UUU: "Sweets and Songs"

Cast: Nyrandisa (Netha) & Seed (Deme)

TLDR:

Support Points Earned: 2

[10:00 PM] NethaEmerald: Nyrandisa was sitting somewhere close to alone putting some things in wrappers. Anyone looking on wouldn't see much other than small, tan logs of something. It wasn't easy to tell what they were, but Nyra knew very well. The things she was stuffing away were some honey taffy she just made. This stuff would be much easier to bite into initially and offer a longer flavor, as well as more fruity flavor, for whatever fruit juice there was in the candy. It was a long task wrapping them all up. After all, she had cut many strips of two-foot long taffy into two-inch pieces, and she wasn't even done with the first one yet. It was mostly due to her wanting to make sure the wrappers were done to be presentable, even if nobody would care about it. As she toiled away at this task, she began to sing lightly to herself a song she had learned back home. The song was about a Jera explorer who had gone around the entire world in 80 days, visiting every region, collecting souveniers from each land he visited, no matter how big or small they were. Well, it wasn't so much the original tale as it was an abridge song of it. Regardless, she did so quietly, working alone, happily on this seemingly mundane task.

[10:18 PM] LadyDeme: Seed found himself lured to the sound of someone else humming -- it wasn't a song he'd heard before, and the tune had a certain sway and bounce to it, the sort of rhythm he'd associate with perhaps a ballad, lilting over through the camp. He'd finished what he'd needed to do, and the time before they left this camp wouldn't be too terribly much longer, so the Florkana was simply drifting, making a few little notes in his notebook as he walked. In the end, he seemed to be lured by the rhythm of the song, the words spilling out of his pen-scratches in little quatrains, even if he could not pin down exactly what it was he wanted to say. He propped up his book in his bad arm, and the pen in the other -- the little sigil he liked to use sometimes clear and bright on the outside of his battered old notebook. So he followed the sound, until he came upon the Jera, sitting in the morning sun. It was a bright, lemony sort of morning that cast a pleasant atmosphere and shone a gloss onto the wax paper of the wrappers finished, piled up around her -- as it perked up his leaves and flowers, filling them the way wind filled sails, so the petals were a velvet curl. His hair, which blended with his leaves so strangely seamelessly that one could not guess what texture would meet a hand, seemed like bouncy waves from the leaves seeking the light. He came to a stop when he saw her, freezing into place. It was not that he was surprised, exactly -- but that he was hesitating. His hand almost reached into a wave, he almost made another step... But he could not quite do it. She was busy, and clearly, she was enjoying some alone time, so he couldn't... But the singer made him more curious about the song than ever, and so... However, as he dithered, his eyes moving as his brain circled of the question to go or stay, he was clearly in her line of sight.(edited)

[10:24 PM] NethaEmerald: Nyrandisa had broken into a small moment of singing a little louder, especially since she had gotten to her favorite part of her little song. As she did, she lost focus on what she was doing and botched one of the rolls of candy. When she realized what she did, she looked down, stopped singing, and sighed. "The things you get for singing..." She said in her head as she un-did it and started on it in another wrapper. It was at this moment that she had finally looked up to see Seed watching her. It was a little... creepy, but she herself was probably way creepier, so she couldn't say anything. Finishing this new wrapped piece, she waved to Seed, saying "Oh, hello Seed. Is there something that you like over here as you watch?" She asked, a small smile across her face.

[10:36 PM] LadyDeme: Seed cringed at his own lack of swiftness -- oh, that probably came off terribly, but eventually, his wince came to grow to a sheepish smile. He lowered his head briefly, back toward his book, which he eventually lifted in a little salute. He hadn't, after all, come here expressly to watch her or anything -- and that was sincere. "Ah, I'm dreadfully sorry. I was listening to your song, it's really quite sweet, and I suppose I didn't want to disturb you. You seem busy, but I suppose I also wanted to say hello, and ask about the song." This was a difficult bit of explanation. He'd never had much skill at approaching people -- it always seemed to him like such a waste of their time. He rustled faintly, as if in a breeze, from a bit of nervous energy. The grassy gap between them remained as it was, but he steadied with the action of tucking a pen in amid his crown -- and, as much as could be arranged, behind his ear. "If you'd rather I go away, that's fine -- I did have work to do of my own, after all, but I can't say I'm getting anywhere."

