"Chat, With Occasional Knife" Log Date: 6/28/00 Log Cast: Jasmine, Kaiulani, Melei Log Intro: The adventure of arriving in the lander city of Haven has been a bit ruined for Pandion Kaiulani, impetuous young Atlantean princess. Unable to resist the tempting lure of an entire city full of land-dwellers to meet and observe, Kai has gone against her family's stern intention to keep her under protective watch--and snuck out to explore the marketplace the landers call the Rialto without the protection of her guardsmen. That she has every faith that she will be protected and watched over no matter where she goes is of no consequence--because the mysterious nameless guardian who, or so Kai has insisted to her family since she was old enough to address them mind to mind, has always watched over her is so far as her kin are concerned the very thing against which she must be protected. But the opinion of one member of her family, her older sister Alamoana, does carry weight with Kai. And Alamoana has let her know in all too blatant sendings how displeased she is at her younger sib's impulsiveness. Chastened, Kai has agreed to obey Alamoana's command to stay for the time being in the Korallion... but that doesn't mean that she won't find herself going nearly mad with restlessness, or, for that matter, that she will be entirely out of the way of persons who would doubtless shock her family as much as her nameless protector.... *===========================< In Character Time >===========================* Time of day: Night (Dawnside) Date on Aether: Sunday, September 14, 3906. Year on Earth: 1506 A.D. Phase of the Moon: Full Season: Late Summer Weather: Clear Skies Temperature: Hot *==========================================================================* Entrance Hall - Korallion - Haven Entering the Korallion's nautilus structure, you find yourself in a long hall with an arched ceiling. The walls and ceiling gleam pearly-white from the illumination of silver braziers, so delicately carved that they look as though a breath of air would crumple them. The floor is made of the polished coral of the courtyard, and you get the impression from looking at the far side of the room that the tunnel of the nautilus shell continues to move off to the left and rise, with wide steps made of the shell's casing. In the center of the room are a couple of plush couches, as well as a chair surrounding a small pool and fountain, which spills water over carvings of four dolphins surrounding a tall, bearded man with a conch-shell at his lips. On the western wall, an arch has been carved to allow entrance to what looks to be a room of stone, though the light is not lit enough in it to determine. There is a consistent sound of singing or humming within the acoustic chambers of the Korallion, as if the nautilus was vibrating at specific pitches. Contents: Jasmine Obvious Exits: Residential Wing South Arch West Arch Courtyard It is late night, nearly dawn. The babe carried in a sling in front of Jasmine has a tendency to waken early. Not wanting to wake her husband, Jasmine takes the child for a walk. And of course, at her feet, scampers an otter, prancing about as if he owns the place. Over by the pool and fountain, one of the newest denizens of the Korallion is also awake and restless. Kaiulani sits with her arms wrapped about her knees at the pool's edge, and she stares broodingly into its depths. Why, she tells herself grumpily, did Alamoana have to order her to stay _here_, anyway? She's spent the evening and most of the night restlessly haunting the Korallion's halls, too distracted to really explore what is admittedly a lovely place, and far too restless to sleep after the dream that had awakened her. Jasmine slows her steps, as your mood is almost palpable in the air. *Blessings, I am Jasmine. Is there something I can do for you?* Empathy and true compassion fill her thoughts. Jasmine A slender young woman about 5 and 1/2 feet tall. Her skin is the soft brown color of a fawn, her hair a darker brown, drifting in soft waves just to her waist and is held back with a headband of tiny white seashells. Gills are set in the sides of her neck, with webbing between her nimble fingers and toes. Her eyes are a powdery blue framed by long lashes. She is dressed in a simply cut coral dress which falls loosely to just above her knees. From left shoulder to right hip is a sealskin pouch, cradling an infant. Around her neck the woman wears a copper amulet with an etching of a mountain overlooking a body of water and surrounded by puffy clouds, with a wide band of intricately woven strands of leathers. Also around her neck is a strand of delicate pearls. Obviously the woman is not terribly fashion conscious, as her neckwear clashes somewhat. However, knowing Jasmine