Lapis lazuli. That was the colour of the sea today. A rich deep blue that encased all the sea life life a blanket. A calm, resonating security flowed like tendrils wrapping themselves around the brightly coloured fish, sea turtles and Siren's alike.
Flowing strands of hair fanned out in waves as Reevahn swam up from the black depths and into the inviting, warmer blues, spiraling upwards with eyes staring at the sparkles of sun breaking through like diamonds. With a rush of bubbles preceding her, the Siren gently broke the surface, hair sleek against her skull, while the rest of her locks danced about her shoulders like seaweed. She was a head bobbing in the water, staying afloat only by the constant but languid swishing of her indigo tail.
She watched the mainlanders for a moment - there weren't too many out there - and with great curiosity. They were intriguing creatures. They could be kind and generous one moment, and the next fickle and mean. Reevahn herself was mostly suspicious of them, but had set herself a challenge.
Opening her mouth ever so slightly, she began to sing. Melodies and harmonies both at once spilled from the singular voice, filling the air from a thousand different points, invisible threads would draw in a single being who would hear her song. It was soft as a whisper, but as strong as the most compelling desire, but without words. The mainlanders often found it speaking to their very soul, words of promise, of grandeur, and of love unfathomable.
Reevhan began a lazy swim to the shore, and pulled herself out of the water. The long tail disappeared in a shimmer and was replaced with a pair of shapely legs, covered with a gossamer balloon pant, and over her torso a simple cropped shirt, only slightly thicker in texture.
She laid herself sprawled, limbs all askew, and slowed down her breathing to almost non-existent. She didn't need to breathe like the mainlanders did and she used this to her advantage. Lying limp like she was, a girl shipwrecked and only just alive. The siren waited with closed eyes for the one who had heard her song.
<...that sound...that music...> There was a moment of dance upon the ground and then she was off, heading for the water from the path up the beach.
"Old mare!" he yowled, surprised by her sudden change of direction.
"I will not stand for any more of your foolishness, I am not going to get thrown again, try as you will!" he complained, firmly tugging at her reins though it did nothing. He gave her a swift kick, but she only surged faster.
<Sweet music...must find it...must have it...> The black mare paid no mind to her rider as she whisked them away, down through the thinning brush and grasses. Breaking the line, hooves sinking into the sand, Delphine padded out closer to the water. Turning this way and that in a constant back-and-forth, she was trying to decide which way to go, which way to lead her to what she sought.
"Dammit, girl! What is wrong with you?!" Ganon barked, dark eyes glaring down at the mare on a mission who continued to pay no attention at all to him.
Finally deciding, the horse dashed down the beach as quickly as she could. And then she saw the woman there, lying in the sand. <That's it! It's...her! It's this one! Oh my...what a nice song...hear more, hear more!> Nickering, she lowered her head to sniffle and snort at the girl's arm while Ganon just stared down in surprise.
"Is she dead?" he wondered as he climbed down from the saddle. Taking the few steps required, he crouched before her and reached a tentative hand out to poke at her limp form. "Missy, are ya dead?"
With the sound of hooves, the siren forced herself to stay absolutely still. In her mind's eye she saw a beautiful white horse, and upon it, a dashing rider in armour that glittered in the sun. And at his side was a sword, and a shield with the crest of a lion. Of course, she had no way of knowing what was coming for her, but she had heard enough fairy tales to imagine what this encounter could be like.
That image was shattered by the seemly bored voice. What? No... concern? Did you not hear my song? How odd. It seems it was the animal. Interesting... it's never happened that way before... She didn't move a muscle, even as the horse nudged at her, and not even with the unceremonious poking, although in her mind she flinched.
Quit poking me... do I look like I'm in the mood to be prodded? Why would you ask someone who is playing dead, if they're dead? Hmm... I wonder how far this could go...? I wonder, are you the kind of mainlander to leave someone for dead?
Her lips parted a moment, taking in an unnecessary tiny gasp. Blearily opening her eyes, she stared up into the face of the stranger. "Not dead," she whispered, before dramatically flopping her head to the side.
Ah, she'd moved. Watching curiously as the girl gasped and opened her eyes, Ganon was a bit surprised when she flopped her head back down again. "Not dead, she says, but she looks like she's been through the wringer, though, with her hair soaked like that. What shall we do with her, Delphine?"
The horse was still nudging at her, so excited that she'd shown a brief moment of consciousness. <She sings! She sings! And she talks! Such lovely singing, though...we should keep her. We should keep her, oh, we should!> Nickering gently again, the dark mare watched her for a time with a giddy anticipation gleaming in those chocolate brown eyes. When she didn't move again, though, she lifted her head and started nudging at Ganon instead, trying to push him closer. <Still keep her, she has pretty music! Pretty music and singing!>
The man sighed and put a hand to the horse's cheek to calm her. Petting for a moment and then reaching up to rub at her forehead, he decided what he was going to do. "She looks like she got thrown up by the ocean... But where did she come from?" Lifting his head, he looked out to the water beyond. There wasn't anything unusual that he could see.
