To Lead the Blind (Silver)

[Lion]

"Oh, yes.  Hair is miraculous that way.  You know there are stories of an army that was kind of like hair.  Well, I mean in that when one soldier died another would immediately replace him.  I think you're hair will grow like that.  And maybe before you know it, you will have more.  More than you can handle if you're lucky."  Ginzu was liking this now, making her feel better.  It was nice to make someone feel good for a change rather than saying something that upset them and made them want to beat his face in.  He had a very offbeat attitude, marching to the beat of his own drum, and it wasn't lost on him that his penchant for blunt honesty was often taken as tactless and rude.  But in reality, he knew no other way to be.

He heard her jingle something and objects falling on the bank, she said something he found rather peculiar.  "What's that?  What's not much but still very nice?  You're clothes?  Oh, that's right you're....naked."  At this he swallowed a little and merely smiled with a nod of decent comprehension.  But he remained there still sitting at the bank and swooshing his feet through the water.  "By the sound of it, you must have a lot of stuff in your pockets.  Anything interesting?"

"It's good that you're gonna dry soon.  As for me," he paused to raise a hand and wave it at himself, "I think I'm gonna take a while."  He laughed again, recalling at how he'd fallen into the pool and picturing it perfectly in his mind.  There was such hilarity in accidents, well except the ones that drew blood.  Those were rarely ever fun.  At the request of something to do, this made him smile some more and he considered, "Maybe we should play a game.  Do you have any game that you'd like to play?  I think I can handle that while I'm not so busy meditating.  Hm, and maybe I can show you some moves?  What do you say to that?"

[Anonymous]

"I hope you are right," she said, touching her hair again.  "I would like some more.   Had thought that I still had some hair.  I guess it keeps falling out," she said sadly.  "I swore I had more..."  Her voice was filled with curiosity.  The woman stood there for a long while thinking about it.  "Well, I guess I can' really remember," she said, chuckling slightly.  "Oh well.  Either way.  More hair."

One arm went to cover her chest and the other went to cover her lower regions.  "I thought that it wouldn't matter since you can't see me," she said offended.  She had no reason to be offended, and yet she was anyway.  It wasn't certain as to why she had covered herself anyway, since it was true that he could not see her.  She suddenly felt conscious, but did not want to get wet again.  It was cold now, she decided.  It always got cold so close to dawn.  She shivered, the gooseflesh rising on her skin.  Such an emotion was easily forgotten and now she walked passed Ginzu and toward the pile of things which had come out of her dress.  She knelt and took a good look at the pile.  "No, not really," she dismissed them.  "A handkerchief, a rat's tail, a necklace, a little bag and some dead cockroaches."  She stared at them blankly.  "Just small trinkets I collected along the way I suppose."  She gathered them all up into her hands and showed them to him.  "I don't remember where I got most of these.  But I like them."

Iavas looked at him, taking hold of the corner of his wet shirt.  She tugged on it.  "You know, I think I remember hearing some place that it was not very safe to stay in wet clothes.  I think I remember hearing that some peopled died!" she exclaimed, suddenly horrified.  She was in a dilemma, though.  She did not want him to get sick and die because he sat in his wet clothes all night, but she also felt embarrassed even hinting at taking his clothes off.  Even crazy, she felt it was too intimate a thing for her to see a male like that.  She cleared her throat awkwardly.

"A game?  I don't know any games really... I guess I just never have time to play them."  She looked at the water.  "I do know some water games.  I used to watch the otters play them.  It always looked fun to me, but they always ran away," she said disappointedly.  "What kind of moves?" she wondered suddenly, curious.  She sat down next to him, putting her hand in a pile on his knee, resting her chin on this pile, and gazing up at him innocently.

[Anonymous]

"I hope you are right," she said, touching her hair again.  "I would like some more.   Had thought that I still had some hair.  I guess it keeps falling out," she said sadly.  "I swore I had more..."  Her voice was filled with curiosity.  The woman stood there for a long while thinking about it.  "Well, I guess I can' really remember," she said, chuckling slightly.  "Oh well.  Either way.  More hair."

