Anillo whistled as he sauntered down the streets of Suna, meeting the eye of anyone who met his. Well-noted in some circles for his highly honed skills with music and his energetic displays of the spoken arts, he greeted those he knew by name, and winked at those he wished to know.
But today he was not seeking a client to purchase his time, instead he was looking for a little fun. He liked to leave his mark every now and again--letting loose the domestic chickens at Nefry's, giving skewed palm-readings to foreigners who knew no better, and even sometimes candying onions. And he was feeling particularly dastardly at the moment.
"Morning, Anillo," came a sweet voice from behind him. He slowed to let its owner catch up to him, and found himself walking alongside Amina--a tradeswoman he'd entertained once or twice. "Morning, Amina," he said with a friendly grin. They exchanged pleasantries until she had to part ways to reach her shop, and as she walked away she swept her silvery hair aside. Her pink fingers--stained with the dyes she worked with all day long--gave Anillo a brilliant idea, and a handsome (but dangerous) smile lit up his face. Calling after Amina, he caught up to her and accompanied her the rest of the way, saying it was only gentlemanly.
An hour or so later, he left Amina's Dye Shop with a vial of dark blue and one of indigo and that same eerie smile on his face.
Elaina had just returned to Suna, where she had left a couple weeks before to travel in the woods, and did the thing most important to her: shop for clothes and dyes. It wasn't easy keeping a bright wardrobe, and her clothes were already fading. Remembering that there was a dye shop nearby a cafe she had gone to before she left, Elaina decided it was worth a shot.
When she entered it, she immediately spotted a man with silver hair and gorgeous skin as well as a pretty blue haired lady who was shyly eying the man. Obviously a crush and nothing more. Normally, Elaina would have walked up to the admittedly handsome man, but the glint in his eye kept her away. It was clear he was planning something, and she wanted to know what it was.
Keeping an eye on him while she shopped, Elaina found a vibrant green dye as well as a nice yellow one and sky blue one. When the man left about five minutes later, she immediately bought the dyes and followed him—weaving through the crowd enough that he shouldn't notice her unless he was paying specific attention or if he was trained in that sort of thing.
Lost in the mire of his thoughts, Anillo failed to notice his pursuer as he headed towards the outskirts of the city. He was thinking in particular of two places: a pool behind a temple where monks bathed (how funny would it be if they suddenly were unusually blue?) and headed that way.
But Anillo's mischievousness made him seize opportunities as they came, and he was brought to a halt in the middle of the street when he saw the House of Kalkali, a rival Maoin house. The Kalkalis had been trying to steal his house's clients for months, and it would be poetic justice to exact a little revenge.
Anillo crept in a wide circle around the house, leaving the main road and weaving between the bamboo dwellings surrounding Kalkali House. Outside was a string of wet clothes left to dry in the sun for all the Maoin who lived there. The clothes had only splashes of color--sashes and caps, and Anillo knew he would be doing them a favor if he lent them the expensive color he'd purchased. But tie dye? That would not be so very appealing to any tasteful Thanati. Anillo snickered, and thought that some new patterns cut into their outfits wouldn't be a bad touch either.
Elaina was glad that the man failed to notice her, for it would be no good if her fun ended before she saw what he was planning on doing. He stopped in the middle of the street and spent a second gazing at a house, her sign that he had reached his destination. Then he went around to the back of it. It would be hard to hide without people to hide behind, especially with her green cap and blue hair.
Nonetheless, Elaina went beside the house, peeking out from the corner to try to see what he was doing. She spotted the clothes and the growing look of mischievousness in his eyes and started to guess what he was doing. Even though Elaina was a person to stop any sort of injustice, she wanted to watch this one through to the end. After all, it was obvious that the silver haired man didn't choose this house at random. So she wanted to see the look on the owner's face when they discovered their ruined clothes...
Afterwards, she planned on buying them more. She might let them suffer a little bit of astonishment and anger, but it was still in her nature to help out. Until then, she would just watch.
He needed a bucket. A bucket, some water, and the breeches of Kalkali himself. There was a well nearby for any water, and a pail sitting beneath the clothesline, as if inviting his mischief. Anillo watched the windows of the house for a couple of minutes, hoping no one was home. When he thought it was safe, he darted out from his hiding place and plucked as many garments from the clothesline as he could carry, and slung the pail over his shoulder then raced back.
He removed the two vials from his pocket, wishing he'd bought more colors. Twirling the glass vials in his nimble fingers, he mused over his dilemma and suddenly felt that inexplicable feeling of being watched. He turned slowly and casually and thought he caught a bright flash of blue and green.
