Spirits of the Earth

Thalia sat on the edge of the pier, smiling as the ocean water moved back and forth under her.  She idly moved her feet forward and back, enjoying the feel of the cool water rushing between her toes.  Lifting her head she enjoyed the gentle breeze that lifted her hair slightly and brought the light scent of salt to her nose.  This was the first time she'd seen the ocean, let alone been close enough to touch it.  She sighed slightly as she wished she could share this with her family.  But they would never dare leave the forests.  She would just have to tell them all about it when she returned!

A nearby fisherman let out a yell of joy as he reeled in a particularly big fish.  "I've done it again!  This is my lucky day!"  Thalia smiled knowing it was her luck that had helped this man.  Noting the number of fish he'd caught, she figured he must be a very good man.

Deciding she was thirsty, Thalia leaned down to scoop up a handful of the clear, blue ocean water.  Expecting it to quench her parched throat she lifted the water to her lips.  She sipped a small amount and immediatly spat it out.  "Blah!"  She said, trying to wipe off the salty taste from her tongue with her hand.  "Maybe I don't like the ocean so much..." she thought.

Escaping from a town far away had been fun...he had lost his companion along the way however. Not killed, just...lost, unable to find at this time. He'd find his companion once more, but until then he went back to travelling and looking for new adventures, looking for new people to learn about. There were so many strange races here that were completely different from the ones he knew on his own home world...

He followed the air at this time, the smell of moisture had been strong upon it, and he followed it. The more days he walked, the stronger the smell had gotten. Of course, the smell had turned a slight foul when he walked...salt was in the air. Ocean. He knew that smell well. While water didn't matter much to him, he liked fresh water better than salt. Fresh was sweeter, it felt better, it smelled better, and it tasted better, but he could survive off both!

He was just that awesome after all.

There was a fishing community however when he arrived near the ocean, which meant that fishy smell and what not. He decided to explore, find a good pier perhaps and do some freezing. Ah how he loved to freeze things, and for that matter, loved to stir up a lot of fog and mist, just to confuse people. It always made him giggle, and it was harmless fun after all! No one got hurt, at least, perhaps not too hurt.

There were some people on the pier at this time however, fishermen mostly...though there was one woman that caught his eye. Ooooh. Female.

His attention was captured by a suddenly yelling fisherman. The man had just caught another fish. "I've done it again! This is my lucky day" He called. Hiding in his strange clothes of long pants and a long sleeved shirt with a hood on it he focused. One white eye, one red eye, flashed suddenly as he focused on the man. That was when the turned his back to unhook the fish...he wasn't paying attention to one of the barely alive fish who flip flopped near him...and he stepped on it.

There was a bit of yelping as he slipped suddenly, spilling all fish he had caught, most of them falling back into the water.

"Oh. How unfortunate." His voice was a whispery hiss of sorts, soft, but filled with amusement. His eyes went back to looking for the woman, who was taking the time to sip the water. Oh bad idea. Just as he thought, she spat it out. With a small laugh he shook his head. "The ocean is filled with salt water there lass, your kind really shouldn't drink it ya know! Not good for your people I understand." He told her as he slowly knelt down next to her, reaching a hand out to the water.

His hands were covered in a strange gauntlet, one that had ice stuck to it. He dipped his hand into the water, which slowly began to turn into mist on the surface as he brought some of the water up to his hood and drank. "Ahhhh...me however, I could drink this stuff all day!" Reaching up to his hood he slowly pulled his hood back. His once glowing eyes stopped...the gauntlets suddenly disappeared, becoming flesh and blood, soft and delicate looking. He even had black hair, cropped short and keeping them away from his eyes. He was...human?

"Name's Palzerus, or just Pal! What might I call you, besides beautiful?" Pal was a flirty little thing, there was no doubt about that. He did so enjoy to praise and flatter, to enjoy life as much as he could. After all, it wasn't everyday a wraith could turn from human to wraith and back again!

Thalia turned pink when she hear someone say "The ocean is filled with salt water there lass, you kind really shouldn't drink it ya know!  Not good for your people I understand."  Someone had seen her make that stupid mistake.  She'd been trying to hide that she was an outsider.  She started to reply and then coughed, her throat trying to remove all traces of that vile form of water.

The man knelt down next to her and extended a hand towards the water.  Her eyes widened as she noticed the gauntlets that covered his hands, and the strange way ice seemed to be clinging to it.  She watched mist coil up from the surface of the water as his hand met it.

"Ahhh... me however, I could drink this stuff all day!" he said, bringing the salty solution up to his hood where it disappeared into a mouth she couldn't see.  She stared at the glows that came from under his hood.  One glow was white and the second red, and they seemed to be where eyes should be located.  He removed his hood and as his face appeared, his strange gauntlets disappeared as did the glow.  He now had hands and seemed to be human, which was odd.  Then again she seemed to be human as well.

She turned a deeper shade of pink as he called her beautiful.  She was unused to such interaction, her people tended to be more refrained.  However she took a liking to this stranger named Pal.  He seemed like the kind of guy who wouldn't let others keep him from enjoying all life had to offer.  Coughing a little more, she smiled.  "Name's Thalia.  Nice to meet you, Pal."

She paused, wondering what else she should say to the first potential friend she'd met on her journey.  "Um... Why are you here?"  was the first thing that came to mind, and she so she said it.

She even seemed to have an adorable little cough didn't she!

Pal loved how he looked, both in Wraith form and in human form. He just looked out of the ordinary. In Wraith form he looked...well people couldn't really see him actually, but from what they could see he had those gauntlets, the large clawed gauntlets with ice forming on it. Terrible weapons, meant for ripping, slashing, killing, that sort of thing. They also focused his powers over the element water, ice, that sort of thing. His eyes were just...well they glowed. They didn't show any hint of pupils, it looked just like glowing mist in the shape of eyes.

However, when in human form, they looked kinda nice...they looked gentle, subtle, full of life and mirth. Not to mention he had gotten boyish good looks, at least he believed they were.

"Pleasure is alllllll mine, or it could be yours." He gave her a knowing wink. He liked to flirt, maybe he was serious, maybe he wasn't, it was hard to say at this point. All she should have figured out by now was that he was harmless...and shameless. Mostly shameless! He didn't harm many people, at least not on purpose. He was cursed to give those around him bad luck...and to give himself a bit as well.

"Well if you mean here in this town it's because I want a good douse of water, but if you mean right here beside you it's because I can't say no to meeting a pretty thing like yourself." He told her with a grin, showing her his teeth which...while white there was something off about them. They looked almost like...they were skeletal. He was not a normal person, that was for sure.

"Now I'm gonna give ya this warning now little missy, and you can decide whether or not you want to stay around me. I'm bad luck. Very bad luck. I've got an aura of bad luck about me so...people sometimes get hurt...sometimes they lose things and what not...but there's always an upside to it. See that guy over there..." Pal pointed toward the man whose fish spilled everywhere. He was cheering for some reason. That's when one could see that some strange white objects had spilled from one of the fish's mouths. "See that right there? Pearls. He lost a bunch of fish, but in the end he got himself some pearls."

Pal laughed a little bit as he turned his attention back to Thalia. "So then, can I ask you what you're doing here?"

Thalia laughed and smiled as Pal continued to ...what was the word?  She remembered two village girls talking about a guy who talked to both of them in the same manner.  What did they call it?  Flirting!  He was flirting with her!   Deciding she liked this 'flirting' she began to listen more closely so she could flirt back.

As Thalia listened to him talk she stareted to notice how he seemed... different from other humans.  While Pal's hair was a nice black color, it had intresting blue and red streaks through it.  She was pretty sure that humans didn't have hair that naturally came like that.  She also noticed how his eyes were white and red.  Thalia ha'd never seen a human with eyes that color!

Her smile widened when he called her "a pretty thing."  Thalia was one hundred percent sure now that she did enjoy this flirting humans seemed to partake in.  She wished her own people had such means of courtship, that would make things far more intresting.

Then Pal smiled, and Thalia noticed how his teeth seemed more like the skeletons dead humans left behind.  Maybe he wasn't human.  But then again she hadn't seen any humans from outside of Adela.  Perhaps where he came from the humans here would be considered strange looking.  Though her mind recalled those strange glows from his hood and the gauntlets he'd been wearing before lowering his hood.

His tone became more serious all of the sudden, and he began to explain how he was "bad luck."  Realizing he was no longer flirting, her smile faded and she listened carefully to what he said.  He pointed to the fisherman that her luck had helped.  Her jaw dropped slightly in shock as she began to wonder if her luck had failed somehow.  Then it clicked and she realized that Pal was saying he'd caused the fisherman to lose the fish, and gain the pearls that came with this bout of bad luck.

She smiled a bit as he returned his attention back to her.  "Well I'm going to explore the world!"  She said, a little proud of herself.  "I've never seen the ocean before, so I decided to come here first.  It's amazing!  Except something's wrong with the water...  Oh, by the way, don't worry about your bad luck.  I happen to be good luck myself."  She giggled a little as she made this announcement.

She was a strange one, at first she seemed contemplative, but more and more words of praise and adoration seemed to get her to smile wider and just brighten right up even more. He had run into some women who didn't like flirting, at least not the kind he liked to do. He liked to compliment beauty, looks, personality, smiles, laughs, that sort of thing...while a few he had met liked to fight, to show domination, just like animals.

Suffice to say he had to walk away with some wounded pride, among other things.

"Explore the world now? That's a pretty big place to explore." Of course, a lot of people did so love to explore the world, just like he did. He was mostly looking for anything that would interest him, that would be fun for him. Finding people along the way of the adventure was better. They were a lot more interesting than just scenery and what not. Heh, besides he could do things with people that he couldn't do with trees and bushes and a sunset.

Pal's grin grew when she said she was good luck. "Oh really? Well let's hope your good luck holds out for you! Heh heh. Ahem. Well there's a reason that the water tastes wrong. See it's called salt water. Oceans have high levels of salt in them, while lakes and rivers and what not have none, or very little in them." He told her with a small smile as he reached down and scooped more water up. However he started to use his other hand to swirl around above the bit of water in his hand. Slowly he pulled his finger away, but never stopped swirling.

The water was pulled upward into a sort of icicle, clear almost all the way through, except at the bottom where it was white. "You just have to know how to manipulate it, that's all!" Pal broke off the portion that held all the salt in it, tossing it back into the water before handing over the icicle over to Thalia. "And there you go. Fresh water! Boy do I love being in control of water and ice." Still his mind was filled with a few dirty thoughts, ones he could have made about sucking on an icicle.

Hee.