One arm went to cover her chest and the other went to cover her lower regions.  "I thought that it wouldn't matter since you can't see me," she said offended.  She had no reason to be offended, and yet she was anyway.  It wasn't certain as to why she had covered herself anyway, since it was true that he could not see her.  She suddenly felt conscious, but did not want to get wet again.  It was cold now, she decided.  It always got cold so close to dawn.  She shivered, the gooseflesh rising on her skin.  Such an emotion was easily forgotten and now she walked passed Ginzu and toward the pile of things which had come out of her dress.  She knelt and took a good look at the pile.  "No, not really," she dismissed them.  "A handkerchief, a rat's tail, a necklace, a little bag and some dead cockroaches."  She stared at them blankly.  "Just small trinkets I collected along the way I suppose."  She gathered them all up into her hands and showed them to him.  "I don't remember where I got most of these.  But I like them."

Iavas looked at him, taking hold of the corner of his wet shirt.  She tugged on it.  "You know, I think I remember hearing some place that it was not very safe to stay in wet clothes.  I think I remember hearing that some peopled died!" she exclaimed, suddenly horrified.  She was in a dilemma, though.  She did not want him to get sick and die because he sat in his wet clothes all night, but she also felt embarrassed even hinting at taking his clothes off.  Even crazy, she felt it was too intimate a thing for her to see a male like that.  She cleared her throat awkwardly.

"A game?  I don't know any games really... I guess I just never have time to play them."  She looked at the water.  "I do know some water games.  I used to watch the otters play them.  It always looked fun to me, but they always ran away," she said disappointedly.  "What kind of moves?" she wondered suddenly, curious.  She sat down next to him, putting her hand in a pile on his knee, resting her chin on this pile, and gazing up at him innocently.

[Lion]

"Oh, no!  It doesn't, it doesn't!  I'm fine with it, I just didn't actually realize it until now.  Don't worry about me, I can take care of myself.  I don't have a problem, really I don't.  Go ahead, be naked, it's perfectly natural."  It was obvious that he offended her now, though he really meant nothing by it.  Hopefully his explanation would solve things.  "Sorry," he apologized absently.  But she quickly moved on to other, lighter topics, such as the objects that were inside her pockets.  "Cockroaches...interesting.  Would that rat's tail, by any chance, be from the rat we just ate a while ago?  The feast, if you remember?"

A smile graced his gaunt features and a lazy hand reached up to rub the blindfold along his nose.  It always seemed to tingle there for some reason.  He scratched there nonetheless, hoping to relieve a little of the irritation and nodded at her next statement.  "Really?  I don't think I've heard of that."  A laugh escaped him once more at the thought of dying.  He laughed so hard this time that he couldn't help but slap his thigh and clap.  "That's a good one, Iavas.  If it's true, then other people should get dry as quickly as possible.  As for me, I don't think I'll be dying anytime soon.  I'm very old in case you didn't know and I've been around for a very long time, not getting sick once.  Well....um, I don't think I've gotten sick...  But, ah, who cares!  I'm well now and my clothes will dry soon."

"No time?  What do you do that keeps you so busy?  If you make time, I'm sure you'll find lotsa games to play.  I suppose one with otters wouldn't be so bad.  Better than playin' cat'n'mouse with a hungry bear I can tell you that.  One thing's for sure, don't be messin' with wild animals.  Admire 'em if you want, but really I think they like to be left alone."  Ginzu was caught in a very awkward position now as she rested her head on his knee.  Such an act was something he wasn't used to and he went about it by being very quiet for a while.  After some lost thought, he reached and patted her head, something he was getting used to doing and leaned back on his arms.  "Well, y'know, moves like as in self-defense.  I could teach you some moves in how you can protect yourself from things that want to hurt you.  What if I'm not around and you can't run anywhere?  What're you gonna do?  Sometimes you have to fight back and I can show you how, if you'd like."