Anillo grinned somewhat sheepishly. "I'd say it's not what it looks like, but that would probably be a lie," he called out experimentally. "Hello? Is anyone there? Have I been caught already?"
Elaina watched as he started his work, realizing that he was actually quite coordinated. And apparently had a somewhat good sixth sense. She knew it was pointless to hide now that he thought that she was there. After all, her only hiding skill was when the other person was completely oblivious.
Standing up and walking gracefully towards him, Elaina replied, "I think I'm the one who was just caught. You, on the other hand, were caught back in that dye shop." She flashed him a smile. "I was wondering what such a handsome man would be doing with those colors and a evil glimmer in his eye, and I have to say, you haven't disappointed me."
Looking at his vials and then the pile of clothes, she added, "I do believe you need more dye, however. Take this." She tossed him her yellow vial—she had never been a huge fan of yellow clothes, anyway.
Anillo stood and bowed, finding it hard to place her accent. There was a lilt to his own words when he spoke in the Common, and he purposely kept it heavily accented. "Ah, was I really?" he said, returning her smile. "You are beautiful AND clever it would seem."
He caught the yellow dye she tossed to him, finding his problem very happily solved. "Thank you. This will make for a fantastical array of color."
"I am Anillo," he said by way of introduction, intrigued by the woman's blue hair and beauty. He also sensed that, like himself, her heritage was not all of mortal men. "I do not believe we have met before, much to my regret. May I have the honor of knowing the name of my 'accomplice'?"
"Mmmm... I believe I shall keep my name hidden for now. It adds to the intrigue, does it not?" Elaina asked, with a coy smile. Glancing over at the house, she added, "We better hurry up, never know when people will get home." It wouldn't matter much if they were caught, seeing as she could pay off any damage. But it would ruin the fun.
Looking back at Anillo, she finished up, "What are you doing this for, anyway? As your accomplice, surely I should know the grudge you hold against these people? Perhaps they doubted your obviously good looks?" Elaina was still smiling... after all, flirting was one of her favorite things.
"Oh it does, truly," Anillo returned, arching a pale brow. He followed her gaze, and then bent to his work, soaking the garments in what little water was left in the pail. If only it were warmer...but he would make due. He unstoppered the vials of dye.
"Permit me to tell you a story," he began with his typical flair, grinning winningly at the compliment as he continued to work. "This is the Maoin house, belonging to a Maoin (an absurdly old one I might add) named Kalkali. He is a vain and ambitious man, but he fell victim to what ensnares all men at some point: a beautiful woman." He winked. "That woman was another Maoin, named Livini. A fair and skillful Maoin, Livini respected but did not return Kalkali's affections. Kalkali was a man desperately in love however--he would not give up, and not until Livini very publicly turned down his proclamations of love did he finally admit defeat. He forced her hand, and he had no one to blame for his embarrassment but himself, but he turned bitter and vengeful all the same. Now that Livini lives in the Raon House (my house), Kalkali spares no effort in trying to steal away our clients and ruin the reputations of the Maoin under Raon's roof, including mine."
A small, pensive frown turned the corners of his mouth. "He convinced one of my most loyal clients recently that I did not write my own poetry, but in fact stole it from a lesser known poet! There is a difference between inspiration and thievery!" Then , abruptly, a smile. "Would you like to hear a poem?"
Elaina calmly listened to his story, and did an inward laugh when he winked at her. Dare she say he was as flirty as her? The story seemed typical enough—a rejected love leaving the man bitter and resentful. But to take revenge on all of the Raon's seemed a bit much to her, and lying to get your way was even worse.
"Yes, tell me a poem," Elaina replied. "Lovely poems always come from lovely men." Now she was the one who winked. "But keep working on the clothes. Would you like help? Perhaps I can get more water?" The clothes were damp at best.
"Some more water would be lovely," he said with a smile, stopping before he added any of the indigo. Then, with a musical cadence, he tossed her a stanza: "If they be her eyes or the Isle, ask me of the Jewel of the Sea, of the colors of the sky and the earth, those colors that undo me. If they be the wind that sings, or the tempests tossed on surf you hear, ask me of her laughter then, an'the secrets she's whispered in my ear."
He watched her reaction with wide eyes, the echo of a smile hanging on his lips.
A wide smile appeared on her face while Anillo displayed his poetic talent. "That was beautiful," Elaina said, completely honest. "Did you create that just now?" She never had a knack for poetry, and there were few men who attempted to woo her with it. But out of those ones, Anillo was by far the best.