"I'd suggest we try out swimming but the ocean never really was a good place to swim in. A river is a much better place, there are less sharp painful thingies that want to eat you...or are just slimy. Yech. Slime." Pal gave a visible shudder as he stuck his tongue out in disgust. He quickly retracted his tongue though. "So have ya eaten lunch yet? Not sure about yourself but I could a bit of food." Granted he didn't really need to eat anything but he still liked to when in human form, just because things tasted good. "Though I'm guessing around here it's gonna be a lot of fish and fruit...I saw a few farms around here so we might get lucky with some lamb or cow, maybe vegetables as well."

Pal was always thinking, always on the move. He got to his feet, dusting himself off before he offered a hand to Thalia to help her up. If she did take his hand, she would probably notice right away that he was cold, very cold for that matter!

Thalia watched in wonder as the salt was separated from the water.  That did explain the water's disgusting taste.  She took the icicle, wincing a little at the cold.  She'd seen icicles before of course.  They formed on tree branches during the winter, and she loved the way they sparkled in the sun.  Tentatively, she stuck her tongue out and licked it.

It was fresh water now!  Thalia happily put the icicle in her mouth enjoying the cold, fresh water; completely oblivious to the fact that dirty thoughts could be provoked by such action.

She wrinkled her nose when Pal suggested swimming in the ocean.  To have all that nasty tasting water swirling around her, sticking to her skin, she did not like that idea.  Plus there was the fact that she had only tried swimming a few times in her human form.  And it was very different from walking on water as she did as a Kirin.  Then he talked about slimy creatures and things that would eat her.  That scared her for sure.  She decided at that moment she would never go swimming in the ocean.  No matter how pretty it looked.

Lunch.  That would probably be a good idea, as Thalia realized she hadn't eaten since early that morning.  The icicle was nice but it wasn't filling.  In fact it was almost gone.  She popped the rest into her mouth and crunched it, enjoying the way water spurted out when she did.

"Well, I'd love to eat!  But I'm a... what you call... um..."  What was the word?  "Oh ya!  I'm a vegetarian."  She was a deer like creature after all.  She reached up and took Pal's offered hand only to squeak and pull away in surprise.  "Your hands really cold!"  She exclaimed, before taking it again.  She wasn't sure what to think about the coldness of his skin.  But she was starting to get more and more sure that he wasn't actually human.

Ah if he were a weaker being he'd actually have the gall to make a comment about her sucking on the icicle. Instead he kept his humour...mostly contained as he just tried to ignore her for the time being. There would be time for that later right? Yeah! Not...that he expected anything yet...or maybe there was a chance. SHe did seem to like flirting. Hm.

No, best not to think of that right now. Best to be on his mostly innocent behaviour!

"Vegetarian? Well that explains your shapely body!" He grinned as she squeaked, pulling her hand away from him. "Oh, yeah that's...that's cause it's...y'see I'm not human. I mean you probably could've gotten that by now. I'm a Wraith actually. Dunno if you have 'em here, but we're basically spirit manifestations of elements. Underneath this handsome body lies a skeleton twisted with power and ice! We all sort are made from ice...cause our original creators are Ice kings in a way..." Pal's face looked troubled for a moment before he remembered they were holding hands.

Helping her up was easy, he at least had a bit of supernatural wraith strength so it was no problem. "I'll explain it to over lunch, it's a bit of a long story really! No worries!" Pal and Thalia didn't really have to wander long, in such a small place the Inn was the place to go for food and drinks. He took her right to it, getting them a table and making sure to order her some vegetables and such. He of course got some fish and some a bit of steamed vegetables. He made sure to get them some nice big glasses of water as well, fesh water.

"There we go, good fresh water." Pal raised his glass to his lips and took a big gulp of it, sighing contently. It was a sweet water taste, that was very good! "Anyway, lemme tell ya a bit about myself then! Anyway so like...thousands of years ago there were these two twins. Mercanaries for hire. So this vampires hires them to do a job with him, he was rich so he paid them quite a bit. However about...half way through their little mission the twins turn on him. Rob him at point, and call in a horde of Goblins on him. Now apparently before the goblins killed him, he let out this scream that carried through the mountains. It was a curse. The twins turned into these creatures, they were not dead, but they weren't alive either, a mix between the two. They became these...spirit element creatures. After that, people turned their backs on them." Pal paused in his story to start drinking some more water, and help himself to a little bit food.

"So after that, they started a clan. They found they could give other people this curse...they could make more of them. So they started doing that. Sometimes they used alive people, and sometimes they found skeletons and used those...people retained a little bit of their original memories and what not but...not a whole lot. I was dead when they found me, killed by my own badluck. They had no idea I had that curse on me when they used my skeleton...but here I am! Not quite in the body that I had before but still good enough am I right?" He gave her a knowing wink before he went back to his water and food, enjoying it, savouring it. He wasn't one for the vegetables but...what could you do right?

"So, can you indulge me about yourself? I'm very interested to know about you! Only fair after all, I told you all about m'self."

Pal's comment about Thalia's "shapely body" got him another smile.  However, this was more of a smile of self pride.  She'd seen little of humans in her forest home, and had to guess what was considered attractive by humans.  It seemed she'd guessed right.

She listened with interest as he explained about his true form.  She didn't even notice that she was still holding his freezing hand and that he hadn't helped her up yet.  Manifestation of ice... well that explained that icicle he created.

He pulled Thalia up with surprising ease.  Wraiths must have superior strength to humans she mused.  Pal guided her to a nice Inn where he ordered her some glasses of water, as well as some food to eat.  She looked around curiously, observing the way the people laughed at chatted or played cards with each other.  Humans were definitely fascinating creatures.

Thalia picked up her glass of water, smiling when she discovered it tasted just like the water from home.  She happily began to eat the vegetables Pal had ordered, especially enjoying the lettuce.  She continued to eat the delicious veggies and sip the water as Pal explained his kind's origin.  She found her self a little horrified as she learned of the twins deceit and their cruelty just to gain some money.  However she wasn't sure she condoned the punishment they received... not to mention it seemed to be more of a blessing to the two.

Thalia smiled and nodded as Pal finished his story.  "You're current body is fine." She said, doing her best to give him what she thought was a flirtatious smile.   "Hmm... Tell you about myself?  Well you already know I'm lucky!"  She giggled a little and nibbled and took another sip of water before beginning a stream of sentences that was supposed to be an explanation.  "Well I'm actually not human either.  I'm a Kirin!  We're like the better known unicorns, but more like a deer than a horse.  And I guess we're part fish as well since we have carp scales... and lion is in there some where as well, since we have lion tails.  Though we are part horse, as we have manes similar to theirs.  And we also have a single horn as well, but it's more of an antler.  Lastly we're supposed to be part dragon, but I..." She trailed off as she noticed two of the more shady bar patrons were observing them.  Why would they be listening in?

"Stupid, stupid, stupid!" Thalia said.  she really felt like smacking herself on the head.  "We need to get out of here as soon as possible!" She hissed at Pal, doing her best to look like everything was still normal.

Pal could flirt with this young lady all night, it was so easy to do, and it was fun! Plus he wasn't lying about it so he felt good about it. Not that he would openly patronize a lot of people, but he liked it better when he could flirt and take a lot of creative roads with this whole thing. She had a good smile as well so whenever he did flirt he got a nice little smile shot his way. He hoped for that matter that they were genuine smiles and not the ones that were fake while they thought about how much of an idiot he was.

Eee that was always a bad thing.

Still, she did want to go with him to eat so that was a good feeling. It meant things were going on the right path then! Pal wasn't sure where this would all lead to but damned if it wasn't going to be an adventure!

Pal was glad that she seemed to enjoy herself as they ate and drank. He like to tell the story of the Wraith Twins, more so because he had been forced to learn the Origins of his species. Plus it was a kind of fun story, perhaps a little dark here and there but still good you know.

"You think so? Well, thank you!" That was a new smile on her...was she actually flirting with him? Oh my. He returned the smile, even a wink as well. Maybe she was interested in him, that was a good sign then wasn't it? Maybe his luck really wasn't all that bad! Maybe she was good luck. Pal kept his mouth shut, focusing on just listening to her talk and tell him about her strange self. He had no idea what a Kirin was but she was explaining it to him so he wasn't going to be out of the loop. However she suddenly stopped talking and he blinked, wondering what she was looking at. He turned his head to observe some of the bar patrons looking at them, more specifically at her.

They didn't look at her like he had the first time he met her, they were looking at her with more of a greedy sort of look than interest or desire. Uh oh. He knew that look in them though.

"Y'know I think I'm gonna agree with ya." He tossed a bit of money on the table to pay for the meal and took a deep drink of his water. Pulling his hood up suddenly he seemed to change once more into his wraith form, his eyes glowing into that strange mist, and his hands turning back into the metal gauntlets with claws. Suddenly he seemed to start spewing a strange fog from his hood, one that just began to flow and fill the area around them. That's when Pal suddenly grabbed Thalia, hoisting her pretty much on his shoulder and bolted for the door. Once they were outside he closed the door behind him and sealed it with a bit of thick ice. Pal of course put Thalia down afterward, one hand pulling his hood down.

"Sorry about that. You seemed that you wanted to get out quickly, and that was quick! Plus those shady guys back in there can't follow us...at least not through this door so erm...let's move quickly!" Pal told her as he ushered her to follow him, deciding if they headed perhaps away from this side of the small town would be a good idea.

"I gotta ask though...why were you so scared?"

Thalia found herself feeling like Pal had frozen her with those ice powers of his.  She was sure those men were bounty hunters; and from the way they were looking at her they had probably knew what a Kirin was, and the price one could fetch.

Thalia suddenly found herself doubting Pal.  What if he was a bounty hunter as well?  By the moon, she was such a fool for whole heartedly trusting a stranger!  But... if he was a bounty hunter he wouldn't have brought her to an inn.  He would've tried to lure her somewhere he could catch her.  Unless he was just plain stupid, but that didn't seem likely from the way he talked and acted.  Sure people who are dumb can act like they're brilliant, but she was sure his wit wasn't some sort of act.  She reached the conclusion that he was most definitely not a bounty hunter, and she needed to trust him if she wanted to get out of this inn in something other than chains.

As this whirlwind of thoughts was roaring in her mind, Pal through a hand full of money on the table and took a big gulp of water.  He then pulled up his hood, changing as he did so.  The glows that must be his wraith eyes had returned, and he was once again wearing those strange gauntlets.  Fog began to billow from his hood that filled the inn and hid them from the view of the bounty hunters.

As the fog thickened Thalia saw the hunters stand up, one knocking his chair over with a bang that resounded through the now silent room.  But Pal was too fast, and they too slow.  He picked her up, supporting her with an arm and shoulder.  He ran through his fog to the door, the bewildered hunters were still at their now empty table.  Once they cleared the doorway, Pal shut it and sealed it with ice.