[10:41 PM] NethaEmerald: She rose an eyebrow as Seed acted... stiff... almost like a tree. However, as he spoke, albeit somewhat awkwardly in her eyes, she laughed a little. "Aww, no need to be scared to approach me. I don't mind company while i'm doing this, even if they aren't too active around me. Come, take a seat. Work on what you want to work on. Maybe I can help you and explain that song to you. All i'm doing is wrapping up candy. Mostly for myself, but some for our group" She motioned to a spot next to her void of any candy or wrappers, indicating he could take a seat if he wished. As she waited for him to sit down, she started to hum the song again, her mental thought not focused on ruining the wrappers.

[10:56 PM] LadyDeme: "Scared isn't exactly the right word," answered the wordsmith, settling in quietly next to her. The grass gently brushed aside beneath him, still faintly dew-kissed. He propped up the book on the backs of his long legs, stretched out before him. Given permission, he could relax, seem a little less, to forgive the pun, wooden. It seemed the edge of a not unkind concern in his soul had been crossed, and he was once more on stable ground. "I suppose overthinking, or perhaps anxious, might better suit -- I spend so long sorting through the possibilities, and concerning myself about all the little nicities, that I can end up allowing moments to escape me." He explained a little further, getting particular amid his choices... Though he was not necessarily concerned with his explanation, as he was idly talking, using the same sort of tone he might to remark upon the weather: for him, faintly wistful, but calm. He scratched something -- a morning light like honeycrystals -- down into his book, which had been turned to a page without a solid poem on it; the words drifted around each other in little amorphous bundles of words, as if they'd formed a cloud. It was useful to formulate ideas this way, capturing any line that crossed his head so he could pull it out and observe it later. "You're wrapping the sweets you intended to make from honey, I take it. Did they turn out well?"

[11:04 PM] NethaEmerald: As he explained that he wasn't so scared, she accepte what he said, but didn't quite believe him. She would have her doubts, regardless of how well he explained himself there. She didn't dare say a word about that, though. As he sat down, she noticed the book in his hand, as he scrawled something down. She couldn't tell what he wrote, however. As he then asked about the candy, she nodded. "Indeed it is. I added less sugar than normal for our non-Jera, as well as some fruit juices to add more flavor. I made it into takky instead of hard candy this time. Should make it more savory and easier to eat this way. I'm just wrapping them up for safety and preservation." She took another wrapper and wrapped up another piece, finally finish one two-foot strip of many. "I still have a while to go yet, but that's what I get for using all of the honey." She mention with a laugh.

[11:27 PM] LadyDeme: Seed considered the matter settled -- without her pursuit, he didn't realize that she hadn't believed his actually somewhat reflective, wholly earnest explanation...Though he also, if pressed, wouldn't have expected her to not think it an unpleasant feature of him; he certainly did. It was a trouble he encountered with many people. "It certainly went quite a ways; a fraction of this would no-doubt satisfy our occaisonally literal candyhounds." Seed asked, looking at the piles of strips, and the many candies already wrapped. He briefly considered pointing out that the fruit juices, frankly, made them less suitable for their own lives: fruit juice could go off, unlike the honey, which would be good until the end of days. He reached out a hand from his notebook -- up close, his long, twiggy fingers bore a few faint pen-scratches and inkstains, though clearly dried, from spending a while at work -- towards her candy wrapping strips. "Would you like a hand?"(edited)

[11:44 PM] NethaEmerald: She hadn't even thought about the shelf life of adding any juice to it. After all, she was also adding sugar, which could also go bad. Besides, it was all likely to be gone before it even came close to the date where everything would go bad. As he spoke about it satisfying the candy hounds, she laughed at it mentally. She was likely the one that was going to be eating most of it, not any one other individual. As he offered a hand to help her, she considered the offer for a moment. His hands weren't quite normal, and she wasn't sure how clean his hands were with how he was digging through dirt the last time she had met him. However, she wasn't rude enough to say that to him. "I'd appreciate it." She said, taking a chance, hoping things wouldn't turn out badly this way. She pointed to the cut candy and the wrappers. "If you're up to it, then you can help put the candy in and wrap it up. Otherwise, I can loosely wrap it up, and you can finish the wrapping job on each one."(edited)