After that moment of being mesmerized, she remembered about getting more water and debated how to go about it. The pail had the clothes in it... but she could still use magic. Never bothered with attention, it wasn't like she worried about being flashy. With another flirty smile, Elaina explained, "Now it's my turn to show off."
Closing her eyes, Elaina willed some water to come out of the well—just enough to fill the pail the rest of the way. As her magic made its way over to the water, her blue markings started to appear on her skin. They formed a variety of swirls, flowing as smooth as water itself. They decorated her entire body, face included. She felt the water being controlled by her magic and opened her eyes, directing it out of the well and into the pail. Then, after she put it into the pail, she released her magic and all of the markings disappeared, as they always did.
Anillo made her a small bow of thanks. "Perhaps," he said cryptically. "But it is new, and you're the first to hear its debut."
Recognizing that glint of secret knowing from his own expression, Anillo waited intrigued. As the blue markings started to trace their way along the woman's skin, he gasped with surprised delight. The fluid symbols caught his artistic fancy nevertheless, and he watched them dance along her face avidly.
When he saw the water coming from the well, he realized instantly the extreme luck he'd had today in finding such a wily and magical companion, but he was also at once wary. Most Thanati thought of elemental magic as taboo, but he'd never experienced firsthand, and if it was helping him with a little delightful mischief, how harmful could it be?
"You are full of wonderful surprises," he said. He handed her a vial. "Are you ready to add a little color to their lives?" He poured the purple and the blue in, and having no qualms about stained fingers, plunged his hands into the dark water.
"I would say wonderful surprises for a wonderful man, but it's not like I keep my magic secret," Elaina started. "And I'm always ready to add a little color to anybody's life... keeps it interesting!" Following Anillo's example, she dipped her hands slowly into the water and started to mix and squeeze the clothes. Even though she couldn't see his hands through the dark water, she made sure to 'accidentally' bump their hands together a few times.
Lifting her head up and gazing into Anillo's eyes, Elaina smiled. His eyes were a pretty shade, and she wasn't going to bother hiding that. "You have pretty eyes... they remind me of the ocean." And being part water nymph, the ocean was a good thing to be reminded of.
"Magic is a wonderful thing," Anillo said sincerely. "Unfortunately, the only magic I have is a little fortune telling." As they churned the water with the clothes and their hands brushed against each other, he grinned and said: "Perhaps I can read the lines of your palm sometime and divine your future."
Quote"You have pretty eyes... they remind me of the ocean."
Anillo smiled graciously at the compliment. "And yours are like the leaves of the forest in summertime after rain," he declared. "The ocean?" He considered her height--as tall as he was exactly--and knew she was not a native, and hazarded a guess that she was a traveler. "You must wander the seas then? How is it no man has captured you yet? Can you even be captured," he wondered, "oh, the hearts of wanderers!" He grinned at his own melodrama.
Anillo glanced down for a moment, and lifted a garment experimentally out of the water. It was magnificently awful. "Haha!" he laughed. "Brilliant!" The colors were splattered and hideous.
"Quickly, we must hang them back up!"
Elaina laughed as Anillo continued on a more dramatic poetic route. "I wander the world, not just the seas. And I can't say that no man has tried, but perhaps I just haven't wanted to be captured... yet." She gave him a sly look when she said yet.
Looking at the garment Anillo picked up, she laughed again. "Gotta give them their present!" She picked up some more clothes and ran over to the clothing line, hanging them up. "And you may divine my future if you'd like, but I fear it may ruin more of our mysterious chemistry," Elaina added. Her hands were covered with dye, but she was used to that and didn't even care.
As she was returning to get more clothes from the pail, Elaina heard what sounded like footsteps inside the house. "Quiet!" she whispered to Anillo while giggling. "We got to finish this quick and get out of here!" Based on what he had told her, she doubted their presence in the yard would be appreciated.
Anillo snatched a couple shirts and a sash or two, hanging them up as she did. "Oh don't worry," he said with a smirk, "I'm not as good as that." He raced to get all the clothing up, stepping back for a quick moment of admiration.
"Look at our beautiful work!" He gestured to the gaudy tie-dyed garments billowing in the gentle breeze with his dyed fingers. "It's so wonderfully atrocious!"
As she told him to be quiet, he quickly crouched over, putting a hand to his mouth. "Alright," he whispered back, as they had the last of the clothes in their arms. "But I think it might already be too late for that."
In addition to the sound of footsteps, Anillo saw a face peeking through the window, and it did not wear a very pleased expression.