He set her down and removed his hood, once again returning to his human form.  He began to apologize for the hasty exit, but she was just grateful they'd gotten out.  He set off, motioning for her to follow.  She quickly did, as she could hear loud bangs coming from the door that meant the hunters wanted out.

"I think... No.  I know those men are bounty hunters.  And they seem to deal in the Kirin trade."  She grimaced as she said this, remembering some childhood friends she'd lost to hunters like those two.  "They no doubt were planning on capturing me and selling me to the highest bidder... or worse.  They migh-" She paused, and forced herself to continue.  "They've tortured Kirin before, to find the rest of that Kirin's clan."

"I'm sorry... It was stupid of me to go blurting that out when I knew there are people who hunt my kind.  I should've thought of that.  I'm sorry, I endangered both are lives by being so stupid."  She bit her lip, forcing herself to calm down and fight back tears that were approaching.  Yes she'd been stupid, but crying about it wouldn't help them.  They needed to get away from that inn.  And more importantly, they needed to find a way to do so without leaving a trail.  There was no point in escaping if you gave your hunters a nice path to follow.

As if Pal could possibly hunt down a person like Thalia. He had a bad sense of direction, and he had no idea what a Kirin was. Why would he deal in a trade object he had no idea what it was? But, he was going to help her away from those shady men. They did not look at all friendly afte rall.

"Bounty hunters eh? Well they won't get you, I promise you that." Pal told her with a toothy grin. He wasn't going to let any two timing bounty hunters get his prey. Prey of some sort...not sure what to really call her at this point. She was neat though so that was all it was! "Sounds like a couple of people to avoid...torturing and kidnapping, that's just very unfun to say the least." She didn't like to talk about this it seemed...but she seemed to get through it at least.

"What? You...ah hah hah hah! No it's alright! They couldn't possibly hurt me. Swords and knives and daggers do not hurt me, I've got no organs or anything like that. The best they could do is chip a bone or something like that." Pal told her with a small shrug of his shoulders. "Don't worry about it there darling! Ah don't cry now." He reached his hand out to gently cup her cheek. "You only really endangered yourself...Er, but that's not important! No, because they can't really hurt us! You've got me with you, and there's no possible way I'd let them get you! You're my friend after all." He gently let his hand slowly fall from her face, smiling calmly at her.

"Now, let's go find us some fun! I say we head...that way! Toward the forest! We'll get a nice headstart on them." Pal took her hand, interlacing his fingers with hers as he started to walk rather quickly, dragging her along with him. "It'll be fun! We'll head toward another coastal town. We just gotta trick 'em is all! What we'll do is we'll go to the forest and then like...lounge for an hour or so...and then get to another town. It'll be fine! Just...we'll make sure ya don't slip that cute little tongue of yours and say something that will alarm people to what you are." Pal stopped for a moment, looking to their hands and letting go. "Ahem...well Thalia, let's get ourselves to the forest!"

Well this might be fun! Of course Pal had some ideas of what they could do, but he had to remember that he should probably keep himself clean, and not do his original thought...

Still, convincing her to skinny dip with him would be a fun challenge! After that everything would be easy!

Thalia gave Pal a small smile as he tried to lighten up the mood.  However, when he assured her that he himself was put in no danger by her loud mouth, she certainly felt relieved.  True it was a bit worrisome that Pal was pretty much invincible, but he seemed to have her best interests in mind so she had no reason to fret over that.

Thalia relaxed as Pal put his hand to her cheek, showing he really wasn't mad.  Though his hand was freezing cold as usual, she found she didn't mind that much right now.  Then she really smiled when Pal called her his friend.  His previous actions had pretty much declared that fact already, but it was nice to hear it out loud.

Pal grabbed Thalia's hand, and set off towards the forest.  At first he was dragging her, but she sped up to match his pace.  She found holding hands like this was... relaxing.  She'd never done anything like it before, since Kirins didn't have hands.  As he began to talk about resting in the forest and such, and Thalia realized she really did miss the serenity of the forest.  Not enough to go back permanently, but enough that she would enjoy visiting her home.  Of course she wouldn't bring Pal to the part of the forest where her clan lived.  They weren't very understanding towards outsiders.  There had been too many losses to bounty hunters similar to those Thalia and Pal had just escaped.

Suddenly Pal stopped and let go of her hand.  She was a bit surprised, but wasn't sure how to react.  So she just let her hand go back to hanging by her side.  However the forest beckoned, and she let her confusion slip away.  She set off at a swift pace, "Come on!  You'll love the forest!" She giggled, and did a little skip in her excitement.  She turned a slight shade of pink, realizing that probably was a bit odd.  But she kept her head up and continued forward, hoping to hide her embarrassment.

Thalia began to explain to Pal what she considered the wonders of the forest, “Well you see there’s all these beautiful trees.  And they stretch up so high; and their branches cover up every inch of the sky, making the forest look like it has a green ceiling.  And there are so many delicious fruits there!  Though don’t worry, there’s lots of fish in the streams and ponds that run through the forest.  And the water is cool and delicious; it tastes a lot like the water from the inn in fact!  We’re going to have so much fun!â€?

Probably not the best idea to say something like she had a loud mouth right? Of course she had sort of said it but...at this time it was neither here nor there! Oh no! It was really in a sort of...flux that wasn't anywhere! It was just to be ignored.

He wished he could heat his body up and not be as cold as ice to the touch but...well he was trying his best to be comforting. He didn't want Thalia to be upset, and he wanted her to be relaxed around him. If he made her believe that he was invincible, or very close to it at least, she wouldn't worry about him getting hurt! That way she would just need to watch out for herself. It would be nice if she only needed to think of herself, that way he could watch over the both of them! Perhaps secretly of course.

"Right, I bet I will! Just like every forest I've met before perhaps." Pal said as he followed after her, noting her rather uncontained excitement at this point. She seemed really happy that she was going into the forest. Maybe she was part of it, like some sort of Dryad or Druid. Whatever the case, he wasn't going to deny her this trip into the forest. Pal smiled as she started going on and on about the forest, he just smiled politely as he followed her. He didn't really see the big deal with the forest, but...he wasn't going to fight her.

Just like he liked a foggy riverbank, she liked a forest. When they finally got into the forest, Pal noticed the light wasn't filtering through as much, so it was a bit darker. Not too dark, more so since the green leaves were producing a sort of green light. "Streams and ponds eh? Anything deep enough for us to swim in, or in the very least for me to clean my clothes?" He did want to clean his clothes, but any excuse to get naked near a beautiful woman...who was he to argue?! He wasn't after all. Then again...

There was a difference between flirting and courting. This...Kirin...did she understand things like one night stands? He didn't want her to think that because he was doting compliments on her that he wanted to be her mate for life. Ick no! Tied down like that would be just worrisome! He wasn't ready to give up something like his bachelor years. Ugh. Flings were just a worry when the opposite member of the relationship didn't know what was going on.

Hm. Was she even really female? She said she was also something else...hm, he wouldn't have to worry about her getting pregnant would he? Nah! They couldn't possibly be compatible after all. That was just silly! Not to mention what a kid would be like, with their good luck and bad luck stuff together. How did you bring this stuff up with someone? Oh yeah, I just want to mate with you a few times, so do you know anything about sex and what not? Right. That would get him slapped and called a pervert or she'd storm off and he'd have to try to win her back to his side once more.

Oblivious to her companions thoughts, Thalia led him into the forest.  She smiled as the rays from the sun were softened to a nice shade of green from the canopy overhead.  It was nice to visit something she knew so well.

Pal inquired if there were any streams or ponds around that he could wash his clothes in, or even swim in.  "Oh yes!  In fact we're right near one!" She replied, altering her direction slightly so she would arrive at the intended destination.  She looked down at the clothes she was wearing, noticing for the first time how dirt had somehow worked its way into the fabric.  She hadn't realized that humans needed to wash their clothes.  Thalia wished she had "borrowed" more clothes from travelers before starting her journey.

"Ah! Here we are!"  She said as she pushed aside some shrubbery.  A small brook bubbled happily in front of them, the water tumbling over small rocks to splash into a small pond.  "Isn't it nice?" She asked with a smile.

Thalia slipped off her shoes and socks and then walked over to the pond to notice a colorful fish darting around.  Curious she peered at it as it swam in a random pattern.  Suddenly it darted off to the deeper section of the pond.  Without hesitation Thalia stepped out onto the water.  Her foot stayed on the water's surface, as if the water was a continuation of the land.  She continued across the pond, no longer intrested in the fish, instead she was just enjoying the coolness of the water on her feet.  She reached the center of the pond and spun around to face Pal again.  "So how do you plan on going about this 'washing of clothes'?" She questioned him.

Before he could answer, she added another question.  "Also what do you do while your clothes are being washed?  I thought humans did not like to be without their coverings."

"Really? Sounds good to me then!" She seemed almost...oblivious in a way. Hm. Not only would this be a challenge of some sort, but at the same time...would it be...er...good? He didn't want to woo a person who was almost oblivious to it all. Bah. Worry about morality a little later. Right now actually cleaning his clothes sounded like a good idea. "You might want to think about doing the same thing." Pal noted idly, having seen the bit of dirt all over her clothes. Hmm, might be an interesting thought eh? He'd be able to wash his clothes, help wash her clothes, have a fun romp on the riverbank, clean themselves off just in time for their clothes to be done! Huzzah!

Oh he was so clever! He wasn't going to try and flaunt sexual prowess at this point, but he had stamina out the wazoo! He wasn't sure what a wazoo was though.

Pal smiled as he walked after her over the water, just like she did. However he had to create a special sort of fog under his feet but...that currently wasn't important. He could walk on water just like she did. "Well I-" He was going to answer he question but suddenly she broke in with another question and he just shrugged his shoulders. "You forget something there cutie, I'm not human!" He pointed as spun about for her, smiling a little bit. "All wraiths are underneath their robes are basically a magic fog and some bones. That's it. When I've got this human form thing going, I don't actually feel naked, cause the skin and such is covering my actual body, which is really just bones." Plus, why would he be ashamed of himself? He could choose his looks to a degree when he transformed, so he was proud of it.