December 10, 2017

[12:00 AM] LadyDeme: He himself was considering his hands -- he had, of course, washed them after planting (and would have only laughed sadly, and been somewhat hurt had she suggested he didn't), but he'd been working in ink since dawn. Around his belt he caried a small gourd he used in place of a waterskin -- leather material was not always common in his reach -- and popped it open, pouring a little over his fingers. After all, this was candy, and while there was very little to be done to make him sick, he could at least get...Well, some of the newer inkstains out. Some of it was just sunken into the wood at this point, over decades of similar stains; the problem of having not entirely conventional skin. "Oh, don't worry about me," he said, patting his hands dry between them, little flecks of water falling politely to the side of the whole candy and book business. Dried to satisfaction, he could begin taking the small-cut strips and wrapping them. Within a moment, he was intent on the effort, the normally quiet smile on his face mostly faded, his eyes focused and thoughtful. He allowed his first effort amid her candies time for an extra twist or two at each end, encapsulating the whole thing without an errant wrinkle. He, well, to be frank, he wanted to prove it wasn't too much, or a waste of time to allow him, or so on. He wanted it to seem a little worthwhile, letting him hang around.

[12:11 AM] NethaEmerald: Nyrandisa herself had been following a method to leave hers as wrinkle-free as possible, but a few always came through. She watched his efforts. "Just like that, yes. That will be fine. It's actually some good work, perhaps a little quicker than myself." She praised his work with. She took another piece of candy and tried to be as fast as him, but ended up leaving a ton of wrinkles. At the sight of it, she laughed a little. "Proves me for trying to go as fast. Seems my fine manipulation for speed isn't as good as yours." She said as she un-did the wrapping and did it again, this time slower.

[5:59 PM] LadyDeme: Seed chuckled a little as he wrapped, tilting his head to hide the slightly more warm expression -- a little, actual smile -- at the sudden praise. While he'd done a number of odd jobs in the past, and to the present (Florkana, it seemed to him, seemed disinclined to monoculture -- which left him, somewhat inclined towards having a smaller zone of specialties, adrift), he admitted he'd never done much quite like this. "Thank you, all my penmanship drills come in handy for something, I suppose." He smoothed the wax paper into a tube about the candy, carefully twisting the ends for a smooth little roll. That he did well, he supposed, was a matter of calm, since he acted without weighing much time -- that it was quick, he was less sure about, but he continued at the pace that seemed to get the job done. "Well, something besides suitable penmanship; I can't think of terribly much else that would give me particularly quick and steady fingers."

[6:02 PM] NethaEmerald: As Seed continued to wrap, Nyra felt no need to remark on what he said; she had already spoken about it in a vague way. However, as they continued, she remembered that he inquired about the song she was singing before. "Oh, right! the song! You wanted to know more about it, yes?" She asked as she continued to wrap, at a slower pace than Seed was, but she was fine with it. Rather have it be done right and well the first time than need to fix it on a second attempt.

[6:36 PM] LadyDeme: "Yes, I did; it had a very nice sound. Could you tell me more about it?" He answered, having picked up a little bit of it, and it would keep his mind from drifting off-task too much, which seemed like advisible; he was inclined to pursue things in his own thoughts easily, the work smooth and rhythmic. Already, part of him was thinking about form -- perhaps the poem he was looking for was, inspired by the song, a ballad of sorts; perhaps an interplay of legacy, since it seemed to come up in his life so often. His hands could more or less go on without him, but not perhaps much longer, if left more to his thoughts than the world.(edited)

[6:44 PM] NethaEmerald: When he said yes again to hearing about the song, Nyra took a small breath, then explained the song. "There's a tale in Jera culture. The tales is about a Jera explorer who went around the entire world, visiting every area, and bringing something back from each place, all in 80 days. The tale goes on about his adventures and exploits in every area, as well as his hardships and troubles. It's really a popular tale, even if leaving Neraida isn't something that is really encouraged or happens often. The song is an interpretation of that tale in song form. I don't fully remember the original one, so this song has some improv and is kind of unique to me." After that explaination, she took another breath as she started to wrap another piece of candy. "Is there anything else you want to know?"