But if she was out there...at some point, maybe she was on a ship? Such an odd-looking woman, though... Well, you can't ask her anything at all if she's passed out...guess we'll have to wait and see. And with that in mind, Ganon nudged the horse back and away and scooped up the siren. "But how to carry her?" he mused, looking down at how he was holding her now with one arm grasped around her knees and the other cradling her shoulders.
"She looks like a princess, don't she, Delphine? Would ya look at that hair?" he said, laughing as he glanced over at the horse. "No, this won't do. Not at all." He wasn't a prince, he wasn't any sort of noble at all, and he certainly wasn't the most gentlemanly fellow in the world, rich or poor. So what did Ganon do? He carried her up the beach with the black mare tagging along, and as soon as they hit more solid ground he stuck her on her belly up in the saddle. "Now let's go find some shade, girl, I'm sure she's just having a heat stroke or somethin'."
Reevahn listened with an amused line of thoughts. Of course my hair is soaked. I'm a siren, I live in the ocean. Thrown up? Bah! What a thought. Silly man... the ocean doesn't throw things up. But this is interesting, he talks to the horse as if she can hear him. That must mean something. Maybe he's just the kind who talks to himself? He certainly isn't acting as if he heard my singing... I wonder if I could try again, and see what happens? And whoops... there we go.
Goodness, he's strong isn't he? Hmm... haven't been held like this before. How to carry me? Just like you are now, silly... Princess? Oooh... I like that. Yes, yes, I am a princess. And what's wrong with my hair? My hair is beautiful! And what! Her thoughts suddenly took a darker turn as he dumped her on top the the horse and with them the ocean began to churn just a little, the waves crashing with more force even though there was no wind to stir them.
Hey, watch it! How undignified! How on earth am I supposed to lay like this? How uncomfortable. This horse smells. Bleh. Maybe I should come to now. With a little sigh, she began to move, trying to give off the impression that she was indeed coming to. "Water," she whispered hoarsly, inwardly saluting her acting prowess, "Kind Sir, water... please?"
Oblivious to the sudden snapping of the waves and holding the mare by one rein, he walked them back up toward the road he had been on before. "Gee, girlie, what are we gonna do with her, hm?" he asked the horse as he looked ahead. Suddenly, though, the woman was speaking again.
Looking back to her, he just shook his head. "Water? Hmph, fine." Why didn't you think about that before, idiot?
<She speaks again! Oh, you're awake? Please sing more for me? Please? It was so pretty!>
Stopping Delphine, he took a couple of steps backwards towards the pack strapped down behind the saddle to retrieve one of his canteens. In one hand he held onto it as he eyed her for a moment. She's tiny, I could probably just...
Reaching out, he snaked his free arm under her and abruptly jerked her back off the horse. Holding her there, just barely supporting her by her waist, he held out the canteen expectantly. "Go on, then. Why didn't you just ask for water before?" Hmph. Silly woman. Ah, but be gentler, she's just coming to again...she probably doesn't know what's going on.
"I mean... sorry, I didn't realize you were thirsty," he offered, cracking a toothy smile that just barely showed those gleaming fangs of his as he moved to hold the canteen to her lips for her instead.
Do with me? Give me water, human! And I wouldn't mind if you were a little more gentle. What do you think I'm made out of? I'm going to bruise you know. Good. Yes, water. Bring it to me. Wait.. what are you doing! Just hand it to me! WAIT!
Reevahn barely avoided squeaking as she was yanked from the back of the horse, and struggled to stay in her stupor. She hadn't imagined this would be her first encounter. Her sisters always spoke of men who were so enamored by their singing, by their beauty, that they gave them the kiss of life. But of course, that always ended badly, so Reevahn was quietly okay with this fellow not having to suffer that same fate, if she was unable to control herself.
Oh, so now you offer it to me. And put me down! I'm not a little ... seashell you can hold! Just you wait... I'll get you... Wairly, she let him bring the bottle to her lips, tilting her head back slightly to take in as much liquid as possible. As she did, her odd coloured eyes took to the sky, and her will spoke to the particles of the air. Within seconds the tiniest sliver of cloud began to form above the man's head, filling with the moisture in the air.
"Before?" She asked softly, putting her hands to the canteen and pushing it away from her. She turned her gaze to the gentleman, noticing something strange about the way he smiled, but offered her own lazy, lethargic smile in return. "Oh, sir. You found me. You rescued me. How can I ever repay you?"
And if you don't put me down soon, I am going to upend this cloud over your head. Hmmmmph.