[Anonymous]

She was glad that he turned out to be ok with her nudity.  After all, she couldn't help it at this point.  Her dress was completely wet, and she wasn't going to be wearing that thing like that.  It was too dangerous to her.  Perhaps she was just a bit too paranoid, but one could never be too safe.  She looked at her things in his hands.  She took the cockroach away and threw it aside.  "You don't need that.  He's dead now.  He need to go back," she said dismissively.  "Oh yes,  I do remember," she said reminiscing.  "The first feast I'd had in a while," she murmured.  "Yes, that is from that rat.  Isn't it pretty?  I thought so, anyway.  That's why I kept it after all.  Look at the crazy scales and the pretty colors," she said, looking into his hands to stare at the appendage.  She admired it for a second longer.  She also picked up the dirty gold necklace, staring at it, letting the failing starlight play with the bullion hues.  "I like this," she said quietly, then looked back at her dress.  "But I have nothing to wear it with.  Or nothing to wear it for.  So I just keep it for the future.  I mean, I'm not young like I used to be, but you never know; the occasion might arise."  She was suddenly optimistic, although to what occasion she was referring it was not clear.

Concerned for his health, she watched him smile; it was a lovely change to his otherwise rugged features, but she wondered why he smiled.  It was no light matter, this.  She watched, appalled, as he laughed.  He seemed to think it quite hysterical.  Apparently he had never heard such a thing.  "Really!" she breathed.  "It's no laughing matter.  You should really take care of yourself, Ginzu.  You don't seem very good at it," she pouted.  "I don't know how you came this far, sometimes."  She felt uncomfortable leaving him in his wet clothes.  She knew that it would take a while for the garments to dry especially since the night was dark and cool.  She continued to pout.  "Well, I think it's better to be safe," she muttered.

"I don't can't remember what I normally do.  But I don't think it's very much.  I think I like to wander around and steal all the berries before everyone else gets to them.  That's how you have to be here, you know.  Whoever gets there first wins."  Then she silently listened as he continued to lecture her on safety and animals.  All things she knew.  She wasn't really paying attention; something else had caught her attention.  In the dim starlight and the slow coming of dawn, she caught sight of a little dust particle in the air.  She watched quietly as it floated about.  What a strange thing... she liked the way it sparkled and twisted in the air, yielding to a light breeze.  Then it went out of view.  She was quietly disappointed.  She returned her attention back to Ginzu, her head still resting on his knee.  He had changed subjects alright, it seemed.

"Self defense.  Yeah, I think that could be useful.  But I don't have the body to defend myself."  She looked down at herself.  Her ribs were easily seen, her pelvic bones jutted out.  And when she looked at her wrists and ankles sometimes, she did not recognize them.  Even she knew her limits, and they were mean.  "I don't know," she said doubtfully.   "I don't think I could handle it though."

[Lion]

Ginzu let go of the pile, putting it gently on the floor along the bank as if it were a pile of fragile memories or jewels instead of useless objects from her pockets.  He couldn't see the necklace she held up for a time, but he turned his head downward to where she held the chain and gave solemn nod.  The jingle sounded familiar and he could recall holding a necklace at one point in time.  Someone had given it to him as a token of appreciation or whatever, but at the time it didn't mean much.  And maybe now not much changed since then.  But he could tell that the necklace meant a lot to the person who gave it to him.  Who was that anyway?  Well, no matter, he could concentrate later.  He did mention, ever slightly, "I bet you look very pretty in it.  Maybe you can wear it here just for the hell of it."

At her next statement, his face turned suddenly stung and he raised his hands as if she were about to hit him.  But when she finished talking he could only smile back.  "You're not the first person that's told me that."  His voice was solemn and partially sorrowful.  "I don't mind the cold, really.  It's just that...well, the years haven't been kind to me.  I've experienced much abuse and I really don't see the point in starting now to turn things around.  But I'm still alright, I can get around.  I'm not entirely useless.  Don't worry, Iavas.  I won't get sick and I won't die.  Not yet, anyway."  He reached out and patted her head again in reassurance.  "But if it will make you feel any better, I could take the shirt off."  The statement was very nonchalant and more of a side than anything serious, but he decided to throw it out there nonetheless.

He heard her statement and her doubt which caused him to frown slightly.  "Oh really?"  Ginzu couldn't quite tell from her own words, he would have to make an assessment for himself just to be sure.  "Okay, I'm going to see you with my hands just be sure.  It can't really be that bad."  Reaching forward, he pulled up her wrist and wiggled it between two fingers loosely.  His hand was much larger and therefore wrapped easily around it.  "Hm," he muttered in thought.  Then he reached across to where he found her ribs and prodded along there gently, feeling how they stuck out.  Taking back his hands he scratched his head and said after a moment of thought.  "Scrawny," he said.  "That could be a problem.  But one that can easily be remedied.  We'll have to work hard to make you strong again.  That is if you want me to teach you.  Do you want to learn?"

