knew as a cat couldn't translate over to her as a girl. Besides, what was the harm in teaching her what he knew? It was nice to have someone to ask him to do something for once, and she was easy enough to get along with. Besides that, if she were going to travel with him for a long while, it wouldn't hurt to have someone else around who could build fires and skin animals and prepare meals. That way, he could focus on his mother and not have to worry whether he'd go hungry or be cold at night. Having someone else there... it was a lure of paradise.
"Sure, I can teach you."
He reached for the meat on the sticks, turning them as the meat cooked. "This is the easy part, once you get them on the sticks or a flat rock that's been heated up by the fire. Try not to touch the flames; they'll really hurt you if you do. That's why you lean the sticks against rocks, like this. That way the flames reach all of it without burning away all the good stuff." Rhyske pointed at each aspect as he talked, ensuring that Ayami was watching. He smiled as he spoke, finding that he actually enjoyed talking to her.
When the meat was done, he showed her how to make sure that it was ready to eat, so that she wouldn't get sick by eating raw flesh. Of course, he didn't know if she could eat raw and be fine, but as she said, she was willing to learn.
He bit into his meat, making a soft noise of pleasure as the juices flowed over his tongue. "Be careful," he said after swallowing. "It's still pretty hot."
Yin sat cross legged as she watched him, talking about
cooked meat. Something she'd obviously had before but had never cooked herself. Yin just ate what she caught when she was a cat, raw. It'd been how she'd fed herself when there was no one else. The sheer novelty of having someone just
talk to her and explain something so seemingly trivial was nice.
A small smile tugged at her mouth while she watched and listened.
When it was done, there was a childish, genuine excitement of a lesson learned and a job well done. Hunting was something she was good at, after all, and it was nice to see that something she'd done had turned into something beneficial for both of them. A cooked meal.
He wasn't lying about it being pretty hot though. Holding the stick gingerly, she nipped at it, blew on it, and tried again before deciding just to wait. She could see the steam curling away from the hot meat, which idly fascinated her for a moment.
Then, while she watched her meal cool, she asked, "What is the one thing you want to learn most?" Her eyes narrowed before she tried to take another bite, chewing noisily because it was still a little hot but it did taste quite good.
@Paladienne
Rhyske contemplated her question for a long while, slowly chewing as he ate his meal. His blue eyes stared into the flickering flames, as if trying to peer through them to the other side. His gaze followed the cracks in the burning wood, studying the dark glowing orange of the embers as if the answer he was seeking would appear within them. He honestly didn't know what to tell her. What was the one thing he wanted to learn the most? How could he answer that with just one simple word?
Rhyske finally turned his attention to Ayami, watching her eat her meal. She was chewing with her mouth open, breathing out to try and cool the meat and keep it from burning her tongue, all the while trying to keep it in her mouth and not lose the bite. It was kind of amusing, and it reminded him of a time when he was far younger and his mother wasn't so... like she was now. When she actually gave him care and love before some kind of switch flipped and he was suddenly the one taking care of himself and her.
Why was this question so hard?
He turned his attention to the form of his mother, still beyond the light of the fire, wrapped up in whatever it was that was plaguing her mind. She wasn't moving, but Rhyske knew she wasn't asleep. Whatever she was, it wasn't like she was going to be joining the conversation any time soon. But, studying her, Rhyske realized the question wasn't so hard to answer after all. One word summed up everything quite simply.
With a small smile, Rhyske answered, "I don't think there's just one thing... I think... Everything. I want to learn everything the most. Everything I can, about everything. Personal things, of course. Like who my father was, where he came from, why he left us. And I want to know where my mother came from and why she is the way she is. But I also want to know why the stars turn and why the seasons change, and how big the world actually is. If there are other places filled with other people."
He fell quiet for a moment, and then looked at Ayami. "What about you? What is it you want to know?"
Ayami continued to eat noisily while the meat was still pretty hot. Fully unaware she looked a little young and foolish doing so. It wasn't all that often anyone had given her food so fresh and she was just enjoying it, in the moment.
When he did answer her, though, she paused to give Rhyske her full attention. Everything sounded like... a lot. She blinked and shook her head a little, trying to even comprehend how someone could even hope to learn everything. Taking his answer rather literal. However, she did smile and declare, pointing a little with her meat stick, "I shall help you in your huge quest to learn everything!" That felt right. It felt good.
Ayami took another bite, this one cooler so not as loud. When he asked, though, she scrunched up her face in contemplation. What did she want to know?
"I want to know what is wrong with your mother." That was the thing bothering her the most, at the moment. What was wrong with the odd lady and why did Rhyske feel so attached to her even though she didn't seem to do anything for him. Granted, Ayami didn't know how to express all of that in words. So, the simplest answer was she wanted to know what was wrong with the woman.
Question answered, Ayami resumed enthusiastically eating.
Rhyske stared at Ayami for the longest time, unsure of how to answer her question. She wanted to know what was wrong with his mother. Well, that was great, because so did he. His mother hadn't started acting this way until he'd gotten old enough to take care of himself, as if some kind of switch had been flipped and their roles had been reversed.
"It's... not like this all the time," Rhyske said at last. "But just enough that it's... I dunno how to describe it. It's strange. Weird. Unusual."
He lowered his skewer and looked into the fire. His face was pensive, his eyes narrowed as he tried to order his thoughts to better explain himself to her. "My mother... wasn't always like this. In my earliest memories, she cared for me. She loved me. She took care of me. She was always smiling, always happy. It was like nothing could take away this light she radiated with. But then... it was like something happened between the moment I was a helpless child reliant upon her for every little thing and the moment when I became a little more independent. She became like that." Rhyske gestured toward the form of his mother beyond the firelight. "The problem is, I don't know what happened. I don't know what caused the shift. But I know if I leave her, something terrible is going to happen. Something... I don't think could be stopped. But I don't think I can honestly answer why I choose to stay, either. She's my mother. I love her. She brought me into this world and stayed by my side when she could have abandoned me. What kind of child would I be if I ignored everything she's done for me and struck out on my own?"
Rhyske shook his head and began eating again, though it was mechanical and not because he was enjoying the taste. He wasn't sure why, but Ayami's words bothered him. He knew she didn't mean any insult by them, and was only expressing her curiosity in the only way she seemed to know how.