Capping the canteen and reaching up to replace it in his pack, the man smiled proudly to himself at her praise. He didn't know what she was doing. He definitely didn't know what she was either, but he thought he did. He thought she was just some little human girl who certainly kept no water at all on her person.
"Oh, there's no need for repayment, sweetheart," he said with another smile. Though I would love to see how your blood tastes. It's probably sweet...you look like a nice enough girl. So exotic...I bet it'll be different, won't it? We shall have to see.
Ganon loosened his hold around her waist, unsure if she could stand on her own yet or not. "We should get you in some shade, though, don't want you passing out again," he urged, gesturing a little ways down the road where the trees began once more. "How did you end up out there anyway...?"
Sweetheart? Who are you calling sweetheart? And what does that even mean? Pah. Put. Me. Down.
He did loosen his grip on her, and the wobble of her knees was no pretense. She'd forgotten what it was like to have her feet touch the ground. Sea legs were an understatement. Even as she put her full weight to the earth, she forced back a wince. It was like walking on coals.
She took a hand to her head, hoping that the simple movement might take her mind off her new found feet for a second's respite, and answered his question cautiously, in her whimsical tone.
"Shade, would be good. Although," she just didn't see how she could walk by herself, at least until she could get the wobble of her knees under control. Falmar save me, I'm going to have to ask him to carry me. "Would you mind helping me along. I ... I don't trust me feet just yet.
"As to how I ended up out there? I... I was washed ashore, obviously," her eyes peered curiously into his face, trying to gauge just how much of a story he might believe. "Three days ago, I was sailing, when a storm rose from nowhere. It tipped my small boat, and I was lost to the ocean's mercy..."Nice one, Reev, ocean's mercy. pah!
"... but, I don't remember much else. How... how'd you find me?"
He merely nodded as he moved his arm up to hold her just under her shoulders instead. "I'll help, don't be worrying yourself over something like that," he said with a roll of his eyes as he stepped off to walk with her. He figured a woman he "rescued" might actually take his help, so he found it a bit odd she was asking. Her little story, however, did spark a bit of interest in that off mind of his.
Her? Sailing? On an actual ship? My, this could be interesting... "How did I find you? Hmph." Looking to the mare tagging along, Ganon gestured vaguely to the animal with a wave of his free hand. "She insisted on going down to the beach ? and don't you ask me why, I've no idea...crazy thing was pulling and wouldn't listen to a thing I did. But there you were, sprawled out like some...like some, oh I don't know like what. But she insisted on taking a look at ya.
"And you looked about dead so I figured I couldn't just leave you out there to burn up and die, or get eaten."
She couldn't help but wince as they stepped across the ground, even though she was trying to tread as lightly as she could. It would take some getting used to, it always did. And actually, she couldn't find herself getting upset as the contact either, instead, leaning into him slightly. Her hand snaked around his back so that she could keep as much weight off her feet as possible. She couldn't help the slight limp in her gait either.
At the mention of the horse, she cast a glance over to it. The horse heard me? How curious. I didn't know animals were susceptible. In her head, she began to hum an intoxicatingly sweet tune, directed to the horse, wondering if it would catch the magic threads in its subconscious. She ran a hand over the smooth plane of her bare stomach absently, before letting her hand drop.
"Well, I am glad you came," she offered, blinking up at him and smiling sweetly. Her skin was in fact feeling particularly warm, and she cast a quick glance to the little wisp of cloud still hanging of his head. "But what would eat me out here? It's not as if I was in a forest."
The obvious difference in their gaits had him wondering if she truly was injured somehow he had not seen. Delphine, however, was getting antsy again for the excitement she just couldn't contain. The mare pranced in pace in-time with their steps as she craned her neck to peer around Ganon to eye Reevahn in silence.
~I know it's you. I know it. I knew it when I found you. Pretty song. I want to keep it.~
Ganon walked with her, an arm still firmly around her though he remained blissfully oblivious to the cloud as those dark eyes watched her closely now, a twitch of a smile showing until he realized she'd taken notice of his slip of tongue. "Well," he began, apprehensive and unsure of how he might believably cover his small blunder before it snowballed into something he couldn't hide from. "I hear there are things around.... things that lurk about, y'know. Monsters and such that make their runs along the shore, but I suppose it could just be stories." With a shrug, he lifted his eyes to the road before them, trying to pay no mind to the increasingly hyper horse at his other side.
"But I hear it's mostly at night they come out, so I s'pose you don't have much to worry about now that you've been found, hm?" He chanced a glance down to her legs now before adding, "Did you twist your leg or something? Ya hurt anywhere?"
Reevahn giggled at Delphine's antics, and continued the little humming song in her mind for her benefit. So intriguing that it was the animal affected, and not the man beside her. It really would have been so much fun to have a fellow fawning all over her. He was just talking about monsters, and her attention redirected to him.
