Something to catch my eye

[wolfie]

She noted that Durstan was between herself and this Madcap guy. She felt a little better at the fact he wanted to protect her from him. She didn't understand why though. They barely knew each other, and yet he wanted to make her safe. It was nothing but a puzzle.

"Thank you," she said before Madcap said more and made his departure. It was strange to see someone like him around, and wondered if he lived here. She wondered if this was normal to live in a place like this.

"Were you heading somewhere?" She said turning back to the fae again. It seemed safe for the moment.

[Marjorie]

She was like a child to him – innocent, naive, and venerable – and something about that drew out something naturally protective in him. Perhaps he hadn't the right to aim that protectiveness at Meri, but whether or not he should have the right to something didn't always line up with whether or not he perceived that right. Especially when it came to the way he regarded people.

This was not a place where people lived. It was not a normal kind of anything... this was a special place, unique too as far as he knew. It was a place unlike any other he'd ever been. "I was searching... but not for a place," was Durstan's vague and slightly cryptic answer. "I may go anywhere from here but I had no destination in mind.

"What do you seek?" Not where was she going... because it didn't seem that she had a destination in mind... though she struck him as looking for something.

[wolfie]

"What exactly are you searching for?" She asked finding this intriguing. She too was searching he got that part right. She wondered how much she should actually tell him. He seemed harmless enough, but she had learned that outside appearances could fool anyone.

"I'm just seeking the world. I haven't seen much outside my village," she said wondering how much he knew about her race. Not many people ran across Medusians before. She was tempted to ask him about it. She kept her mouth shut though not sure how wise this was.

[Marjorie]

"I was not searching for something specific," Durstan responded, "I was seeking new experiences... and I have found something previously unknown to me." It was still a little vague and cryptic... but he had a tendency to talk like that sometimes. He did not mean her harm. He was not harmless. He could hurt. With hands or words or weapons. He could kill too. He knew how, and he had done so before. He did not do so without provocation... though what provoked him was not always the usual sort of thing that provoked men. He was much more like a wild thing – an animal, a part of nature – than a human or normal sort of person.

"You seek knowledge," Durstan smiled, "you seek wisdom and learning. It is a noble path."

[wolfie]

Meri listened surprised that he wasn't looking for anything. She hadn't seen anyone before that wasn't looking for something even if it was small. She then heard about the new experiences just like herself. She wondered what kind of adventure would befall them if they stuck together for awhile.

"Something unknown to you? You mean me?" She asked. She also wasn't sure about the noble path. She had been told by her family and those in the village that it was foolish. They kept trying to remind her of the last known Medusian to travel the world. She had been slain because of her ways. Meri was nothing like Gail though.

[Marjorie]

Durstan smiled, nodded, "Yes, precisely... something unknown to me." Remaining ignorant was foolish and he would have berated anyone who told her otherwise.

"Do you want to go somewhere new?" he asked her, gesturing around them, "we might end up anywhere if we just kept walking." It could be fun, exciting... and though he wasn't her protector, it crossed his mind that she would be safer traveling with someone who didn't intend her harm... as she was so inexperienced with the world and there were many in this world who would take advantage.

[wolfie]

Meri thought about that. She knew it was true most of the world didn't know about her little village. She wondered if that would be bad information to have if someone intended harm. She didn't plan on letting anyone know where it was.

"Do you have any questions? Yes, someplace new would be nice. I have yet to fully see this world," she said keeping her arms at her side. She waited to see if he would start walking she didn't care which direction.

[Marjorie]

She didn't have to share information about her home – though he would be interested in it – he was unlikely to as where it was as opposed to what sort of place it was. What were her people like... but he sensed some nervousness in her at the idea of the question she posed him. Still she had asked him, offered some information of herself, he would take it, keep it, "Do all of your people have starfish hair?"

Oh, she wanted to explore – let them go on a journey to somewhere then. He gestured she follow with his hand as he turned to his right on a whim. He knew were some of the doors here lead... but there were many, and most he had never tried before. As they continued to walk he could feel a change in the air, a shift... something subtle, as they neared a door and he smelled... oils, fruity, flowery, and rich hanging in the air. He knew where they were headed – a place he had not been in a decade or more perhaps. He smiled at her and before the scenery shifted around him, his own appearance changed.

Durstan seemed to fluctuate for a moment, then changed entirely – though his build and physical shape didn't change over much his face did, as well as his skin, hair, and eye color. His clothing also – his eyes appeared to be painted, rather lined in kohl, and he was bare of clothing on his top half, wearing only a sarong like skirt wrapped around his waist that came almost to the ankles trimmed in gold embroidery and tied with a vibrant blue sash, there were sandals with braided cords on his feet and the only thing that remained unchanged looking were the dagger at his hip and the bow and quiver still slung across his back secured by its leather strap that crossed over his chest from right shoulder to left hip.

His smile widened as he looked at the girl, "It's hot where we're headed." Then as they took another step, they were there, right in the middle of one of the bustling markets of Essyrn.

Continued here directly.