"Humans are such silly things Thalia. Modesty is their silliest thing I find." Pal strolled back to the bank as he started searching his clothes. "Now let me see here...I know I have a bar of soap left..." He muttered to himself as he checked the hidden folds and pockets. Finally he found it, pulling it out and grinning. "Perfect! Now to set up a nice washing spot.." Kneeling by the trickling brook he froze two walls about a foot and a half apart. He created little tunnels between the two walls of ice, allowing water to enter from one wall and escape through the other. This would make it so water could still flow and not be interrupted, but at the same time not get polluted by the soap. "Ta da! And now I can wash my clothes, and the brook and pond can still be fed upon! How am I such a genius?" With that being said he stood up and began to strip down from his clothes, tossing them within the water as well as the bar of soap.

"Ah! So nice to be free and easy again!" Pal knelt, slyly looking over to Thalia, a slightly wicked grin on his face. "Watching me now are you? Naughty girl. " He let out a slightly impish grin as he started to wash his clothes, running the soap over them and trying to get the dirt from them. He kept his...excitement to himself of course, it was best not to ah...jump the bow and expect things to happen. After all, he had just met her! Granted there were times he had heard of when people just met and sex could happen but...it was best not to think of it as being one of those times. Just had to distance himself from the current situation.

Thalia smiled and giggled as Pal called her a "naughty girl."  He was teasing her for looking at him when he had taken his clothes off, another type of flirting.  Maybe she should flirt back?

"What's wrong with being naughty?"  She asked, in what she hoped was a flirtatious way.  Thalia then walked over to where he was washing his clothes, and slid hers off.  She didn’t like clothes much herself.  She found them constricting, and thought it was strange when she her entire body wasn’t in contact with nature.  However, she’d observed humans enough to understand that those who did not wear clothes would be shunned by their society.  It was refreshing to be with someone who understood the silliness of clothing.

Thalia held her clothes in her hands, watching how Pal moved the soap over the cloth of his clothes to remove the dirt clinging to the threads.  Once she was sure she had the technique down, she dropped her own clothes in the water with a small splash.  She selected her shirt and began to mimic what she’d observed Pal do.  She smiled as she held up the shirt and discovered she’d removed almost all the dirt.  Only a few flecks remained embedded in the fabric.  It was good enough for her, so she placed it back in the water to sit.

She washed all the rest of her clothes in the same manner, and then found herself at a loss of what to do.  Pal hadn’t done anything with his clean clothes yet, and she’d never seen anyone wash clothes before today.

Thalia sighed a little as she once again found herself once again clueless.  She wondered if Pal thought she was stupid.  She shook that thought off quickly.  Even if he did, he’d learn soon enough she just hadn’t experienced much outside of Kirin life, and that she really did have a brain.

She returned her mind back to the wet clothes.  Perhaps she was supposed to put them back on?  She almost did, but realized that probably wasn’t the case.  They were too wet and uncomfortable.  Though maybe they did put them back on?  Well she would just have to ask.

“What do I do now?â€? Thalia inquired.  She lifted up the soggy garments which sagged with the weight of the water held in their threads.  Some of the cold water trickled down her arm, but she didn’t mind.  She liked the cool feeling of water.  In fact she wanted to drink some, but she remembered her experiance with the salty sea water.  Soap water probably wouldn't taste much better.

"Nothing at all Thalia, nothing at all." His grin spoke volumes, watching her as she slid her clothes off. Well, she sure knew how to pick a human body didn't she? Heh, this could be the start of something wonderful for the both of them perhaps! At least she wasn't shy right? Then again, this wasn't her true form, this was like...a borrowed form or something along those lines.

After he had finished scrubbing his clothes and she had finished with hers he sat back for a moment to let it sit and move about in the soapy water. It would help to clean what little bit of dirty may have been left. Pal of course made sure to act the gentleman and not look at anything below her neck, though he had already caught the full show just minutes ago.

He noted she looked confused, lost even. That gave way to finally asking him on what to do, making him smile a little bit. "Oh, that's the drying step in which we just do this. Pal gathered his wet clothes and stood, heading for a tree with low branched sticking down. Using those branched he draped his clothes out over the branches to hang, the water dripping downward. "We let nature dry our clothes, bit of sun, bit of wind, and then we're set!" Pal told her, going back to his cleaning station set up. He carefully began to manipulate the water, just like before. He was separating the soap from the water, just as he had with the salt.

"There! Now when the ice melts, no soap goes into the pond." Pal said proudly as he took the newly formed piece of icy soap and placed it near their clothes. He wished he could recycle that soap but sadly he had no idea how to condense it back into another bar of soap. No matter though! He had clean clothes now and that's all that mattered!

"Mmm...I wonder how deep this pond is..." Pal murmured as he stepped closer to it, peering down at it. Could he go for a swim perhaps? Judging by how big the pond was, and by how dark it looked as you waded out...yeah, you could no doubt go for a nice little swim in it! So without any further contemplation he just...jumped right in! It was actually quite deep, and this was good...not to mention the water looked rather clean as well...it was pretty clear overall. "Oooh...nice and warm too! Come on Thalia!" Granted, anything that wasn't ice cold was warm to Pal but that was neither here nor there.

Thalia went and found branches of her own to hang her soggy garments on.  Hanging them on a large branch, she stepped back to admire her handy work.  All the clothes looked far cleaner than they had before the washing, so she knew she'd done a good job.

She turned to see Pal separating the soap from the water, just as he had done with the salt water of the ocean.  He formed a block of ice soap that he placed near his clothes, away from the rest of the water.  Thalia smiled, she liked the fact that he was careful not to poison the water.  She knew many forest animals depended on this area for their source of life-giving water.

Pal then walked over to the pond, peering at its depths.  Thalia began to walk over, trying to figure out what he was looking at.  Suddenly he took a flying leap and jumped into the pond, creating a small splash.  Thalia squeaked and dodged the spray that came in her direction.  He called at her to come join him.  "Oooh...nice and warm too!  Come on Thalia!"  He said.

She careful walked over to the water, unsure of what to do.  She'd never really gone swimming before.  As a Kirin she'd always just walked over any water she'd come across.  But it did look like fun...  And if she started to have trouble she could just float.  She stepped forward onto the water, walking across its smooth surface until she was at a reasonably deep spot.  She took a deep breath, squeezed her eyes shut, and let herself stop floating.

She plunged into the pond, the cold water wrapping itself around her body.  She accidentally inhaled a little in shock at the coolness of the water.  Instinctively she kicked her legs and waved her arms until she broke through the surface of the water.  She coughed out the water she had breathed in, her arms and legs still kicking frantically so she would stay afloat.  "I thought you said this was warm!"  She said before coughing out the last of the water.

Pal really didn't like the idea of upsetting a person like Thalia, who could no doubt call some sort of...conference with her people and that would just end in tragedy for him. The way she described her real form sounded like she could do a whole bunch of damage to him. Breaking bones was a really bad thing for a Wraith. It was best to keep compassion and such open at this time.

Pal floated in the depths, watching Thalia as she walked over the water toward him. He smirked a little bit, wondering just waht was going to happen to her. This was a bad idea, no one should just submerse themselves like that, though it was a good way for someone to get used to the water's temperature. He was laughing quietly as she suddenly plunged into the water, shaking his head. He moved in a little closer to her as she started thrashing about, noting her little bit of trouble. Ah that was just...well it was probably good and bad at the same time. Pal came closer to her, his arm wrapping about her as he focused on keeping them afloat with the help of a little bit of magic.

"Well it is warm to me...after all I'm a creature of ice right? Heh, you're nice and warm though however." Pal told her with a grin as he kept himself against her, indeed she was pretty warm, and it was an excuse to be against her naked. Hah! "Come on, I'll take in a little closer to the ground." He started moving, using one arm to hold her, the other was scooping at water to try and get them closer to the edge of the pond. When his feet hit ground he was able to bring her in with him, but he didn't let go of her yet.

"There you go, start off here in the shallow end where you can touch. You can just lounge, I mean watch this!" He let go of her to suddenly, moving onto his back and floating on the water's surface. He even crossed his legs and had his hands behind his head to keep it supported. Sure he was cheating just a little bit with a bit of magic but he was still having fun none the less. "Ta da!"

Thalia was struggling to stay above water.  She really had no idea how Pal was doing it with such ease.  Luckily, he swam over and put his arm around her, helping her to stay afloat.  His skin was even colder than the water, causing her to take a sharp intake of breath.  But she found she didn’t' really mind the icy feeling of his skin; it was just shocking when she forgot to expect it.

He began to pull them both towards the more shallow area of the pond, using one arm to hold her, the other to pull at the water ahead.  She let herself relax into his hold, and just kicked a little occasionally.  Swimming was nice when you didn't have to worry about drowning.

When Pal reached the shallows where he could put his feet down, he helped her get her footing.  Even when she did get her footing however, he still held her.  Thalia decided she didn't mind.  She smiled a little, think what another Kirin would think if they saw her acting this way.  They would be appalled for sure.  It wasn't that Kirins were believers in being conservative when it came to relationships; they just believed that any form of courtship should occur during the mating season.  To take part in any courtship ritual, no matter how minor, during any other period was a waste of time.  Only those that had found a life-mate could continue such actions outside of the mating period.  But Thalia had told herself she would be open to different cultures' ways of doing things.  Besides, the Kirin way of waiting all year was boring.

Suddenly Pal let go of her, pushing off to float on the water's surface.  He crossed his legs, and put his hands behind his head, to make this lounging of his seem easy.  Thalia watched and then carefully laid herself onto her back, letting her body float on the water's surface.  She found that if she just relaxed and spread her weight, she would float on the water as if she was walking on it like normal.  It was relaxing, but she wanted to know how to swim.

"Well that is fun, but how do I swim?  How do I move myself in different directions in the water?  How do I stay above the water without floating?"  Numerous questions came shooting out of her mouth.  She wanted to master this new activity, and she planned to do it in this pond.

He wondered why she hadn't learned to swim yet. This forest was her own after all wasn't it? Maybe this human form thing was new to her as well then. It wasn't like that would be a surprise to him after all. So many creatures could turn themselves into a human form after all, not all of them have mastered the ways of the human form. He hadn't quite mastered everything after all, and he had this human form for more than a hundred years! Though he had gotten the basic survival thing downpat, running, walking, jumping, climbing, swimming, and all those sort of things. He still wasn't able to build weapons or buildings and stuff like that...complex things.

Still, he had a bit of an advantage right now. He knew how to swim! That got him to be just closer with Thalia then! This was a little...interesting honestly. Sure they were naked and everything but...nothing was really sexual here, despite what he may have wanted at this time.

It was nice actually!

Pal rolled his head to the side to take a look at Thalia as she tried to follow his example, a grin spreading across his face. "See there you go! Use the surface tension to your advantage, and natural boyancy." Both of those were very handy to have, more so when you have to keep yourself afloat in an ocean or something like that.