[7:19 PM] LadyDeme: This got his attention: stories were part of the network of his passions, and the prospect of getting a story from an unusual source -- old, but personalized, the way stories that had more depth, more soul than his mere transient fancies, all tended to be. "How wonderful," he said, the interest shining brightly in his eyes, opened widely enough that the warm golden ring around the edge of his deep green eyes was blossoming, fully exposed. "I've got perhaps some personal questions that the tale brings to mind, but I think, first... I think I'd like to hear a little of this story, if it's not too much bother. How does it begin, perhaps, or if there's an episode you like best. It sounds episodic," He explained, his hands slowing a little; more of his focus was on this tale than anything. He could imagine a structure unfolding, whether in tales or places or days, that the storyteller could weave out over several nights, or cut or move around to fit the audience. In a song, each place a verse; in a poem, a stanza.

[7:29 PM] NethaEmerald: "Well, the song isn't really in episodes as much as it is one long song. The story does have sections, though. They are divided mostly by the regions visited, and is like an epic, in a way. The story starts with the explorer preparing for the journey. He says all of his goodbyes, makes the promise to spend only 80 days, and then sets off out of Neraida and into Diame. The story then follows his travels through Diame, and some of the hardships for being from Neraida, which is so secluded from the rest of the world, and cursedly so. If you aren't aware, Neraida is almost a closed community. Curses are set up in the forest to keep unwanted or unsavory people away. Traders and bright individuals do make it through the forest and into the Jera community, though." She took a breath as she was still working on candy, working slower than before. "The explorer faced prejiduce for the forest claiming the lives of unlucky souls who wander in and never come back out, as well as the forest being too cryptic for the Elephant Laguz who live near it. They've come close on occasion, but it constantly changes to throw them off. After that, it goes to Ramalia and the difficulties of him not being well-versed in the Ancient tongue." She took a break from speaking to finish up wrapping another piece. They were halfway done.

[7:40 PM] LadyDeme: "I see...I've heard this about Neraida, yes." Seed tried, and was mostly successful, in hiding his disappointment that she was uninterested in actually telling him any of the story. Oh, she was telling him about the story, but it wasn't the same thing at sll. The song, he'd only heard hummed, so the details of telling -- who did he say farewell to, what features were worth telling, what manner of thing that made a story alive. This was not an animal, but an anatomical drawing of the animal's bones.
And for the most part, he succeeded, nodding politely and absorbing what detail he could get intently. He was sort of filling in the blanks himself, tasting in his heart what details he preffered. Stories like this were often about the young -- he could say farewell to his mother, perhaps, but the promise had more emotional weight if perhaps he had a sweetheart, as well. He'd have to hunt the tale down elsewhere, perhaps -- or another time. "Which -- please, do go on with the tale, this is a slight divergence, but which... Made me think of what came to mind about this tale, and to yourself. While you're not the only Jera in our company, I got the sense your story is rather different -- you travel more regularly... Why is that, given how uncommon it is?"

[7:47 PM] NethaEmerald: She hadn't an idea that he wished to hear the story itself, so she didn't know to start talking about it like that. However, as soon as he asked her why she seemed to travel more than most Jera, she stopped moving, for only a moment. After that moment, she set what she had in her hands down. "Do I dare say? Only a few are likely to know, and that's Suleiman and whoever Saarva told. I know it will go about eventually, so I might as well be the one to spread it." She thought mentally for a moment. With a small breath, she explained "Well, it's not that I wanted to travel, it's more that I was forced to travel. I never wanted to leave home, but circumstances surrounding myself at the time caused the leaders of Neraida to... banish me. I'm actually not allowed back home until I do something amazing for the world to attone for what I had done. Those tales also need to be big enough to make it back home. As a result, i've had to travel to a few places on my own of my own survival, as well as to find Saarva and interview to be on this expedition." She looked away for a moment. "I might never actually be able to ever go back home, so I might wander for the rest of my life. Or try to find a life that I can make my own..." Her tone had gone from chipper and happy to solemn and saddened.