the pieces likely have some deeper meaning than to be worn for the sake of fashion alone. Around her left wrist is a slim, coral colored bracelet. On the ring finger of her left hand she wears a gold band with two perfect pearls joined together, settled at about mid-finger, where the webbing between her fingers ends. Carrying: Leilani Amaril The pale-haired young woman starts, her head coming up -- and then a palpable relief colors not only her expression but also her thoughts. A distraction! Distractions are welcome right now. *Good evening,* she returns swiftly, her mind's touch young and strong, though a little over-precise; perhaps she's not entirely accustomed to going to the mental effort of putting her thoughts into words? *I am called Kaiulani... I am new here.* Jasmine chuckles softly. A distraction, hrm? Well, that is fine by her. She nods, coming to sit nearby, and placing the baby on the floor. The otter acts as a watchdog for the child. The baby looks about 7-8 months old. *Welcome, then. What is it that upsets you about our lovely Korallion? Or is it Haven?* For many Atlanteans seem to find Haven upsetting at first. The sight of the child -- and, for that matter, the otter -- clearly charms the maiden, who gives them both a small smile which is lent warmth from the relief in her eyes. Kaiulani straightens up a bit then, and as she shifts position to better converse with the newcomer, her smile turns a little sheepish. *_Haven_ does not upset me,* she answers promptly, the thought given added force by a swirl of restlessness and anxiety lurking like a nervous fish in a coral reef. Gesturing about with one webbed hand, she goes on, *And the Korallion _is_ lovely...! It's just...* A tinge of embarrassment touches her cheeks, then, and Kai sheepishly concludes, *I annoyed my sister.* Jasmine ahs softly, nodding. *I know how that is. Not that I have a sister, but that my husband's sister had a tendency to annoy him sometimes.* And occassionally made Jasmine uncomfortable. *But surely she will not be annoyed forever?* Leilani decides that Kaiulani's hair is rather promising, and so she crawls in that direction. Fretfully Kaiulani replies, *I _hope_ not... but I _did_ deserve it, sneaking out to the lander market like I did, and she is supposed to watch over me. * Her hair is apparently at least an unconscious draw for her as well, for she fidgets with a small handful of it, twirling it around her bewebbed fingers. *I promised her I would wait within the Korallion until she sends for me again... but I hope it will not be long! I want another look at the market!* Melei enters from outside. Melei has arrived. Jasmine laughs softly, nodding. *I presume you mean the Rialto. I love it there. Perhaps she will agree to let you go if accompanied by others?* She doesn't quite feel that the Rialto is terribly dangerous, and continues to go about there without guards, much to her husband's dismay. Leilani gets close to Kaiulani's hair, reaching up for it as she crawls about on the ground. Amaril stands guard over her. *Yes,* Kaiulani agrees, brightening, *the Rialto... it is wondrous, I'd never seen so many landers together in one place, and they have _musicians_...! * Then she starts again as the little one's hand closes about her hair, and turns to grin down at the child even as she ruefully appends, *I have to go out with guards, regardless. Cousin Sarojin has ordered it.* And /that/ revelation brings out a distinct change is Jasmine's mood. Not necessarily a withdrawal, but more of a watchfulness. *Lehua's father,* she thinks softly. She sighs a little, looking at her own child. Despite over a year's difference between the two babies, Lehua will pass up her own Leilani in no time. Of course, Lehua had a head start. Leilani only weighed 5 pounds at birth. *Guards are not fun.* Hints of gray and bluish-black creep up the horizon, harbringers of the coming day; if this pre-dawn heat is any indication, it's gonna be another scorcher. That dark, mellow color scheme shields Melei's coming like camouflage, matching her tones so well that one would have to be looking closely to spot the her slumped figure, propped up against the entrance's curving inner wall. Bottomless as the void, black eyes fix on the small group without expression, projecting nothing of her mind into their pleasant atmosphere. It would seem that Kaiulani is not entirely insensitive to the shift in the older woman's mental contact -- but it would _also_ seem that this young Pandion maiden is too distracted of mind to make much of it. Besides, here is the child, trying to tug on her hair. Her mouth curves upward on either end, and Kai applies herself to dangling the trailing ends of some of those pearlescent tresses in the infant's face. Leilani, apparently, has brightened her own mood enough that her thoughts are only mildly petulant now as she answers Jasmine, *Well, Akane and his brother do seem pleasant enough but they _do_ have to follow me every time I go out or else my father and mother will take me right back home and I won't get to see _any_ of this place at all. Which would be less fun!