"Swim? You wanna learn how to swim? Well...there's lots of ways to do that. Anyway! I shall teach you what I know." He let his magic stop holding him up as he returned to a position where his feet touched the ground. Wading out a little ways he began to hold there, his arms moving in gentle motions. "Now you can't really see it but you've got to keep your legs kicking. Don't kick to fast, but just back and forth. This will create enough lift that you'll be able to basically float here. This is the main princepal here. Your feet are really gonna help you when you swim. Keep your legs straight, and when you want to swim fast, you're gonna wanna cup your hands and sort of scoop at the water. Watch." Pal proceeded to demonstrate the lesson for her.

Of course it wasn't the longest demonstration, as the pond wasn't big enough for a proper demonstration but it was still a good lesson for her. When he stopped and went back to floating he turned to her, grinning. "There, see? Give it a try!"

Thalia determinedly watched Pal, her expression one of entire seriousness.  She wanted to learn the art of swimming, and she was not going to miss a single move!  If she ever did return home, she would shock her fellow Kirins when she went through the water instead of on it!  The thought made her lighten her expression a bit with a smile.

She mirrored the arm movements that Pal was making, noticing how her hands pulled through the water.  Thalia did this a few times; to make sure she had the motion down right.  Then she waded farther into the pond, so she had to stand on her toes to touch the pebbly bottom.  She took a deep breath and pushed herself slightly forward, beginning the leg movement Pal showed her.  She started off too slow, and found herself underwater.  She sped up her kicks a little and broke through the water's surface.  She continued that pace - as well as the arm movements - and was excited to find she was staying above water.  It was hard work, but she was enjoying it!

Now Thalia was going to try movement. She carefully changed into a horizontal position, and tried re-applying the motions.  She did exactly as Pal did, and she found that she was actually moving!  Granted, it was slow and her head kept going partially underwater, but it was better than anyone in her Kirin clan could manage.  She started to smile, but got a mouthful of pond water.  Though the water was refreshing, she wanted to breath as she swam.  She kept her lips shut now, and turned to head towards Pal.

Slowly, she made her way to him.  She improved with every kick though, and by the time she reached him, her head wasn’t ducking underwater anymore.  However, she was tired from this new type of exercise.  So she grabbed his arm, and steadied herself so she was floating next to him.  â€œI did it!â€?  She announced with a small laugh.  â€œThat was so much fun!â€?

Pal stood in the mostly shallow end of the pond, watching as Thalia tried to start swimming. She was a fast learner then, this was always good. There were other ways to swim but this was a quick and dirty lesson. Heh heh. Dirty. Ahem. "Yeah, that's it, but move your head a bit more, from side to side with your arms. This will give you a greater propulsion!" Pal called out to her, watching her as she seemed to go along rather well actually.

"Yeah! Now you got it!" Pal was really proud, his hands on his hips as she started to kick about and actually move through the water. Hah, his first student and he was already a great teacher then! He could teach her some more things for that matter! Heh heh. But that was best to be thought about later of course. Later was a much better option.

Pal waded back out to the deeper part of the water to help her just in case, as she seemed to be slowing down and getting a little tired. He grinned as she came in toward him, grabbing his arm to steady herself. He helped to right her as well, getting her back onto her feet as she floated by him. "You did great Thalia! You sure do learn quick, very good!" Pal was actually enjoying this whole thing. It had been a while since he had a friend to play with. This was a good time indeed! a great time even!

"You picked up quick on that." Pal told her as he headed back toward shore, toward the shallow end where he could sit against the ground and lounge, doing just that. He was supporting himself above water with his arms somewhat, laying back and enjoying the warm sun on his body. Most wraiths avoided being in the sun, even if it was cold out. They acted like vampires sometimes, it was ridiculous really.

"So how many Kirin live here? Like do you all live in one big clan or like...are there just small clans dotted through out the forest and land? Like with us Wraith we all sorta...well it's hard to explain but we basically live in one big clan, the De Netari, but we have outposts in a lot of cities that we can inhabit at any time...huh...you know...being here kinda...I kinda miss my home. To think I'm the only Wraith here on this world."

Thalia let Pal help her get onto her feet, and then followed him to the pond's shallows.  He relaxed against the pond's shore, his upper body held above the water by his arms.  Thalia sat down next to him, and let her legs rest on the smooth bottom of the pond.  One of her hands worked its way into the sand, enjoying the smooth feeling as it moved over her hand.

"I tend to be a fast learner."  She told Pal.  It was true, by human standards all Kirin were.  Among Kirin she was only a little above average, but among humans she was very smart, if naive.  "So you want to know about the Kirin?  Mmm... Where to start?"  She screwed up her face, thinking.

"Well, we are separated by clans.  The clans are divided by whatever power they posses, as each has their own.  For example the Moonglen clan, my clan, can shape shift when the moon is full.  Another clan that lives nearby called the Flethrene clan has the ability to fly."

"Each clan has its own territory, and within that the members of the clan live in groups of various sizes.  Usually these groups are close friends, and any children the females have had.  When two Kirin decide to mate for life, they usually begin their own group.  I'm not really sure how many Kirin there are.  Many clans disappeared with the destruction of the earth; no one really knows how many survived.  My clan and the Flethrene clan did, but we could be the only two clans left for all we know."

"You are the only wraith here?  Why don't you bring some of your friends?  Then you wouldn't be lonely anymore!"  She smiled at him, thinking this an excellent suggestion.

"That's good to hear! If you can learn fast, you can live forever, or...well at least a long time I suppose." Pal grinned at her, glad that she at least would be able to hold her own then. He could teach her so many things then, and she would be able to keep up with him then! Not that he had TOO much to share of course but he still was going to try to pass on some knowledge to her! He'd find a way.

Pal smiled lightly as he listened to her talk about her people. He really was interested in her people, wanting to know about the Kirin. Plus the dreams of what a kid might act or be like if they were to have one, it just tickled his fancy to say the least. Something she said sort of caught his interest and he blinked. The destruction of the what now? The Earth? Was that what this place was called then? Huh. Earth.

Interesting then!

"What? Bring a friend here to Earth? Ah hah hah hah! I mean...ahem. No Thalia that...that is a bad idea. My people are...Well they look down on me because I was a hazard to everyone around me. The bad luck and all. They hated me for that and I basically had one friend in the Wraith Compound and that was a Wraith who was half vampire and half wraith. He was...nice mostly but..." Pal sat up slightly, not supporting himself in a relaxed position.

"My people are warlike. Very war like. The wraith lords want to control every race, and they hate any race that isn't Wraith so...they want to kill everything and resurrect them as a Wraith. If I were to bring another wraith here...then that Wraith would no doubt start making more Wraiths...and then when a forward complex has been established...well they'd figure out a way to contact my homeland and well...they'd send through Revenants. Stronger Wraiths, much stronger Wraiths...like Jamerick, a Death Revenant. It'd be chaos and horror." Pal shook his head, not wanting to bring that upon this world. Oh no. That would be a very...very bad thing to do.

"But! I have you here, and you're a great friend so it works!" Pal reached over with one arm and gave her a sort of half hug, grinning at her.

Thalia listened, slightly horrified, as Pal told her what would happen if he brought another wraith to earth.  "Well I guess it's a good thing you're nice then."  She said weakly.  She was rather scared of the idea of what Pal's people would do to earth if they came here.  She smiled at him when he gave her a half hug.  "Definitely a good thing he's nice." She thought.

His people did truly sound terrifying though.  Worse than the hunters who trapped and tortured her kind for the promise of some gold pieces.  They at least left other species in piece.  The wraith would just destroy everyone, and they'd do it gladly.

"Are all your people really like that though?"  She asked.  She laid down; the slope of the shore making it so her face was still above the water, but most of her was underwater.  "Because it's hard to believe out of your entire race only you're the only one who is so nice."  She paused to mull it over a bit more.

"But if your race is so violent and you don't like them, why do you miss it so much?"  She rolled over, so that she was now lying on her side.  She placed her head on her hand, with the elbow digging into the pond's bottom.  A strand of wet hair fell across her face, and she quickly tucked it behind an ear.  "I mean, do you really miss that?"  Though she had promised herself to be open to any new cultures that came her way on her travels, this was one she could not accept.  Kirins were peace loving creatures.  They could fight, but they only did it to protect those who deserved it.  The idea of hurting another just because one could was an alien thought to them, one they thought possessed only by the hunters.

Pal didn't really know how to tell her about his people. They were...well they were monsters. He wasn't going to deny that at this point. He wasn't like them thankfully! Oh no! He was very good at being very Anti-Wraithlike. It was always a blessing to break the mold that your people had made for themsevlves.

"Yeah, all of them flock to that sort of thing. It's just...something about the Wraiths...not a lot of them are free from the slavery that is the being a Wraith. If a person isn't strong enough, the essence of the Wraith Lord controls you and they do what their told. Mindless almost but they...they sort of enjoy it I suppose? It's hard to put into words but..." Pal took a deep breath, closing his eyes and shaking his head. How to say this. "The person's soul is locked within the body...so the person they once were is there but it gets infected basically by the Wraith Lord essence and they just...surrender and give into the darkness of it all."

That was really the only way to put it. They became infected and they enjoyed it all. He didn't fully understand it but he had seen people who had been so loyal to their own people be turned into a wraith and suddenly kill their own friends and family after all.

"Well I don't know how to put it but...it was my family. They're my people. I don't really have to like what they do but...I was an annoyance to them, a really bad one, they hated me, chained me up and locked me in basements of compounds to ensure I didn't interfere sometimes but..." He rubbed the back of his head, not sure how to put this into any perspective for her. "I don't miss the death and carnage but I do just miss them in general. Some of the Wraith weren't too bad, they tolerated me..." Pal just gave a laugh as he leaned back once more in the water.

"It's just home. I guess I miss all the cold and dark from that place, the fog was comforting, quiet...that's really about it."

Thalia chewed on her lip a little, thinking over what Pal had said.  She could somewhat understand.  Though it wasn't as extreme as his case, her own people did drive her off the wall sometimes.  They were too cautious, too regulated.  Mate only during the mating season.  Only stay close with your mate if you want to be with them for life.  Don't venture out of the forest.  Don't talk to humans.  Don't do anything fun was more like it.  So her people tried to keep her from experiencing the world, while his locked him up so he wouldn't save his.  However, she did still love her clan, so she could somewhat understand how Pal would still feel a connection to his fellow wraiths.

"Well I guess I understand..." She said slowly.  "Family is family, and they've all got their issues I guess."  She smiled at him knowing tithe word issues probably didn't cover his family.  She wasn't all that surprised that he missed the cold, dark, and fog.  It made sense that a creature of ice and dark magic like him would miss that sort of setting.