[8:19 PM] LadyDeme: Seeing her change in mood, Seed stopped his efforts as well; he'd have been better off letting the half-told story continue, after all. It would have made things easier for her. One of his hands lifted for a moment, hanging briefly in the air like a bird about to alight, before he resolved to gently pat her on the shoulder; his fingers a little warmer than might be expected of a tree, or cool compared to a human or Jera, with a thinly papery texture. "I'm sorry," he said, earnestly. "Both for your troubles, and for troubling you. I won't pry any further, if it's not something you'd want to talk about... and whatever service my modest ability might provide for you in whatever paths these endeavors take, consider it yours." Seed knew, despite her claims otherwise, that his actions were frankly fairly humble, and his talents were, at best, over-focused, and at worst, over-blown. There was little he could do to aid someone who truly needed it, amid his scattershot capabilities, for a hurt that could not bleed or bruise. "...I understand a little, of wandering, and of building what happiness you can; it can be done, at least." His tone, which was very soft through this, was here quieter, just barely skimming above the surface of a whisper.

[8:32 PM] NethaEmerald: "I know it can be done. I'm just expecting to never be able to go back home, if anyone even remembers me anymore." She responded, looking down, not quick acknowledging the hand on her shoulder. With a small sigh, she resumed the craft of wrapping candy. "Anyways, let's not focus on that. You interested in more of the story that I have? Any specific details about it? I want to get off that last topic."

[8:49 PM] LadyDeme: As she readjusted herself emotionally, he withdrew his hand, returning it to wrapping the candies, feeling like he wished to frankly, well, do more. There was nothing he could speak of for whether they remembered, whether getting home, was possible or not. He only wished it was so; she probably didn't deserve to live without what she saw as her home, whatever she'd done. He sighed as well, but gave the wrapper in his hands another twist, before placing it with the rest. "Ah, well... I suppose..." He hmmed and tilted his head away, a little too shy to ask. Having heard of her farewells, what had been on his mind before seemed somehow offensive. "Tell me, then, what happens after Ramalia -- where next? But... Um, if you could perhaps... Well, if you could perhaps not summarize it quite so much -- but tell it, as a story."

[9:09 PM] NethaEmerald: When he requested the actual story, Nyrandisa nodded in response, saying "Give me a moment to get myself to this part." After a little bit of thinking of the epic she began to recite what she knew of the story. "And there was I, in a strange land anew. The land, kissed by the morning, covered in dew. The first local I met spoke to me in an way unknown. The language was one that I had never been shown. After moments, I realize it the tongue of the Ancients. I knew that language was a breed of it's own, being very trenchant. That matter alone complicated my stay, but never fear; I was able to find my own way." She continued on in a manner like poetry for the rest of his accounts, but only for Ramalia which included attacks by natives, dwindled supplies, and, of all things, dynsentery.(edited)

[9:37 PM] LadyDeme: He listened quietly until she stopped: until then, he listened carefully -- to his posture, to the movement of his hands, to his soft, green-gold eyes, there was intent in simply observing, passion in pouring over every flick of intonation. He was clearly enjoying himself, letting his face change expressions easily through the tale, with a little twinkle in his eyes. Seed caught the strange choice -- first person was an incredibly unusual choice for a tale like this, which to him suggested an entirely different history than, perhaps, the one he might have assumed from her earlier summaries. When she came to the point where she took a break, he asked, "First person is rather unusual for epic poetry and household tale -- was this originally a written account, or one very close to our own present? Or is assuming the role of the figure in the story more common to Jera poetry?" Asked Seed, who had internally committed as much of it to memory as he could at first blush; he'd been taught to read classics epics, and smaller poetry besides, as part of his earliest introductions. It was probably, he had to admit, like being thrown to the deep end of language... But it preserved in him an enduring fascination.

[9:52 PM] NethaEmerald: As Seed asked the question about the first person style, Nyrandisa remarked "It was indeed originally a written account. The author made no mention of his name, and to preserve the original account, rather than re-write it with someone that didn't exist, the story was kept in first-person, just like his diary had described. Now obviously, it took some liberties and removed a lot of the small fluff, like unimportant day-to-day tasks, but kept everything else in-tact. I admit it is a weird style, but perhaps it's to help plant an idea that any one of us could do something like this, and make it easier to remember since it, at times, can feel like we, the re-tellers, were on the journey, making it stand out in our heads more. I have no doubt versions exist not in first person, but I don't know them."

[9:53 PM] NethaEmerald: "I suppose I could attempt to re-learn it, but put it in another perspective, but that would take a lot of personal time to do."