[Anonymous]

"Do you think that I would?" she asked, apparently delighted.  The she paused, looking at the small trinket in her hands.  It was plain, and looked like it might have been a locket; she did not notice.  Her posture became less confident.  "No, maybe not," she said and set the necklace among the other things she had had in her dress.  No, she didn't know if that would make her look any nicer.  She sighed.  She stared at the pile for a while, thinking about it, but thinking of nothing at the same time.  Why did she keep those?  Well, she liked them.  But why did she like them?  She didn't know.  She didn't want to think about that anymore.  She looked up at Ginzu.

"Well, I hope you don't die," she agreed, having listened to his defense on how he never got sick and how he would not die.  "Well, that might still be helpful," she said, feeling a little better that he had offered to get rid of his wet shirt.  "Nyla always told me that our life was in here," she said, reaching over to tap him gently in the center of his chest, "so I suppose as long as you keep that dry, you'll be safe."  She smiled, feeling better about it.  She could not have him die on her.  Perhaps her reasons were selfish, but genuine nonetheless.  "How old are you anyway?" she wondered aloud, staring up at him with curiosity in her dull eyes.  "I mean, I know you say that you're old.  But how old?  I can't tell just looking at you."  She studied his features for a while.  There was a certain agelessness to him, she thought, but did not say it.

"Ok," she consented, allowing him to 'see with his hands' as he had put it.  The woman straightened, taking her hands and her face off of his knee.  She watched his hands as they came toward her and grasped her wrist.  She was shocked to see how easily his hands could get a hold on them.  Either her wrists were very small, or his hands were very big; or even both, she considered.  She was a bit started by the sensation of his hands on her ribs, but she said and did nothing, merely looking down at herself.  She didn't think that she would be able to do very much.  She had always had trouble merely surviving, and yet she had endured.

"Is that possible?  How do I become strong?" she wondered, genuinely curious.  She didn't know, of course; if she did, she would have already done that.  She thought that food was a necessity when it came to strength; but she did not always have that, especially in the city.  She nodded, after thinking to herself.  "Yes, I would; but I don't know if I could."

[Lion]

He could feel her gaze on him, if only slightly, and scrutinizing something.  Was he that strange?  He knew the answer to that question already, but did that afford him the reason to be gawked at constantly?  Well, he couldn't really say anything since she had every right to use her eyes the way she wanted to.  He didn't have any eyes at all; she should be able to take advantage of her vision if it pleased her.  When she spoke finally after what seemed like consideration, her voice was a little melancholic though he couldn't tell why.  Did the necklace make her sad for some reason?  Well, he didn't want to say anything that might make it all worse.

Seeing that she was satisfied and moved onto something less depressing, Ginzu nodded and said, "Okay then.  If you really think so, then I don't see why not."   He reached below and tugged the drenched cloth of his shirt over his head, sliding it off easily.  "There," he said, "I hope you're happy now."  Tossing the fabric over to the side, he leaned back a little as a result to her gentle jab.  "Oh well, then tell Nyla that that's very smart of her to think.  And thank you for telling me such valuable advice."  Whether Nyla was real or not, he figured that she was apart of Iavas and considered that maybe she came up with the notion herself and just wanted to believe that Nyla told her, whoever the little girl was.  Hm, either way the idea was a smart one and caused Ginzu to rub his chest a little, taking away some of the moisture.

"Huh?  My age?  Hm, that's a very difficult thing to answer, Iavas."  He paused for a long time, thinking of what he should tell her.  Even he, in all his infinitely blurred wisdom, couldn't calculate his exact age.  So what could he say?  "I can't see myself, as you know, so I can't tell you how old I look.  But I feel...I know...that I'm more than several thousand years old.  I've been through a lot and experienced the world change.  I've had lots of travels, most places I can remember; the people, not so much.  I'm sure I'm more than five thousand years old.  Uh, how old are you?  Or better yet, how old do I look?"

"Hm, to make you strong again, we'll have to do lots of eating and, more importantly, lots of exercise.  It'll be fun!  This can be like a game, except we get really tired afterward.  Who knows, you might even be good at it."