Thalia began to absent mindedly draw a figure eight in the ponds sand.  She would create a line, and a few seconds later the water would shift a little and the sand would fill it back in.  "So... I you could go back... would you?"  She kept her eyes focused on the appearing and reappearing eight.  Though she'd understand perfectly if he said yes, she would be rather sad.  She'd come to like Pal, and was hoping to travel a little more with him.  Their short time together had already shown her how much more fun it was to travel with a companion.

It was hard to go against your entire nature. The essence right inside your body telling you that he had to create more Wraiths, that he had to kill people and turn them, to dig up graves, desecrate bodies and bring souls back from eternal paradise. The thing that kept him away from that though was...hatred. His hatred for it. That kept him strong. Well, that and the knowledge that he could do whatever he wanted without any real consequence. Of course, he made sure what he did wasn't anything bad, that he didn't hurt anyone. That was the most important part.

Do no harm to others and to yourself, but instead do things that were enjoyable and pleasurable instead.

"Family is family but just because the same ice flows through my veins doesn't mean I always gotta listen to them. They're such busybodies really, I don't much care for them all the time. Heh." It was fine though, they could do whatever they chose to do but he was going to just...relax and try not to think of things like...well...that stuff.

Pal turned onto his side to look at her, blinking a few times with a curious expression on his face. "Go back? To my home?" He thought about that for a moment, rubbing his chin absently. "No, I don't think I ever would Thalia. I'm here now, and I like it here for that matter. Good company, great scenery for that matter, and a beautiful woman by my side not to mention." Pal gave a large grin as he reached out so slowly caress her her cheek with his hand. He could feel every bit of her as she lay in the water. He was part of the water after all, and he could feel every curve, every supple turn and every smooth part of her.

"You know, it's a strange thing Thalia." He slowly removed his hand from her cheek, looking upward at the sky once more. "Usually I find a woman and and I woo her, have a sexual romance with her and then I leave but you...I'm afraid to for some reason. I don't have very many inhibitions but I'm frightened of the thought of you and I coming together to mate...it's such an odd feeling really." Pal stretched his arms out, running a hand slowly down his back to try and rearrange his spine properly. He felt a small crack and he sighed pleasantly, that was much better.

"Ahem. I hope you uhm...think bad of me for that Thalia...sometimes I get caught up in having fun and enjoying life and I suppose to me being able to mate is sort of a fun thing. Heh. You know that sounds nicer...mating, instead of sex. Sex just sounds dirty for some reason." Alright now he was babbling, and his face was a little red from embarrassment. He just sort of told a person that he was doing all this because he was ah...horny and sex with a new creature was such an adventure after all.

Maybe being honest would be a little better.

"But all that's not really important now. We can think about a romantic trist later! Right now we can just bask in the sun and water and think of some adventures for us to go on!" Yeah, change of subject was perfect really! Very perfect even!

Thalia smiled a little at his description of his relationship with his people.  It reminded her of her own with her clan.  They were all 'stay in the forest' and 'avoid humans.'  To her, that was the same as saying 'have no fun.'  She loves her people, but she didn't want to be confined to the same forest doing the same things every day of every season for however many centuries she'd live.  As much as she loved them, she hated being around them because she felt so constricted by their rules and regulations.

She blushed a little as he called her beautiful and gently held her cheek in her hand.  She smiled back at him, enjoying the strange feelings that were welling up inside her.  Since this was her first year as an adult by Kirin standards, she had never taken part in mating rituals before.  Of course she and the other Kirin children would converse about what they had overheard the adults talking about, or what the trouble makers had observed, but she had never put any of her knowledge into practice before.  Not to mention, humans went about their courtship process a little differently.

Then Pal suddenly began to talk about his usual courtships.  Thalia did not find the fact that he left women after he'd completed the mating odd; that was standard among Kirins.  The males waited until the child was born of course, and usually a few weeks after that to help the mother get food and protect her while she was at her weakest.  But once the child was fairly mobile, the males tended to stay in their groups and females with their own children.  Only those that were very close stayed together out of the mating season.

What she did think was odd was the idea of mating for a reason other than mating.  She thought humans just liked to mate any time of the year.  She hadn't realized they did it with intentions other than making a baby.  But apparently humans did have sex just for pleasure, and among them it was odd for a man to leave afterwards.  Humans were odd, that was for sure.  However, she had to admit it did sound interesting.  "No, I don't think less of you Pal."  She said, with her eyes now focused on him.  She stretched a little and sat up.  "Kirin males usually leave the females once the child is born.  Though I didn't know humans had um, sex, for reasons other than mating.  But I guess that does sound like a human thing to do..."

She let him change the subject then; things were getting a bit on the awkward side.  Smiling she agreed with his statement.  "Your right!  Where should we go next?  I don't know any places outside of these woods other than the town we met in.  I'm hoping to explore all of Le'raana!"

There was no denying that Pal did enjoy flirting with Thalia though. Not only was she beautiful, but it was also just adorable to see her smile shyly and blush all the time. It was good to know he still had some form of charm to him. He just had to find a species that he had never met or a woman who hadn't heard of him which...thanks the fact this was a very large planet well...that didn't really spread quickly! If he kept his head down once in a while he'd be fine!

Pal sometimes forgot that with other species, mating wasn't like with humans where you were supposed to say and after a night of wooing it was appropriate to form a relationship instead of...well leave. Or get chased off because you really weren't supposed to have sex with the woman but you got her a tad tipsy and one thing led to another a few times and...well an angry father would be chasing you off. Thalia on the other hand didn't really seem to have a problem with his behaviour, while humans would jump at the chance to scorn him on this, or...some of them actually gave him congratulations.

They were such odd beings.

"Really? You don't? Well...that's a load off my shoulders then." Pal blinked though as she explained her people's ways. Huh. So they mated for children, but they never just had sex. That was interesting. "Well...sex is a little different with humans, they can interpret it differently." Revenge, lust, love, passion, heat of the moment, ah sex could be for just about anything really! The act itself was simple but they liked to look beyond it. At least there were  people out there where sex was just sex, nothing more than that!

"Well, I'm not sure if we can see all of...Le'raana but I bet I could take you to a few big cities! We keep you quiet about being a Kirin, dress you up real nice and I'm sure we'll be able to go around uninhibited." Heh, take her to a city. That would be an experience and a half. "I don't...I don't usually like to go to cities honestly, what with being bad luck but...I think that since I've met you, we'll be pretty safe really." As if Pal was going to pass up on this opportunity. He had a woman, beautiful and mysterious, who also could affect luck for the better. There was no way he was going waste this opportunity.

"Plus, they have beds there that are the comfiest things you've ever slept on. Like if you were to stuff silk with a cloud and just rest on that!" So Pal might have had a one track mind of some sort, but you couldn't blame a guy for trying. He just grinned and winked at Thalia, hoping she'd catch the double entendre that was beneath the somewhat harmless comment. Maybe he'd wait, take her to a nice place to experience human culture and...other things. Heh.

"We've got at least half an hour or so before our clothes dry, I say we use this time to enjoy the quiet tranquility and peaceful nature of the forest. Cause I'll be taking you to a really loud place with lots of people!"

"Humans can interpret sex differently?"  Thalia thought.  She wondered what that meant.  Perhaps they didn't just do it for pleasure?  She considered asking more about the subject, but decided against it.  Thalia really wanted to focus on the possibility of exploration right now; other details could come into play afterwards.

"We can't see all of Le'raana?  Why not?  Is it really that big?"  She wondered just how big Le'raana was.  She really didn't know anything other than what she'd overheard from the few travelers that had gone near or through the forests.  She knew there were countries other than Adela, but was unsure of their names or size.  Perhaps she had bitten off more than she could chew when she'd decided to explore Le'raana.  "I thought I could explore it and be home before even a hundred years had passed..."  She refused to pout though, that was for 50 year olds, not adults such as herself.

"Well if I can't see all of Le'raana, I'd love to see one of those cities.  I've never slept on anything softer than a pile of leaves.  Are the beds really that nice?  What else is in the city?  What are the people there like?"  Thalia moved closer to him, her eyes alight with all the possibilities she was imagining.

Some were a little off, like her idea that a city in Adela would be made in giant trees.  However, she did know a city would be far more crowded than the little ocean town she and Pal had met at.  It would be perfect to see all the different species and cultures Le'raana had to offer.  She could see all kinds of humans going about their daily lives; maybe buy some small souvenirs to entertain the younger Kirin back home.

"Well, as far as I understand it Le'raana is quite big, with lots of cities, towns, villages, forests, lakes, rivers, that sort of thing." He wasn't really sure how big it was, but he could feel the fog and mist around this world and some of the fog was...so very far away. Really it was like reaching up to try and touch a cloud. Oh that was always fun! A bit difficult of course but still fun. He could always reach the fog though, no matter where it was. Things were good that way really.

"Well, the beds SHOULD be really nice really, and...well there are tons of things in the city. Metalsmithes, jewellers I assume, market places and restaurants...there are a lot of things there to amuse yourself with. As for the people I assume their pretty nice. The city I'm thinking of I passed through...mostly humans but there were elves and such there. " How could really explain a city? It was a whole bunch of organized houses and businesses all stuck together that had just grown and grown larger and larger.

Ah well. It didn't matter. "Just think of that little ocean town and then...just put like a hundred of them that are spread out. That's kinda what a city is really...ah hell, you'll see it soon enough I promise Thalia. Just...you're going to have to be very quiet about being a Kirin. If you're kind is wanted then...well ...you know it's going to be a good idea not to say anything about your heritage so...you're just gonna be human!" At least for him, telling anyone about what HE was didn't matter.

Wraiths were not in high demand after all.

Plus he'd make a horrible slave to any bounty hunter. Oh he'd just be whining all the time and his bad luck would ruin their lives so really...he was safe. However his companion was blessed instead of cursed like he was so...she would make a fine slave to really anyone that caught her...and he couldn't let that happen. No no no. That would be bad.

Now Thalia really did wonder how big Le'raana was.  Perhaps it would take 200 years to explore all of it, maybe even 300.  Oh well, she'd still be plenty young if it did take that long.  And it would make a good portion of her young adulthood far more interesting than it would be otherwise.  Besides, she could always go home for a visit every 50 or so years.

She listened with earnest as Pal described the wonders of the city, her mouth shaped into a small 'o'.  There were so many different things in the city!  The comfy beds that would surely be a treat compared to her usual standards.  She wasn't sure what the other things Pal listed were, but she knew they must be amazing!  Anything humans made was amazing in her mind.  And there would be elves!  She'd never seen an elf before!  Thalia wondered if they were truly as graceful as she'd heard.  And from what Pal said, there were other creatures there to!  There would be so many amazing sights for her to see.  She really couldn't wait.