December 11, 2017

[12:55 AM] LadyDeme: "Hmmm..." It was itself a little strange, for the hero of this story not to have a name, but if Jera recordkeeping wasn't great, there wasn't much Seed could say about it. As a poet, he tipped his hat silently to that unknown Jera. "Hmm...Perhaps. But somehow, given all you've said of how things are, it seems unlikely that's the reason. Nor does first person necessarily grant a person a more immediate experience as a member of the audience; nor does something like that aid in memory, even slightly; the metrical scheme is sufficient." This was his stance as an author -- there was an intimacy of first person, but it was not quite the sort of intimacy that automatically translated to a more vivid experience of places, or even other people; that relied more heavily on something that had nothing to do with person. "I always find that first person is most valuable for understanding the narrator's heart, rather than changing any other facet. At times, that heart can obscure the artistry of the work; at times, it can reveal it in ways a more detached narrative fails at. Part of the duty of an artist... Is to understand what will suit the story. So I don't think it's kept that way to make it so any Jera could do such a thing, or any listener..." He'd stopped looking at her, instead looking down into the glossy sheen of the honey candy, which showed just the hint -- just the shadow -- of his face, with its echo of a smile and somewhat sad-looking hooded eyes, which were closing gently, full of something warm and sad. When he looked up, he might be able to understand the same horizon as that person; that was what writing could do.

[12:55 AM] LadyDeme: "It's to reveal and keep alive the heart of this one exceptional person, whoever he was. Maybe in that moment you feel closer to being like him -- maybe not." At the idea of rewriting it, he shook his head, a wry twist emerging in his expression. "Haven't you already rewritten it for your song? You have your own adventures, and you have the song; unless some passion drives you to it, I think those will be all the revision you need."

[8:46 AM] NethaEmerald: "Perhaps you do have a point. Or a few. Rewriting it in another perspective would have detracted from the main experience presented in his log of his adventures. I obviously can't say for sure what the case is: the story, both in diary and epic form were written before I was born. I can only come up with personal conclusions to the meanings and intentions behind the entire thing." As he looked down to the candy, she realized they were almost done. "I know I've already revised it into a much shorter form. However, I don't want it to detract from the actual story at all. Anyways, looks like we're just about done wrapping all the candy up. Maybe once I'm done I can try aiding you in your own task?"

[12:08 PM] LadyDeme: "Well, it's important to remember -- whenever you change something, you take something away and add something else. However... The original story doesn't just vanish when it's retold," Seed said thoughtfully, as he finished a near-last piece of candy. "Hmmm... I believe you already have, actually. It's not something that another pair of hands could help -- I'm a poet, you see, and trying to decide what it is I feel like writing next; this form or that, this bit of phrase, this subject, that sort of thing. I think I might have that extra inspiration." He reached for another piece of candy, only to find his hand on empty wax paper, where the taffy had been laid out. There was nothing there at all, causing him to smile in relief.

[12:14 PM] NethaEmerald: Nyra nodded. "I might not know a lot of stories from home, but perhaps my experiences can help with your insprations in the future. Anyways, help yourself to a candy if you want to: I didn't make it too sweet this time." She began to place most of it in one pouch, but put a few in another for anyone in the camp to have(edited)

[1:39 PM] LadyDeme: "Perhaps. Thank you," he said, quietly taking a honey candy for himself; this would be a good treat to mull over, to savor as he savored a good word. He had a small satchel for things like this, that he tucked the candy into as he rose back up to his feet. "And thanks to our nameless explorer. If there's anything I can help you with in the future, please let me know."
He folded up his book around his pen, at least for the moment.

[2:13 PM] NethaEmerald: Nyrandisa thought for a moment, but couldn't come up with a thing at the moment. "Nothing comes in mind right now, but perhaps in the future something will. But for now? Thank you for the help with the candy and for the conversation." She got up herself and took the pieces for the public to the new convoy for anyone to take.

[2:27 PM] LadyDeme: "...I guess," he said, only to himself as he watched her figure retreat, "It was alright that I stopped by after all." With a faint chuckle at his own incompetence, he walked off in his own direction, thinking about a ballad -- a first-person ballad, of wandering...And of home. "Maybe next time, I should decide that a little more quickly."(edited)

[2:28 PM] LadyDeme: == RP End ==