YumenoTsukishiro
Senpai will never notice you.
Location: To'bai horse racing stables
Time: Morning after their arrival
Interaction: Kari & Gerel
The morning streets were cool enough for it to be pleasant. Night had brought a gentle humidity that carried the scent of water along with smoke from cooking fires and spices and fruit from the market. Kari breathed in and relaxed. There was a faint tug at the back of her mind, a not-quite memory attached to a feeling of happiness more profound than she had been able to feel in a long time.
She walked until the street opened up to a wide area where there were several corals, and in one particular coral...there were horses.
Kari stared, these weren't the stocky, hardy animals that Estendor herders prized, there were long-legged, slender and graceful, with sloping noses and tails carried high when the cantered. They pranced and reared and one caretaker was having trouble managing them alone. Kari ran to help.
"Oh! Thank you!" She laughed as Kari caught the bridle of a mare that had managed to slip away.
"They certainly are energetic."
"They're racing horses, for the desert tracks, and I'm supposed to exercise them but my partner is sick..."
"I could help, I'm not a bad rider."
Their saddles were small and light, but they took them without much trouble. Kari swung herself into the saddle of a grey mare and cantered into the ring.
The horse's gate was almost as smooth as riding a skybeast and Kari grinned. She had missed riding horses.
As she galloped around the ring Kari let herself slip out of the saddle, dipping to one side and balancing as the animal ran, so her hair brushed the sand. A riding trick. She came back up and leapt with her hands still on the saddle, both feet hit the ground on the other side of the horse and the momentum let her spring back up and over its back, so she could do the same thing on the other side. She landed back in the saddle with a triumphant laugh. So she hadn't forgotten any of her riding skill. That was good.
YumenoTsukishiro
color = #08298A
Location: To'bai horse racing stables
Time: Morning after their arrival
Interaction: Kari & Gerel
The first time Gerel went to Ocris as a child, he felt small, overwhelmed by the throngs of people milling about and shopkeeps barking their wares to unsuspecting visitors. His nose was assaulted with all manner of scents, from spices to perfumes to animal waste. Vibrant fabrics and colorful trinkets filled Gerel's vision. It all became too much for him and in the end his father had to carry him back home, crying all the way.
To'bai was larger than Ocris by far, yet there was a stillness to the early morning streets, like the city was slowly waking up from its slumber. Gerel traversed the paved roads, no destination in mind save for a good tea house. Yesterday's events gave him much to think about, especially the Headmaster's impassioned plea. The deathborn was a menace not just to them, but to all the skylands. Gerel remembered his dream of a unified coalition of tribes, differences set aside to fight a common foe. But how could it happen when people were busy fighting each other?
The words of the Head Guard echoed in his thoughts, and he hated himself for thinking it practical. With more magic, they could easily turn the tide. If Keshka could somehow teach them the ways of the deathborn, they could quickly cut the crisis at its source. The sooner that happened, the sooner they could all fly back to their homes. The sooner he could be with his family again...
It was the whinnying of horses that brought him back from his brooding thoughts. His feet had taken him to a coral full of horses. He brought his head up and his eyes widened. There she was, riding a horse with a graceful stride, body dipped to the side with that wild grin that warmed Gerel's cheeks. His heart nearly stopped when Kari hopped from each side of the horse, coming back to saddle with the momentum. Through his growing concern he recognized the riding tricks of Estendorian equestrians. Gerel always considered it a waste of time and an unnecessary skill. Watching Kari move with... great form almost convinced him otherwise.
Gerel sighed. It seemed that no matter where they go, the winds would always bring him close to the fire. Whether it would warm him in cold nights or burn his hand remained to be seen. "I didn't expect trick riding from you, Kari," Gerel called, approaching the edge of the coral. "Though I honestly shouldn't be surprised. I've seen you do crazier things."
SilverFlight
color = #08298A