Thalia did her best to picture a city as a hundred of the ocean towns put together yet spread out, as Pal had described.  She doubted she was picturing it right, but that was no matter.  Soon enough he would show her the way to one of these magnificent centers, and she would see for herself.

"Right, right." Thalia said in response to Pal's warning.  She had learned her lesson for sure.  She was not planning on letting any other hunters go after her!  Of course, she might have a problem considering what a big mouth she had... but she could learn to keep it shut... She hoped.  "But if I do slip up, and people realize what I am you can just come save me!"  She giggled and smiled at him.

Pal also knew that there were quite a few islands everywhere, out there somewhere amongst the sea he could feel the ocean's mist, lazily being burnt away by the sun. However it wasn't just on the ocean, there was more land out there, different land out there somewhere. It was...well strange to feel really. He did like islands, always surrounded by water and it was never too far away from you, a perfect feeling for any being made somewhat of water and what not.

Pal probably hadn't described a city properly but he had been trying to put it into terms that Thalia would be familiar with, and he believed she had only seen the ocean town. Still, he had to try and describe it to her so she'd understand what she was going to walk into now.

"Oh! Of course! I love being the hero!" Pal exlaimed with a bright grin. "But every time I do rescue you I'd like myself a reward. A kiss would be nice everytime I do, right on the cheek." Pal said as he tapped the side of his cheek, grinning still at her. "I think it's only fair after all, I go ahead and rescue you, I should get something for my own! If you don't mind of course." Hm, that actually raised an interesting question to him.

"You know how to kiss of course? Just pucker the lips a little and go straight for it! Wait...or is that whistling...no whistling you blow...but...wait...." He made a few kissing noises as he tried it out on the air. "You gotta sorta...huh...I'm not even sure how to explain that to you. You gotta do something and pursing your lips is one of the things."

Thalia turned her head to the side a little as Pal went on to describe these things called "kisses".  She hadn't heard that term before.  However, as she described it, she remembered seeing travelers do similar things to what he described.

"Oh!  You mean something like this?"  She leaned over and gave him a peck on the cheek.  Laughing, she explained.  "The travelers that go by or through the woods are sometimes intimately involved.  So I've seen kisses and such before.  I just didn't know that's what they're called."

"Anyways, I'll be glad to exchange a kiss for any time you save me!  Now let's get ready to go!"  She pushed herself up and walked out of the water.  Thalia paused to squeeze the water from her hair back into the pond.  She ignored the water that was dripping down her skin; there wasn't much she could do about that except wait for it to dry.  She went over to where her clothes were hanging, and began to put them on.  They were still a bit damp, but it didn't matter since she was soaked anyways.

It was just a little impossible for him to explain it, you just...well if you didn't know then...well you'd figure it out. Kissing was just like that. You'd see it, and you'd know how to do it.

Either that or he was just really bad at explaining things.

Nah!

He blinked when she leaned in and gave him a kiss on his cheek, making him grin afterwards and nod. "Yes! That's exactly what I mean! Hah! Good, don't have to explain that part then! Excellent!" That was one less thing! Still he really wanted to demonstrate it to her but it was alright, there was time for that later after all. Heh, like in the city when there was a nice comfy bed and all that. Probably wasn't the smartest idea to try and do /that/ stuff out here in the wild where...bugs and dirt and...yeah. Better to wait.

"Excellent. We'll count that kiss just now as to when I rescued you back in the town." With that they could just start off at zero after all. It worked out when you thought about. Standing up Pal headed to his clothes to inspect them. Hm. Still a bit damp...

"Let's see if I can still do this." Pal pulled his clothes on, making sure to pull his hood on as well as he entered the phase that was being in wraith form. The water on his body was gone now, but he had to fix things with his clothes...and her clothes and her damp...wet body. Ahem. Pal closed his eyes as he focused on his clothes, drawing water from it to create the only thing that was easy for him. Mist. Fog.

Already a thin layer was forming around him, but that didn't stop as he reached his gauntlet out to her for a moment, placing a hand on her shoulder as he focused carefully. He was drawing the moisture and water left over from being in the water. Finally the water was gone from her and her clothes, forming just a light mist around them. Pal grinned as he pulled his hood down, laughing to himself. "And there we go! That should be good...it's easier when things are a bit damp, getting all that water out can be...well with people being made of water and all, it could just lead to disaster." Plus he really didn't want to accidentally like...suck her blood out using his magic. That would have been...well it wouldn't have been just a little bad, it would have been REALLY bad.

Thalia squeaked a little as Pal rested his gauntlet covered hand on her shoulder.  She knew Pal wouldn’t hurt her, but she still didn’t like having the metal touch her.  Before today, she’d only seen metal shaped as weapons; weapons that were often used to capture or hurt her clan members.  All the same, her nervousness was driven away by her curiosity and wonder as she observed what Pal was doing.  She felt her clothes dry against her skin and looked in marvel as it drifted out of the woven threads to form a thing fog that hung around the two of them.  She lifted her hand up through the fog, enjoying its coolness and watching as most rushed out of the way of her hand, while some got caught in her palm and slowly escaped through her fingers to trickle back down in to the larger mass.

Her excitement was dimmed a little as Pal talked about how things could have gone wrong.  She forced out a nervous laugh and nodded.  â€œThat would definitely not be good.â€?  She paused, and smiled as an idea formed.  â€œBut you’d never hurt me on purpose, right?â€?  She asked with a small giggle.  Before he could reply, she spun around and began to head in the direction of the ocean.

That was a fun bit of flirting!  At least she thought that it could be called flirting.  She really wasn’t sure about the whole thing.  Maybe she shouldn’t have walked away.  Pal was probably considerably confused now.  She forced herself to resist the urge to turn around, that would be even more bizarre!  Oh well, it was too late to do anything about it.  Once she got to the city she’d be able to observe how humans really interacted.  Then she could flirt with Pal properly, instead of creating these awkward situations.  However, she’d probably still produce weird situations like this, with her tendency to blurt things out without thinking them through.

Pal never would have hurt her, there would have been no point to do anything like that. He did want to get them all nice and dry though, so they could head off toward the city and be able to show her the wonders that human civilization could build. Plus he just loved to make fog, because it was really fun! And it felt neat as well. With it swirling around yourself, the cool feeling of it, it was really tingly!  He just hoped that eventually Thalia wouldn't be so scared of him. He didn't believe he was that scary of a person after all.

He liked to think he was more adorable than anything.

"Not an ever! That would be just wrong of me." The other wraiths of his homeworld might do something like that, but nuts to them they weren't here right now so hah hah on them. They weren't here to do anything now!

"Ah, not that way Thalia. We're going to a city. That's...erm..." Pal begin to look around for a moment, pulling his hood up over his head. A bit of mist escaped from his hood, and he began to wave his hand through it. He was communicating with the mist so to speak. It didn't talk back of course, but it allowed him to sort of know what was going on. And where some things were. Like the city! Hah! There we go, that's what he wanted. Bit of clouds going through the sky. "There we go. We wanna go this way." Pal said as he pointed his gauntlet towad a direction.

"That's where the city is, and that's which way we're gonna walk." He told her as he pulled his hood back down, allowing himself to be human once more, grinning slightly. "Hope you don't mind a bit of a trek!"

Thalia felt a light redness creep into her cheeks.  First she messed up the whole flirting thing and then this!  She'd grown up in these woods and yet she'd managed to go the wrong way.  Hopefully Pal wouldn't think she was too stupid from all of this.  "Eh, right!  I knew that of course.  I just um... got a little confused for a second.  I was about to change direction naturally."  She quickly set off in the direction Pal had indicated, while silently punishing her self for the pathetic excuse.  "Let's get going!  Trekking is totally fine with me!"

There she went again!  She really needed to stop opening her mouth.  Every time she did something even more stupid than the last thing she said came out.  Thalia had always been scolded by the Kirin elders for not learning to think before speaking, but she'd ignored them.  She'd never realized saying the first thing that came to mind could be so embarrassing!  Well she'd just have to practice starting now!

First to think of a good conversation topic that would pull Pal's mind away from the silly things she'd just said.  Forcing herself to put a minute or two of thought into it, she stated, "So have you been to this city before Pal?"  She kept her voice even, but inside she was silently cheering herself for finally saying something that didn’t humiliate her.  Now she just had to continue carefully considering each... and... every... reply...  Now that sounded boring......  But she would force herself to do it, so she could avoid any more awkward situations!

"Hey, I didn't even know where it was." Palzerus said with a small shrug. He did notice her blush, but he was actually confused by it really. Blushing meant two things, and she couldn't be...er...in the mood right? So why was she embarrassed? That was just silly wasn't it? Pal decided to just...let her do her thing then, best not to bring it up and make her feel even worse the poor thing. Last thing he needed was to get her all flustered! "Good because I can't fly and I doubt I can transport us both through the mist." He had never tried to take two people through the Wraith way of teleporting but he was sure it wouldn't work.

Best to just walk.

"Not this city no, but in every land cities are really just the same." Pal explained, falling in step beside her. "See, cities can start out like villages, or towns really. What happens is more people flock to a particular city for a good reason, maybe it's closer to royalty, maybe it has a good trade route, or a fantastic port where ships can dock and new and exciting spices or materials can be delivered. Whatever the case, people decide to settle down there, for the jobs, and as they expand, they start to get more recognition. Soon the population grows large, and barracks start getting put into place, people can join the military and help defend the city, or they can become traders or merchants. Eventually that just keep happening, it gets bigger and bigger until it's a city. I don't think this world has metropolises yet. Hooey, THOSE are really big." Pal had been to a world that had a metropolis. One million people lived there, and it was crazy!

That's what happens when you build a city in levels though! More and more room for people until population is out of control! Still, he liked the red light district there. Pretty fancy.

Thalia let herself relax a little when Pal made no outward side that he noticed her foolishness.  Of course, she continued to remind herself that she needed to think about what she was about to say.  No more blurting out random things!

Transporting through the mist?  Now that sounded exciting!  But Thalia could wait.  Pal seemed uncertain about it, and she didn't want something to go wrong.   She hadn't forgotten about his bad luck after all!  Though she had faith in her own good luck, she wasn't sure she wanted to see if they cancelled each other out or not.  Plus she just loved walking through the woods.  Everything was so beautiful and serene.  Of course it could get rather boring, hence the reason she was leaving.