It seemed that both of their attentions weren't entirely in tact. "Monsters along the shores? Pah! I've never seen anything more scary along the beaches than a human with a fishing line." Her lips twisted a little with her give-away, but what was even more annoying was the fact that she wasn't entirely sure how to answer his next question.
"I might have," she said warily, looking down at the unfamiliar appendages, watching as her toes touched the ground, and feeling every single little grain of sand, rock and pebble underfoot. It was best to be honest. Sort of. "I don't know. My feet hurt. I can't put weight on them. Can we stop soon?"
He looked down as she did, but he had no way of knowing right now that her legs were anything out of the ordinary for her. That she looked fragile, though, was quite an understatement; she looked about ready to drop and her request to stop soon had him wondering if he'd pushed her too far.
"Sure... but, here. If they hurt, I can carry you the rest of the way," he said, gesturing down the path with his head before giving her a quick once over that left a slight gleam in his eyes. "Here, I'm sure it won't be any trouble..." Ganon stopped, gesturing with his free hand down at her legs and hoping she would allow him to pick her up, though he was already inclined to force her to accept his "help". The horse wasn't helping much, though, what with how she hovered around them.
"And what's this about scary fishermen?" he prodded.
Reevahn met the look in his eye, and barely hid a little distrustful glint of her own to edge in. The rain cloud above his head grew in size, still small enough to remain unnoticed, but now big enough to give him a good dousing. Still, this is what she had wanted, wasn't it? The chance to get out and explore, and meet new people? Maybe he was just a kind stranger. She nodded to his offer. "Thank you. That'd be lovely."
She realised though, that she was going to have to think fairly quickly, yet again, to come up with a good reason for scary fishermen. "Well," she started slowly, brushing hair back from her face, and staring intently at the man, just in case he suspected something from how she avoided answering him completely.
"Have you ever had a man come at you with a hook? It isn't very nice. I bet you'd be scared if you were a poor, defenceless little fish, right?"
Bending down, Ganon picked her up much like he had previously, though he tried his best not to sling her around so much now. He did have the brief thought of throwing her back up onto the horse so he wouldn't have to put effort into it, but he decided against it when he realized he'd made the offer to do it himself. Could always do it later. Claim I'm tired, she wouldn't know the difference.
"Just keep your arms around my neck. Keep us more balanced that way," he explained simply between her explanation. That, in itself, though, puzzled him quite a bit. Looking down at her, those maroon eyes widen a bit as she basically asked him to imagine himself as one of the fish a fisherman might be after. "A...hook?" If he had a free hand, he definitely would have been scratching his head right then. That's just so damned... weird. Very weird. A fish. Never had anyone describe a fisherman as all that scary before. Poor thing must've hit her noggin, huh? Or maybe the lack of air really got to her head out there. Or she's...seeing strange things. Quite possibly a bit of all of those. Damn, what have I gotten myself into... Stupid horse. Taking me to some crazy woman.
"I don't quite see how a fish is defenseless... Couldn't it just swim away?" he asked slowly as he walked along, unsure if he should be goading her further on this even though the horse seemed so interested in her whether she was speaking or not. Still, the cloud went unnoticed, his attention wholly on the girl in his arms whose sanity he was not entirely sure of at this point.
Reevahn did as she was told, and hooked her arms up around his neck. It was a strange feeling, being so close to another. She'd always been careful to keep her distance. She didn't know how her siren-esque qualities might react with physical contact. Right about now, she was realising that she wasn't reacting in a way that might be harmful at all. She had no urge to gobble him up, like her sisters might have. Hah. I'm a vegetarian! She was quite happy with this little revelation, and took the opportunity to relax in this stranger's arms.
That was, until he carried on about fish not being defensless. She snorted as this thought, and her eyes widened in indignation. "Sw-swim!? Swim away!? Have you ever heard of a net!? They're horrible, barbaric things. Fish get trapped, tangled even. I've seen - heard of - fishermen who use nets to corral fish in huge numbers so that they can fish to their hearts content. They don't even care that they make the animals sad! And do you know what else? If creatures like turtles, and dolphins get stuck too - do you know what they do!?"
Her concentration on the rain cloud was slipping, while her cheeks began to glow a rosy red, and her voice screeched as she reached the pinnacle of her tirade. "The fishermen let them get stuck, and then the poor things DIE!"
"A net? Of course I ha--" But her tirade continued. He certainly hadn't expected this, but it was somewhat amusing to see someone so recently back into "consciousness" lecturing him about the woes of sea creatures. He had never really given much thought into how most fishermen got their livelihood especially considering how little he actually "ate" and how infrequently he ever did so. Fish was definitely something he'd had very little of in what life he could remember, but it was food all the same to him. Tasty. Nutritious. That was all he cared about when it came to "eating", not where his food really went to before it ended up on his plate.