Elaina gasped as she followed Anillo's line of vision and saw the face in the window. It seemed they were caught. But at least Anillo was right when he said that the clothes looked 'wonderfully atrocious'. Their job was complete, now all they had to do was find a way out of there.
"Should we run?" Elaina asked. "Or stay here and see what happens?" Either way, they would need to make up their mind quickly because the face had disappeared from the window. If they ran, they risked not being able to see the full reaction of the person. If they stayed, they risked even being attacked. The best option would've been to hide, but it was probably too late for that.
Either way, Elaina bet she could hold her ground. The problem would be Anillo. She wasn't sure how he held up in a fight or if he wanted to be found guilty of this crime, seeing as this was his town. If the people here got mad at her, it wouldn't matter since she could just vanish. But even in they ran, he might still be discovered depending on how fast he was. That's why Elaina was leaving the decision up to him.
Anillo turned and met Elaina's eye. A smile flashed onto his face, then it was gone again. As the door swung open, and a figure began to emerge, his whole body tensed. "I think we should run," he said laughingly. "Quickly!"
Racing behind the now colorful clothesline, he made a beeline for the cover of a side street. Anillo was a fast runner, with the leanly muscled and tall body made for stamina. He would have stayed to talk his way out of the situation, for he was as clever and charismatic as any Maoin, but in this case he was too red-handed to deny his crime--literally.
As he was racing away, headed for the main street where they could perhaps get lost in the crowd, he was aware of the sounds of pursuit--footsteps, shouts. There was more than one person after them, and they didn't sound like they were going to give up easy. This was going to be a chase to remember!
Elaina ran after Anillo, laughing just as loud. He was quicker than she had imagined but she could still keep up. However she knew that running from then wouldn't be easy. There were multiple people after them and neither one of them necessarily blended in with the crowd, even if it was big. She had her vibrant hat and blue hair, while he had his silver hair.
Now in the crowd, Elaina grabbed Anillo's hand and pulled him back to slow him down. "Running will only make us stand out more." She glanced back and could see their three pursuers making their way into the crowd. "Let's split up. Meet back in that dye shop in half an hour." Then she turned to the right and started heading away from him.
"I see them!" a voice echoed over the heads of the crowd. Anillo cast an anxious glance back, but the mass of people obscured them from their pursuers as much as it obscured their pursuers from them.
"You're right," he said. "In half an hour then." He gave her a small and hasty bow. "Please don't vanish when I turn away, mysterious girl," he said with a smile. Then, releasing her hand, he watched her go for a moment and then went the opposite way.
He tried to blend in with the crowd, keeping to a brisk walk, moving from group to group, exchanging a friendly word to temporarily blend in with their larger numbers. He wasn't sure if he was still being pursued, but he couldn't risk it, so when he saw a library up ahead he made for its wide and ornate doorway.
Elaina had grasped a basic understanding of the town set-up based on her stay before, but she was just moving around at random. A turn here, a turn there, before she knew it she had passed by the dye shop. There was still over ten minutes until she was to meet Anillo there... but it would be the perfect place to hide in. Given the colors the store had, there were bound to be more extravagant people inside.
So she turned around and went into the shop, deciding to buy some more. After all, she wasn't able to look around thoroughly before when she was keeping an eye on Anillo before.
In the library, Anillo vanished among the shelves of books, running his fingers along gilded spines in feigned interest. No others followed him into the library for some time, and when the door did open a few minutes later, it was not one of the three that had been in pursuit. Anillo had little time to enjoy his relief; he needed to get to the dye shop as quickly as possible.
Leaving the annoyed bookkeeper with a charming grin, he rejoined the crowds in the street and made his way to the dye shop, meeting no obstacles. He went through the doorways and spotted Elaina almost immediately.
Elaina had grabbed five new dyes—two green, one blue, one orange, and one black—before Anillo appeared in the dye shop. He didn't seem in a rush, so she assumed that he wasn't being followed. After throwing a kind smile his way, she went to go pay for the dyes.
Then she walked over to Anillo and asked, "I'm guessing you got away without any trouble?" After all, if he had gotten caught, he probably wouldn't be with her.
Anillo strolled over to Elaina with an at-ease grin on his face. He admired the dyes she'd purchased like a Maoin would.
"No trouble so far," Anillo asked. "At least not so far. How did you manage here?" As they talked, he made sure to glance casually around, checking the street too. Though you may not have time for trouble, Anillo had learned trouble always has time for you.