She listened with silent interest to Pal's description of cities.  "Wow!  Cities sound amazing!"  She blurted out.  Suddenly remembering her new speaking verdict, she paused and thought about what to say next.  "Do you think we'll be able to see everything the city has to offer?"  Thalia queried.  "I really hope so!  It sounds like it'll be a ton of fun!  Though maybe not as exciting as those metropolises things."  She smiled at Pal, though her thoughts were filled with her thoughts of all the possibilities a city had to offer.  She really couldn't wait!

When he managed to do a few tests with the mist, they'd be able to start teleporting with that as best as possible, but he really didn't want to take hold of her, pull her with him, and suddenly find out he's only managed to take her arm with him. That would really be a very bad thing. So he was just going to study his little trick for just a bit before he was actually going to try it out. He didn't much care for the idea of hurting poor Thalia.

"Well, they are rather amazing I suppose. I mean, there are some pretty fun places though there!" Hmmm. He wondered if they had clubs here. He knew taverns and all that might exist, an opera house or two, but clubs...oh he loved clubs! They were in the more modern settings, and they were just for dancing and drinking. Heh. This place probably hadn't gone too far for that...it required a much hardier beat for that matter! Ah well. He was gonna try to show her everything there! Shops, merchants, whatever was there, he was going to teach her much there!

Just had to be careful he kept himself line here. Gotta be a gentleman after all. Besides, there was time to go into detail about that sort of thing later. Heh heh. He was actually glad things worked out this way, instead of just jumping right into his usual way of life.

He'd get to learn about her and her people! And he'd be able to teach her about humans, and about himself and his people...which...wasn't the best thing. He'd pretty much explained all about his people by now.

Thalia quicked her pace slightly without even realizing it.  She knew they were nearing the edge of the forest, and therefor even closer to their destination.  Her mind was filled with imagined images of the city.  She had enough sense to know she was probably way off, but she didn't care.  She'd be set right soon enough!

"We're almost to the edge of the forest Pal!"  She exclaimed.  "Say, how far is the city once we leave the forest?  Unless you can't tell, which is perfectly fine of course."  Thalia really hoped he'd be able to tell, and that he would say it wasn't too far off; but she would understand if he couldn't tell her.  He knew this world even less than she did!

"Oh there it is!"  She pointed ahead to where the trees thinned and light came pouring through.

((If your Neeva Hansler isn't doing anything...this could be a brilliant oppurtuniiiity x3))

Pal could keep up, he didn't even have to walk, he could just float. IF he were a wraith. Being a wraith meant you could be so much lazier, and Pal just enjoyed that little tidbit really. Still, it was best to follow on foot, not to lord over the fact he could simply whisk ahead of her on a misty cloud. Beside, he liked the idea of being able to race her if they came to a nice big open field really.

"Uhmmm...a good while. Weeks actually. We have to cross several rivers, one really really large one, and then a couple of small ones and then..." Pal left that hanging as some mist was drawn up in front of him, his hand waving about in it. "Then there is a river right near it. Y'know, it might actually be smarter for us to take a boat! Oh that would be so cool. We could sail up the big river in the boat, then when we get to the split we could take one of the boats...er..smaller boats, like one of the row boats, and we can just follow THAT river upwards to the city!" Pal clapped his hands together, causing the mist to disappear from all the movement. Oh he was excited by this prospect.

Boats and ships! Surrounded by water, by HIS element! Mist and ice and water all around! Oh he loved boats! To him they were just like wraiths made of wood. Some sort of strange wooden construct wraith. Oh ho that would be terrific! Ahem. He was getting ahead of himself of course.

"Finding a nice ship might be a trouble, but I bet if we go around the port towns we can find one!"

Thalia felt her excitement deflate a little.  The city was weeks away?  It was not the time that bothered her; a year was a flash in a Kirin's life, let alone weeks.  But the distance that she'd have to cross to get to her destination!  She had not realized just how BIG the world was.  She did not think it could possibly be that much bigger than her forest home.  Well that didn't matter!  She was here now and she was not going back!  Not until she'd seen all of Le'raana!

Besides, she did have a nice travelling partner.  Thalia glanced over at Pal and smiled.  She'd be fine as long as he was around.  He'd protect her from anyone and anything.  And he could teach her all about the interesting human world!  The rivers wouldn't be that bad anyways... though she had never even attempted to walk over rapidly moving water.  

Suddenly Pal suggested they take a boat.  A boat! "I would love to take a boat!  I've never even been on one!  Oh that would really be so much fun!  Let's take a boat!  To the nearest port town!"  Thalia said gleefully.

They came upon the nearest town rather soon.  It was a small see village though, most vessels more suited for fishing rather than travelling.  All the same, Thalia was optimistic about their chances of finding a decent boat to travel in.  Of course she was rather naive of the ways of the human world.  "So we need a big boat for the big river, right Pal?"  She asked.

"Searching for a boat, are ya missy?" A very muscular man stepped out of the shadows.  Wait... that was a woman!  Or at least Thalia thought she was.  "Name's Neeva.  Neeva Hansler.  Ah just 'appen to beh in possession o' a fine craft.  Ah could easily bring ya where ever it be ya wish to go.  Provided ya 'ave ta coin to make it worth me while."  Thalia gave a nervous smile.  This woman/man was very intimidating.  She towered over Thalia, and her huge muscles kept tightening and loosening.  Her hair was messily cut and her ragged clothes fit rather tightly on her muscular shape.  Her face also bore marks that proved she'd been in a number of fights.

Thalia thought it through... and decided this might be a good opportunity!  With a woman... or man... like this, Pal wouldn't need to worry about protecting Thalia!  The two of them could just have fun while this Neeva person took care of all their troubles! "What do you think Pal?  This could be just what we're looking for!"

For a wraith, time was also irrelevant, however for Pal, it wasn't. Despite being able to live forever really...he was impatient, he liked things now and he hated having to wait all that much. It meant the fun that he could have, no matter how great and awesome, wasn't going to happen right away. Time was a restraint for Pal, it made his life so...damned boring. Still, Pal was always excited about time coming to an end so to speak. Not like the end of the world but just the end of the time that was restraining him. Yeah.

Something like that.

"Yes, we shall find a port town!" Pal announced with her, his voice just as happy and his grin as large as possible. The port town was just...a little sea village that smelled like fish. Always with the fish. Well. Fishy and ocean smelling. That just seemed like...normal really. He didn't mind care for it honestly. Not a very exciting place now that he looked at it. "S'right Thalia, a big boat for the big river."

The person coming from the shadows made Pal jump, in front of Thalia mostly, thinking this might be an attack. It was just a very...uhm...that was a woman. There were...a lot of muscles too. That was a little odd and...huh. Well...if he had to choose between Thalia and this...Neeva, he'd pick Thalia hands down. Heh. This...woman was tall and...muscular and...scary looking. Considering some of the scars, very strong too. That was...it wasn't a very good omen. Well. No that was a good omen once he thought about it. A tough...captain like that was um...likely to not get in a lot of trouble.

"I er...think this captain will suit us good." He stepped up to the captain, going through his strange garb for a moment until he pulled out a small bag, handing it over to the captain with a grin. "This should cover it, thirty pieces of gold." Pal then went on to explain what they needed, which was really a trip up the river to Aedolis. It was a rather large river...rather...really large after all.

"So, where's your ship? My lovely little friend and I would love to get to the big city!" Pal asked the large woman with a grin. Figure Pal would be able to tell the gender of the captain, being as he was very...interested in the different genders.

"Just give meh a moment." Neeva muttered, more focused on counting each and every coin that what her new clients were asking.  Once she was sure the bag truly held thirty gold pieces (and she'd checked that they were actual gold pieces) she looked up.  She gave the pair a smile, though she directed it more and that man who'd handed her the money.  He obviously handled the couples' money, and that made him important in Neeva's eyes.  "Jus follow meh, an' I'll show ye where she be."  She turned and started walking towards a more hidden part of the harbor.  "Now trust meh, if you've an eye for sea craft, you gonna agree dis boat is worth every one o' dem shinies you jus handed ta me."

   She looked back to make sure they were following and gave them another smile when she saw that they were.  Thalia promptly decided she liked it better when the woman wasn't smiling.  Sure she was scary that way too, but when she smiled it reminded Thalia of a hungry predator.  This woman (Thalia was mostly sure it was a woman) definitely made her nervous.  However, she saw that as a good thing.  No one would attack a ship with a captain that looked like she had no problem with biting heads off.

   "Ah, here we are.  Ya see what Ah was talkin' about?  She a beaute ain't she?"  Thalia had to agree.  She knew nothing of boats other than the fact that you could travel over water on them, but even she could tell this boat was of good quality.

   "It's amazing!"  She said, her mouth hanging open a little.  The boat was painted a majestic blue that looked like it had been stolen from the evening sky.  The railings and other details were painted a shimmery silver, and accented the blue nicely.  A flapping noise drew Thalia's attention and she looked up to see a merry blue flag with a silver dolphin.

   "Yus it is.  Da envy of every uther captain on da rive, the Dolphin Racer is."  Neeva looked at the ship smugly, obviously proud of her sea craft.  Abruptly she turned toward Thalia and Pal.  "Now we're still finishin' up our new paint job, so dis ship ain't sailin' 'til tomorrow.  Dat all right wit you?"

Neeva avoided mentioning the reason the ship was being repainted was because it had been remodeled recently, and the remodeling was so no one would recognize it.  The ship had been formerly known as the Golden Gryphon, until it had been attacked and seized by pirates.  None of the ship's former crew members were alive to say who stole the craft, but the law officials still hoped to find the boat.  The ship was still as steady and fine as before, but it was almost unrecognizable.  Its former captain may have seen through the paint and new look, but he was sleeping on the bottom of the river with a heavy chain around his legs keeping him company.

Her plan for the vessel was simple.  Make some small coin bringing travelers up and down the river safely.  She'd make sure they were well protected from the mysterious river bandits who had just started robbing the other traveling vessels on the river a couple weeks ago.  As her reputation of being the only travel boat that could make the trip safely grew, her customers would grow in number and purse size.  Eventually some fool merchant with a fat purse and heavy load would come aboard.  Mid-way, she would relieve him of his cargo and any bodily concerns.  She looked over the couple again judging their possible wealth by their clothes.  Neeva doubted they held much of worth.  They'd be safe from her.

Thalia nodded.  She could wait a day if it meant riding the river in a craft like this.  "Is it alright with you Pal?"  She turned away from Neeva to face him.  "I don't mind waiting a day, but if you do we can look elsewhere."  She'd prefer not to, she had a feeling this woman could fight off almost anything, but Pal was her travelling companion and he had the experience with such matters.


((Sorry I haven't been on.  It's college application time, so I've been busy with visits and all the other crazy things that happens with this.  Come January, or earlier if I get into my first choice school via ED, I should be able to be on more regularly.))