She was definitely fired up about this, though, and at the very least he could tell by the bright coloring of her cheeks now, her eyes suddenly lit with some passion he did not know the depths of about her beloved fish. Fish. Turtles. Anything else for that matter... it's all the same to me.
"No need to scream," he reminded her, wincing a bit as he glanced up to the path ahead to see how close they were to where a thicker tree line started. "Things die every day, Missy. Everyone eats something... the world can't go on without stuff dying, right? I mean... what's a couple of fish, huh? So what if a few animals die... it's better for everyone in the end."
"Things die! Of course they die! I'm not stupid, you idiot!" Reevahn was seething at his apparent view of her ignorance. "I'm not opposed to fish dying if it is to feed other life, it happens every day in the ocean. I know all about the circle of life, mister." The sarcastic inflection was heavy, and with it, she finally lost control of the cloud, and a downpour rained down on Ganon's head with as much gusto as she was berating him.
Seeing the cloud let loose, however, did not stop her talking. "What I get upset about is that way humans are so greedy! They take more than they need, and destroy and ... and ... kill! ... whatever natural resources are around. It makes me so mad! Because.. well, look at you! You see no problem with creatures dying when they clearly didn't need to! You know what happens to the creatures that get tangled in nets? Huh? Huh!? THEY DIE! FOR NO REASON! They arenot even used for food. Just left to .. left to..." she began sniffing, overwhelmed with sadness for the plight of her beloved ocean.
"Just left to rot. And no one cares."
She wasn't heeding his words on the screaming, and her anger seemed to grow even, if that was possible at this point. The livid look in her eyes was met with something fairly lackluster in his own. He thought it odd that she was so passionate about animals that got trapped in nets considering that he himself had never batted an eye at the issue. Pondering this, though, was abruptly interrupted by the sudden, cold and heavy rain pricking harshly at bare skin. Hissing and wincing, his head quickly snapped up to look to the skies as he hurried to get them out from under the uncanny dashing of rainwater. "'The hell did that come from," he muttered even as she carried on. Cold. Cold rain. Very cold.
His efforts did nothing for the fact that he'd already received a good soaking, which was irritating but nothing really to fuss over too much, but he was a bit surprised for the sudden change of weather from fairly unclouded skies. The woman hadn't stopped talking, though, and as he turned his attention back to what she was saying he just let out a heavy sigh as he shook his head to try and whip some of the water from his hair away so it would stop dripping into his eyes. So strange that she doesn't seem fazed by getting drenched. Though, I suppose she doesn't care much considering she was washed up on the beach...
"It happens," he sighed, trying very hard not to grit his teeth. "Not everything's ever going to be perfect. Waste happens... Now, could you please stop hollering? At least until we get somewhere for you to 'rest'? I'm carrying you for a reason... and I'd like to hope that that decision was still a good one." Nah, I just need her calm. Don't like the yelling, it's going to give me a headache if she won't cut it out. Stupid fish... why do they have to be so dumb that... people... people like her feel the need to get all protective 'cause they can't keep out of trouble themselves?! Ugh... I need a drink.
As suddenly as the rain had started, it stopped again. Reevahn seemed to be able to gather her wits back to her, and with a deep steadying breath, she forced the cloud to dissipate, giving way to the cerulean sky that reigned above. It was true that she was unperturbed by the water on her skin - she didn't even shiver. The rain caught in her hair, sending it into water-laden, silky curls.
She pouted for a moment, before nodding. "I'm.. I'm sorry. I guess I just get ... a little carried away. The ocean's very special to me, and I hate it when people treat it with disrespect, simply because it is not their home." She stopped before she started on another tirade, and took the opportunity to take in his sopping appearance.
It started as a snort, which quickly snowballed into raucous giggling. "You look ... like ... a drowned... rat!" She was shaking so hard with the laughter that she had to readjust her hold on him. It seemed that Ganon had no idea where it had come from, and for that she was pleased. It would take some explaining. Calming herself down, yet again, and this time from another entirely exuberant and wholly genuine rush of emotion, Reevahn quieted for the short while it took for them to get to the trees.
She wriggled in his arms then. "You can put me down now. " Patting his cheek lightly she added, "you've been very kind to carry me this far. And all without a name, too. Who are you, Mister Ruby-eyes? You know, they're quite a pretty colour. I don't think I've ever seen eyes that colour before."
He wanted to say something about the ocean not being much of a home unless there was a ship in it, but he didn't want to invite any more conversation on the ocean or its fish or whatever else she might get riled up over right now. Taking notice of her looking at him, though, he just quirked a brow with a slightly smug smile before turning to look ahead once more. Bet she likes what she sees. And here I thought this would be hard with how she got all...protective over some animals. Pah. Worthless things, most of 'em. W-wait... a rat? A RAT?! Oh, come ON!