[Anonymous]

Iavas now wore a more comfortable smile.  Now she did not have to worry about Ginzu as much; he had his shirt off; that meant that he would not get sick, and that meant that he was safe now, in that aspect.  She watched as he tossed the wet garment aside, listened to the strange, heavy, flopping sound that resulted from its contact with the ground.  What a strange sound.  She liked it for some reason.  It was a pleasant sound.  That's why she washed her dress the way she did, and that's why she had continued to drop it on the ground, to here that sound again.  "Thank you," she said politely.  "I do feel much better.  Now I don't have to worry.  And I will tell Nyla; she will be pleased, I think.  

The woman's eyes suddenly widened.  "Five thousand?!" She whistled, looking him up and down.  "I would have never have guess that," she said.  She paused, contemplating.  "I would have guessed maybe thirty or forty!"  She laughed, laughed at herself for having totally underestimated his age.  Iavas shook her head.  "Five  thousand," she admired.  "That's a long time to live.  I bet they weren't all happy years, though," she said thoughtfully, almost as if she were actually referring to herself.  Her eyes held a distant look in them for a moment.  "What's it like to live forever...?" she wondered to herself almost inaudibly.  "I would be very lonely," she answered.  She suddenly looked back at Ginzu.  "My age?"  Her eyes moved star-ward.  "I'm... 27.  Getting old now." She sighed.  She felt that her life was dissatisfying.  But she did not say it.  She would never say it; she did not even like thinking it.    

"Strong?" she asked.  "Where are we going to get all this food that will make me strong.  I don't think there's food enough for that.  I've never found it."  She looked around herself.  The sky was much lighter, and the sun had no doubt just barely begun to kiss the horizon.  "Fun?" she wondered distractedly.  "Well, I suppose if it's like a game, then it might be fun," she said doubtfully.  "Well, if you say so.  You better be right," she said, mock threatening him.  She laughed.  "Well, we can't really start anything on an empty stomach.  Maybe we should go and find some food."  

She jumped to her feet, brushing off her hands.  She would have to wait a little while longer until her clothes were dry; but she didn't know if she really wanted to wear them again; this was a new stage in her life perhaps, and she did not want to enter that in her old clothes.  Besides, he couldn't see her anyway, right?

[Lion]

At the sound of her own estimation of his age, Ginzu let out another great chuckle, shaking his head and smiling when the laughter subsided.  "Oi!" he sighed.  "That's quite young, thank you.  I was scared you might say something drastic like sixty-ish.  I guess, I don't look that bad then, eh?"  Ginzu was relieved to hear this and it showed on his face.  He leaned back negligently on his elbows and turned his head toward the opposite direction of the pool, pretending he could look around and loved the view around him.  He heard her next question and his expression changed significantly.  It went from upbeat and happy to something far more melancholic and somber.  "It's not all that it's hyped up to be.  It is pretty lonely...and I get bored a lot.  So I drink and talk and travel to pass the time.  But I'm not so lonely now that you're around.  Thanks for that."  He turned his head toward her now and smiled cheekily, gaunt face dimpling awkwardly.

"Twenty-seven ain't so old," he tried to reassure her.  "You still got a lot of years on ya, I think.  And you won't be alone, I'm sure.  You're a very nice person and should have lots of friends.  And even if you don't, you've got me."  Grinning now, ear to ear, he pulled his legs up and crossed them, leaning forward in the same hunched fashion he always did in.  He found his spine was hurting him less than it usually did and therefore he didn't take sip from his drinking gourd.  He would have to try to refrain from drinking for the time he was doing his own meditation.

"You better get rid of that doubt in your voice, girl.  Or you really won't get very far from the start."  Ginzu was only half-jesting, but he added a small wry grin for a softened effect.  "What are you implying!?" he said with feigned indignation.  "I'm always right."  There was little cease to his amusement, even if the joke was on him.  Ginzu tried his best to keep things as good and happy as possible, since the pain of his body often put him in a very morose mood.  That and impossible people.  Iavas was becoming more and more tolerable with every moment of conversation.  "Okay, then if you're that hungry.  Lead on to the food."  He stood too and then twisted around in confusion.  "Wait.  Where is the food?"