"Oh, it was easy!" Elaina responded, a wide smile on her face. "I just took a couple of turns here and there and I found this shop in no time. Figured it was a perfect place to hide, seeing as I blend in well with the people." She discreetly gestured to some of the stranger and brighter people in the room.
Pocketing the dyes, she added, "Where to next?"
"The forests!" Anillo pronounced readily. "You have not visited Thanatos if you have not been under the jade canopy of the rainforests as the rain falls softly overhead. That is at least where I love most. But you may wish to see more of the city." Anillo smiled amiably. "Your wish is my command."
Flashing Anillo a cute half smile, Elaina responded, "Though I have already gone through some of the forest, I would love for my knight to give me a more casual tour." After all, she had been traveling for business before and didn't have time to observe the gorgeous rainforest.
"Ah," Elaina started, remembering something. "But first, shouldn't we give those people some new clothes? While I'm sure they ADORE our... enhancements... they may want compensation."
"You are a better soul than I," Anillo laughed, thinking he would have left them to purchase new clothes of their own. "I think I even feel a twinge of guilt." He put a hand to his heart. "We can get some new garments on the way. That should be more than enough compensation."
Anillo led the way out of the dye shop, and took Elaina down those streets that only natives knew well, pointing out the best places for authentic silks, seafood, and bamboo furniture. Eventually he stopped in front of a small shop, it stood farther back from the street on bamboo stilts amidst a salt marsh. There was a wraparound balcony strewn with fine cuts of cloth fluttering in a gentle breeze.
"This is Thyli's Silks, the best place to buy in all of Thanati," Anillo said grandly, stepping along the stone path through the marsh, nearly hidden by knee-high woody reeds. The forests could be seen over the thatched roof, a looming mass of jade green leaves and dark brown branches.
Elaina happily followed Anillo throughout the town, looking around as they walked. He took paths that she didn't even know existed, and everything was beautiful. She loved Suna.
And the place he brought her was the most stunning of all. It had a feeling of comfort and zen, and she loved it. Looking at Anillo with her bright eyes, she exclaimed, "It's perfect! This seems like the most sublime place to go on a date ever!"
She walked in to the store, glancing around. The inside matched the outside, staying simple and nicely decorated. There were a few plants here and there, and the silks had every color imaginable—and more. Elaina decided that she would buy tons of fabric, both for the people and for herself. And, of course, for Anillo.
It seemed almost as if a blush passed over Anillo's countenance, but his devilish smile did not leave his face, and if it was there it was gone in an instant. "I'm glad it meets with your approval."
After they entered, the shop owner appeared from a small, curtained room hidden away in the back. He was barely five feet, with dark brown skin and glowing green eyes, a jovial and rotund man.
With a loud and jocund: "Hello again!" to Anillo in greeting, he considered his duty to his old friend done, and laid all his attention on Elaina. "It is a lovely surprise to get such a lovely visitor. What can I help you with, my dear? I have plain cuts of the best silk, but also scarves, skirts, even dresses. And you can try on anything you would like."
Elaina smiled in delight at the shop owner came out. He looked so kind! And his words only confirmed her suspicions.
"With such a lovely shop, it can't be a surprise!" she replied, jollily. "And I would like to try on whatever you and Anillo would like me to... but I do ADORE bright colors!" In fact, she hated outfits without at least one bright color. "Ah, and we're also buying some clothes for other people who are currently in a less... fortunate situation." She winked at Anillo as she said that.
Anillo returned her wink with an open-mouthed grin, and gestured grandly to the wonderful array of clothes, as if to say: 'have at!'
"I'll pick out some clothes for our 'friends,'" he informed her, almost overrun by the shop owner's newly fired monologues about his brightest and best clothes.
"This dress in particular is quite something, and it would look gorgeous on you with that blue hair and those eyes," the man said, stroking the skirt of a jade and turquois dress, with silver on its bodice. "And there are, of course, even more..."
Elaina let out a hearty laugh as the shopkeeper starting trying to sell his clothes to her. She smiled at him, letting him know she had heard what he said. Then she looked at the dress the man was holding, and almost gasped in surprise.
"It's beautiful!" she exclaimed. "I usually try to avoid dresses... but surely there must be some occasion when I can wear this!" She took it from the man, feeling the fabric. It was quite soft and lovely. Elaina, knowing that her and Anillo were the only two customers in the shop, shouted, "Anillo, I think we're going to have to go to a party! Or maybe throw one!" She handed the dress back to the man and asked, "Is there somewhere you can keep this? I'm afraid I'll probably buy too much to carry." She kind of doubted he would care.