Her laughter should have been something he craved, as a sign of some sense of comfort around him, but it was all he could do to keep holding her up and just walk along without making some snide comment. "Funny, eh? Darn rain..." A slightly pained look in his eyes accompanied this as he sighed and carried along toward their destination without looking at her at all. As they slowed and then stopped, though, he finally chanced a look down just as she spoke again.
"Down?" He didn't really want to put her down. It was a good show of his strength and he thought it might get him bonus points that he wanted to help and she was unsteady on her feet at best right now, or had seemed to be. The contact on his cheek caused him to tense a bit before relaxing again at her thanks and compliments. 'Ruby-eyes', eh? She likes them. And that means she likes the nice man for helping her. Oh, pretty? Pretty eyes? Yes, she likes. Finally easing her down, though not entirely without reluctance, he flashed a pleased, toothy grin. "I try to be a gentleman when I can..., but... You think so? I've never had a lady tell me that before," he lied.
"I guess it's rare... My name is Ganon, and, if you need any more help I'd be glad to stick around, you know. Help you into town, maybe... Or get you to your family... Wait, do you have family from around here, perhaps? Do you live around here?" He sorely hoped not, he did enjoy being able to show a girl around, get her comfortable, perhaps share a meal or two or three or four or however many he could milk out of the short-lived pairing. "Oh, and," he gestured behind him to the black mare that still seemed quite curious of the girl but was far less enchanted now that the music had stopped, "this is Delphine."
The ground still tore at her tender feet, but the Siren was determined now that she had got this far from shore, to make the most of every moment. She couldn't help the whimper that escaped her, except to bite down on her lip lightly. "Yes, I really think so." The flattery could continue, she knew, for as long as it was needed. He seemed to enjoy it, and what was more, he was helping her without the need of her music to draw him in. Things were, despite her little outburst, going rather well.
Home? Where you found me, bubble-head. But aren't you kind. I guess I play the little orphan role now. Don't need to answer those questions directly.
"Delphine? What a precious name," she simpered, drawing close to the animal, reaching up with a dainty hand to pet along her nose. "I'm Reevahn." She stayed standing for as long as she could bear, until she felt her stomach growing queasy with the effort it was taking to bite back the pain. This is going to take some getting used to. I wonder, if he takes me with him, if he'll let me ride the horse.
Setting herself down against a tree, she sat with her long legs outstretched. "That would be wonderful, Ganon, if you'd stay with me a while. I'm afraid I don't really know where I am. As for family," she let out a mournful sigh, and turned sad eyes towards him. "I... I lost them... to the sea." Clever girl! "They were aboard the ship with me. I don't think any of them made it. They're probably all... at the bottom of the ocean." Her mouth turned down in a pitiful attempt to smile. "I would really appreciate the company. I don't feel like I could make it on my own, just yet."
He didn't miss the little noise from her, but it didn't seem to persist so it didn't hold his attention enough to want to know the cause. Watching her move closer to the mare and pet her, though, he couldn't help but see how delighted the animal seemed to have her so near. Delphine certainly wasn't some terrible, ferocious beast, just a normal horse, beautiful as she was, but her returned affections were slightly surprising to him. "I think she likes you," he offered, then smiled, "but Reevahn... that's a very nice name, I don't believe I know any other."
As she sat herself down, Ganon remained standing by the horse, adjusting the tack as he listened to her. It was all almost too good to be true for him, though. A girl who needed help, didn't know where she was, probably was entirely alone in the world and was practically asking him to stay? This is-- I better be careful. I might be able to keep her around for a while if I'm not too...greedy. She seems really hardy, too, surviving a shipwreck... Maybe she'll actually last without dying on me.
For now, he kept his face sympathetic to what she could tell him, and when she was done, stepped around Delphine to crouch beside her. "Of course, and... I'm sorry for your loss," he said simply, wanting to put on the mask of a good guy for her now. "You're in good company, though, I could take you wherever you'd like with the horse. Umm... where are you from? I could at least get you to your hometown, any distant relatives, anything you like, really." He glanced down to her wet clothes before tugging at his own sopping shirt uncomfortably. "Or more immediately... try and get some dry clothes soon, eh? I don't have anything a woman might want to wear." Not getting anything of mine. Nuh-uh. Find her own damn clothes... Rescuing her's the whole reason I got wet in the first place...
She shied away, naturally, as he came closer, her preservation instincts kicking in now that they were a fair distance from the sea. Reevahn was beginning to realise that she hadn't thought this through very well at all. But, Ganon was being quite the gentleman, and besides from the initial few moments when he had hefted her ungracefully over the horse's back, had been relatively concerned for her. Or so she thought.