[Anonymous]

Iavas smiled.  "Then I'm glad that I stumbled upon you; you won't be lonely ever again!"  She laughed.  Such a promise is never meant to be kept.  She knew somewhere that he could not stay with her forever.  Not that that meant that she would never see him again, but she knew that such a permanent situation was impossible.  But she didn't think about that now.  Now was here, and here was he.  She was glad; she wasn't lonely either.  "I'm not lonely right now either," she said, delighted.  The woman laughed a sort of giggle and stomped the ground with her feet where she sat.

"Twenty-seven is old to me.  Too old;  I here that we aren't considered to be so youthful when we become thirty, but I don't know.  I don't want to be old yet.  I haven't even done anything to be considered old just yet."  She sighed, but she wasn't so upset.  Here she was no doing something exciting, being with Ginzu.  The only things she had done in the city was go to her parties.  And as fun as those were, they had never fulfilled Iavas.  She didn't know what would, she just knew that there was some kind of emptiness within.  She nodded in agreement.  "Yes,  have you. And I have Nyla and I have Krys.  Three's good enough for me," she responded more cheerfully.

She laughed.  "I can be confident," she shot back good-naturedly.  "I just know my limits, which happen to be many."  She giggled then said, "Alright, you're always right if you say so."  She smiled.  No, she wasn't lonely here at all.  She was glad to have  his company.  It kept her mind off of being too crazy and wild, and she had someone to talk to.  She always needed someone to talk to.  As Iavas stood she watched Ginzu.  Even now, the idea of the pretty fabric blindfold did not distract her.  She looked around with him, shrugging.

"I don't know where the food is," she admitted.  "We have to go find it.  Come on!" Suddenly, the nude woman took off running, jumping over small rocks that blocked her path.  She would pause every now and then to look around at her surroundings.  She sniffed noisily, as if she would somehow pick of a scent that would lead them to something delicious.  She herself did not know what she was looking for, but it was probably not meat.  She could never catch meat.  But there was plenty of other things in the forest here to eat, oh yes.  Iavas was looking for anything easily obtainable and edible.  That could not be too hard, right?

In no time, not far from where the two of them had been talking, Iavas called him over.  "Ginzu!  Over here!"  She looked at her find proudly.  She had found some food.  She gestured to the bush that was before her.  It was fairly tall in height, with lush green leaves, covered in bright red berries.  "Berries!" she exclaimed.  "It's a wonder they haven't been eaten yet.  They're raspberries after all, and the other animals usually take them."  The woman began to pull the berries off, piling them up in her hand.

[Lion]

"Well, here we go, then," Ginzu said, nodding.  "Food sounds good right, now.  Especially a nice juicy slab of pink pony..."  That last part was uttered under his breath and he cared little if Iavas was listening.  The comment was enough to incite a chuckle from him anyhow.  As strange as it seemed, he found the idea of eating the meat of that pink pony incredibly appealing.  He just...he really really hated that horse.  And what he thought was the clopping reverberation of horrid hooves coming near, was actually the sound of the crazy woman bounding off into the woods, calling him to follow her.  "Oh, right!"

From the sound of it, she was moving quite fast and he had to scramble just to catch up.  "Slow, down, kid!" he tried to yell out.  He acted fast though, utilizing his hearing to make his way through the trees and brush to follow her without running into anything.  The path was a fairly short one in which resulted in him bumping into her when she finally stopped.  He fell back on his haunches and rubbed his head and the bridge of his nose.  "Oi," he muttered, climbing back to his feet.  Falling twice in front of the same person was very humiliating and his face might've been red had his tan not been so deep.

"Oh, good, berries.  They sound delicious.  Get as many as you can."  He reached forward, feeling along the prickling leaves of the push and felt the berries in his hand.  They felt quite plump in his grip and he plucked some off for himself, too collecting them in his grasp.  Stuffing one in his mouth, the explosion of sweetness was enough to mold his face into an awkwardly ridiculous expression.  The capacity of his senses were enough to help him get around, but they also made tasting things particularly sensitive.  What tasted good to Iavas, was far too sweet for Ginzu.  "Gah!  They're sweet!"  But he smiled nonetheless, the red of the berries dying his teeth all over.