* Jasmine smiles comfortingly and nods as Leilani coos happily. *Are you here only for a short time then? Did they come to visit Lehua?* She remembers going to Amaris to show off Leilani after she was born. Melei may not make her presence known, but Jasmine knows that at least someone is near, and she turns to discern who. She furrows her brow, frowning slightly. *Melei?* Her eyes take in the graisha's entire appearance. Shadows move in the arch as Kaiulani plays with Jasmine's child; tangled shadows are swept to the front and jiggled about, mimicking the game with an invisible child. *!* Her guardian's touch is rebuffed, gently but firmly, from a consciousness that tries its best to pretend that it's just as empty and dark as her eyes. Then the cold 'hands' slip away as Melei becomes intrigued in her waving hair. A hank of the matted stuff is taken in one fist as she scurries noisily forward and sidles up beside the pearl-hued woman. She, too, tugs at the flowing locks, but her pull is far less gentle than the baby's. Melei Something is wrong. One does not need to know the woman to read it in her mien. Her appearance. Scattered, dark hairs tangle down her shoulders like little tornadoes spawned from the higher mass, draping over a wild, thoroughly black eye in their disarray. Sweetness of face crumples under the strain of emotion, her gills and worrylines etched in old blood. Her figure is unwebbed, stooped and slim; for those who see her often, the sudden absence of a six month pregnancy might come as a surprise. Hardened and smooth as silk, her cloudy hide is now dolphinic in every aspect but shape - probably watertight, too. Ragged white linen flaps listlessly around her chest and thighs in a pitiful smock, barely covering the vitals even when she's not sprawled. A torn slipper adorns one foot. Whatever answer Kaiulani might have been about to make to Jasmine is forestalled as Melei surges up to her, pouncing upon her hair. Startlement sweeps forth out of her young mind, and more than a little alarm at this newcomer's wild and unkempt appearance. Sea-green eyes blink several times, and Kai involuntarily flinches, hands going back to support herself against the floor. Then she manages to send weakly, dropping back into habitual wordlessness in her surprise, ** Jasmine blinks, trying unsuccessfully to keep back a tear. She should have known better, shouldn't she? *Kaiulani, this is Melei.* Beyond the introductions, she says nothing, simply calling Leilani back to her. The child heeds the unheard call, crawling into her mother's arms. Melei singles out a platinum handful for the honor and braids it in with her own snarled blue-gray, squinting critically at the result. *!* Kaiulani receives a slightly fiercer 'push' at the mental hands of the graisha. No Trespassing! Moments later, the braid grasped firmly and hacked down the middle by a knife that appeared out of 'nowhere' (nowhere being down her front). The severed hairs are joined on the floor by a third color: crimson. At least it matches the coral. Melei doesn't even wince at the gash on her thumb, canting her blank face to watch Leilani as she retreats. Kai gasps aloud, flinching at the proximity of that blade to her face -- bad enough, that it sweeps towards her hair. Involuntarily, as some of her pale crown of hair is swiftly melded with the graisha's -- and then sliced away -- the maiden shoots to her feet. A tangle of reactions is palpable from her, both as they shoot across her delicately featured face and as they churn forth out of her mind like wind-tossed waves. With an effort, she gets control of herself... but she's still backing away from the alarming individual with the knife. Awkwardly she glances at Jasmine, then, sending, *I... I beg your pardon... please excuse me, but I think I should go...* Profound embarrassment colors her thoughts; she's too honest a Daughter of Water to try to invent an excuse for what is obviously fleeing, but she's also apparently too well-bred to be unaware of and chagrined by her own behavior. *It was pleasant meeting you..!* And thus she flees. Daughter of Pandion that she is, she flees with a measure of dignity, but she flees nonetheless. The dubious, unsettling comfort of a memory of dreams of unidentified passionate eyes is, after all, an easier companion at this late hour than a stranger with a knife! In moments, she's hastened off towards the Residential Wing... and is gone. [End log.]