Except that she couldn't answer his questions. Sweet mother of pearl, how do I answer this? I can't tell him I'm from the ocean... oh! I know! I... hit my head. I don't remember. it was a long shot, but it was worth it, she figured. Her expression turned doe-eyed, and she looked quite innocent in that state. "I don't ... I don't remember where I'm from," she said, lifting her hand to her head. Frowning, she tried to feign rememberance. "And I ... I don't think I have any more family. No... I remember... I remember... oh, I don't remember much at all, I'm afraid!" Another little pitiful sigh, before she perked up at the idea of new clothes.
"Clothes? Oh, I'm fine in these. I... I guess they will dry out soon enough," she plucked at the thin, gauzy material coating her new legs. Sure enough, they were already starting to grow less damp beneath her fingers. The shirt on the other hand, clung to her. She was a little surprised that he hadn't mentioned her bare midriff, or the jewel set where her belly button should have been. "Where are we though?" She asked finally, draping her arms across her stomach, to try and make sure that he didn't notice the oddity about her form. Just one of the few. "Are you from around here? Wherever here is? Could I stay with you? You seem safe enough!"
The shrinking away was a bit surprising. He figured it was just because she didn't much trust him, which he couldn't fault her in, so he stayed where he was to give her her space. He gave her a look for her answer, though, not entirely believing that she was fine and almost pitying her for her seeming lack of memory, but he wasn't going to press the issue right now. "Alright, if you insist," he agreed, not wanting to make the situation awkward over such an odd subject. She kept going on, though.
Her appearance was kind of hard to miss, but he'd chosen not to fixate on it or ask questions just yet. He thought it strange enough to find some shipwrecked girl that his horse just could not bear to be away from. "Where? We're just up the coast from Cerenis and staying with me..." he trailed off, looking over his shoulder to Delphine as if she might be able to tell him some answer or take him through the proper wording of it.
"I do live around here -and you can stay for a little while if you want, Reevahn- but..." She doesn't need to know that you should talk to the landlady first. Oh, to hell with her, it doesn't matter if I have a guest for a couple of nights. Not like I haven't before. She'll just get all interested in who I've got with me, anyway, the old, lovely nag. "You can stay," he began again, this time with a much brighter, kind smile of a man concerned with her safety after finding her washed up, or so he hoped. It would only be a matter of time before that facade would crumble in the face of the hunger food could not satiate.
"Would you like to go soon or take a rest for a while here? The town's still a ways down the road," he said, entirely aware that he was avoiding her other questions right now.
Reevahn looked absolutely delighted that he agreed to let her stay with him. She beamed up at him, a bright spark filling her eyes. She had forgotten to be wary now. That was one of her downfalls. Once a kindness was extended to her, Reevahn seemed to throw caution to the wind, and tether herself to the person who had treated her with any sort of compassion. She had already set her mind to sticking with Ganon, for as long as he would let her. It was just her way.
"My feet are really very sore. I should probably just ... hey..." She stopped for a moment, and focussed all her attention on the man's face. "Your eyes... I've never seen any quite that colour before. I know I mentioned them earlier but... they really are such an incredible colour.
"I saw a colour like that once. A ship caught fire. The heat and flames turned the sky dark and red, and from beneath -" She stopped abruptly, and ducked her head. Stupid. Stupid. Stop saying stupid things. A hand lifted to toy with the braid in her hair, fingers dancing over the shells woven into the strands. "Taking a rest sounds good," she cast her eyes down to her feet, and grimaced slightly. Some cover.
Again with the eyes. Ganon was a bit surprised by her fascination with it. Then again, most people did seem to notice, but she was quite bold in voicing her observations. It wasn't something he was complaining about, though, having already decided that he was going to let this woman into his house, if only for a little while, with the hopes of charming her enough: A proper meal, a proper feeding, and, hopefully, a willing participant.
That she seemed to like it was good, but her story caught his attention. Red. A fire. A ship. Was it his? He had no way of knowing, but his attention was now divided as thoughts of a grand vessel circled in. Beneath... Beneath what? The ship? Quiet until she stopped talking, he settled himself down to sit now instead as his mind worked to piece together the fictitious picture for him yet again. "What... why were you beneath?" he finally asked.
"Were you on it? Did you fall? Into the water... My, how did you get away? Swim to shore? Someone pick you up? ...you have an awful lot of ship-related problems, Reevahn."
"Beneath? Did I say beneath? Oh no, I meant -" she grimaced, and searched her mind for something that sound even slightly plausible. She remembered her sisters talking about pirates, and how they sailed the seas taking what they would from each other, and there were plenty wrecks at the ocean's floor boasting more riches than one person alone could imagine, that there must be some truth to the story. And so it became hers.
"Well, yes. I fell. See, I was a Pirate Captain's daughter, I remember now. Black .... Black Boris, they called him. The ship was so fine, the biggest thing on the ocean." Her eyes grew wide with her story telling, and she turned her face to Ganon so he could catch all her little expressions and emphasis. Not that she wasn't talking with her hands already - they were waving about in explanation, nearly whacking him several times in the process.
"We were set upon by another ship, and sadly," she pouted her, with big puppy dog eyes, "the ship was lost. Father tossed me overboard before it could go down, so that I might have a chance at life." Her hands came to her chest, "Oh, father!" Perhaps she was relishing this story a little too much. "I was washed ashore, but I soon found my way back to the ocean. I could never be far from the ocean for long. It's my life's blood." Well, at least there was a little truth to her story.
"Have you ever been on a pirate ship, Ganon? They are the most glorious things." She gave a blissful little sigh, and tugged on her shell-entwined braid. "You really should sometime, you know."
The story she presented definitely drew in his attention. He couldn't say he'd ever heard of the man she named as her father, but the idea of her being a daughter of a pirate certainly caught his interest: Had he ever been beaten to a haul by this fellow captain? Or worse yet, had he been the one to seize his ship? If that was true the ship was already lost, but it got him wondering what sort of things Reevahn might know.
While Ganon was not a man known for being particularly informed, the nature of his existence had molded him into needing a certain level of common sense and that common sense was telling him her stories weren't matching up. Before, she was telling him that she'd been aboard a ship that was lost to a storm and now she was saying she knew the fate of at least her father and that she'd found her way back to the sea somehow. Yet, she'd said before that going overboard was the last thing she remembered happening before she'd been washed ashore. He figured there were either gigantic holes in her story or one was a complete lie but either way it didn't seem that she was aware of the inconsistencies she was presenting now.
For now, he was going to keep these thoughts to himself, tucked away for future use should he have any way of exploiting this; he was sure he would find some way of achieving that one way or another. Now, though she was asking about him.
"I have, but not in a very long time. I'm sorry about your father, but that's a funny coincidence, you know. See, I'm a captain, too. Of a ship, of course. Problem is, I don't quite remember what happened to it or my crew. We had such nice gig running and now...well, there's nothing right now." He gave a brief smile here, though, one that showed no signs of frustration with this fact, enduring and ironic as it had been. "Did you grow up on the ship? At sea?"
Reevahn was happily unaware of the inconsistencies in her stories, listened quite intently to Ganon's. Seemed he was without memory, and that suited her just fine. Perhaps it would extended to him forgetting little bits and pieces she'd told him. She lifted her hands and raked her hair over one shoulder, before beginning to braid it absently.
"Perhaps your ship was set upon by another, and you knocked your head and fell, just like me," she offered by way of empathizing with his plight, before trying to come up with a plausible story to give in answer to his question. She decided to be honest. Of sorts.
"Oh, at sea, yes. The first things I remember is the waves, being surrounded by ocean. In fact, I hardly every came on land. The sea was always bountiful, and provided all we ever needed." She undid the braid in her hair and flicked her hair over to the other shoulder, and began again, watching with a wistful remembrance as the strands of turquoise blended into the pale white blonde of the rest of her hair.
"I remember being lulled to sleep by the rocking of the currents, and being sung to by whales as if I was one of their own. It was always so peaceful, and quiet and calm - even in the storms. Beneath the sea was always so still..." She trailed off, with her eyes taking on a far away look, and her mind was in another place for a moment.
"Maybe so," was all he responded with at first, the mere idea setting his mind to cast back to the very beginning of what memories he did possess. The movements of her fingers as she proceeded to braid her hair quite easily distracted him, though. Those maroon eyes watched her carefully as she continued speaking and, finally, he was taking in the oddities with her hair. What he saw didn't so much bother as intrigue him, having never seen someone with colors like that. The fascination with the possibility of it all being natural got him thinking, wondering what sort of lineage she actually bore.
How Reevahn spoke also caught his attention; her words seemed so fond and reminded him of things he'd heard sailors recount. But singing whales? Beneath the sea again? "You must really like to swim, huh?" he commented with a short laugh as he dug the toe of his boot into the ground. "I can't say I've ever heard a whale, what do they sound like when they sing? ...How far down did you have to go to hear them? Or can you hear them anywhere?"
Inwardly she cringed again. How long was she going to keep on getting distracted and not pay attention to her words. But she figured, as she watched him dig his toe into the soil, that so far he hadn't seemed to see through her lies, or the semi-truth she'd spoke in just now, so what was the harm in continuing.
"I love to swim," she answered, "I was always swimming... and you don't have to go very far at all. Sometimes even from the surface you can hear them, if they're very close." She smiled and stretched her new legs out in front of her. "The trick for most humans is to be able to hold their breath long enough if they're diving to listen. I could take you with me sometime?"
She didn't think he would take her up on the offer, which was precisely why she made it. Slapping her hands on her thighs then, she looked up at Delphine, and then back at Ganon with a mischievous sparkle in her eye. "You know, I think I'm all dried up now... what about you? That was some freak little shower, huh? Just came out of nowhere!"