Star and Bangles

Log Info

• Title: Stars and Bangles
• Emitter: Aryia
• Characters: Aryia, Verna
• Place: Temple District
• Time: December 30th, 2021
• Summary: It's a busy day at the Temple, when them being reopened and the weather being fair, there's many-a-people out and about. Aryia is there, idly people watching and eyeing the Temple of Eluna. Verna is coming down from the mountainside, and runs into the mute. Verna has a gift for Aryia: a grey ring made up of intricate parts that folds and shifts into different pieces of attire. It brings a tear to the elf's eye, her enjoying it greatly. She too has a gift for Verna: a record copy of the constellation of The Grey Harpist to hang up in the Mourner's vault. With the Yule exchange over, the two walk westward together towards lower Alexandria.

The Temple District, Noon.

It's a fair weather day. The sun is out, reflecting off the snow and casting bright light in all direction. The wind is mild and forgiving, giving mercy from sapping the heat out of anyone about.

And there was a lot of anybodies about. The temple district being reopened has quite a handful of souls returning to their daily rituals, prayers, guidance, aid, training, so on and so forth.

At the great fountain sits a scarred mul'neissa woman, wrapped up in her green jacket and black shawl. She's simply people watching at the present moment, though her gaze behind the wide rimmed, silver shades drifts from people to the Sky-Singer's temple beyond. She seems quite relaxed, more so than usual, as her gloved hands rest atop her bag on her lap.

The fact that the weather is somewhat more mild may contribute to the quantity of temple-goers and/or passersby, as well. Verna is perhaps more the latter, as she descends the mountain path from a temple and moves across the square directly, and not in great haste. This brings her nearer the fountain in the center than any temple present, and thus the seated mul'niessa is readily spied.

"Good day to you," Verna calls out in greeting. While signing has become far more second-nature to her, it is not the most efficient means to gain another's attention.

Aryia's shawled head turns towards the familiar voice, a light smile pulling at her lips as she raises a hand in greeting. "Good day," she returns back, the hand pulling the cloth down to free her head. Her ears pop out, jostling an ivory band with an onyx and a quartz on it that goes across the back of her head out of position. She shoves it back into place. "Doing okay?" she asks after adjusting it. <Handpeech>

Perhaps to be polite or mimic in kind, Verna pauses to doff her own hood. The band is noted during its adjustment before she signs, "I am well. You are also well? You collect more jewelry, it appears." A point at the circlet follows.

Aryia's soft smile turns into a light smirk. She nods, and gestures, "I am well. Very well, in fact. I.. don't think my headaches will be a problem anymore."

The motion towards the circlet makes the mute chuckle. She pulls it off, and holds it up.

It's an ivory band that bends slightly, meant to be worn around the back of the head as the tension keeps it on one's skull. Each end has it's own gemstone: onyx, and quartz.

She slips it back on. "It's... kind of hard to use correctly. But it's really, /really/ useful." <Handspeech>

"I am pleased to hear that you are not longer in discomfort," Verna notes before commenting on the band. "Reading others' thoughts, or sharing your own, can be useful. As well, there are also opportunities for unexpected or unintended consequences." Given their own occassions of memory reading and/or sharing, she feels that she speaks from experience.

She then reaches into her robes and retrieves a relatively modest wooden box which is presented to the fullblood with both hands. Due to that, she notes aloud, "This is for you, presuming that you still reserve inclination, or space, for further accessories."

Aryia smiles slyly. "Yes, there is. I can... also use it to talk to people. But it's a bit intrusive. I have to be reading one's thoughts to do it. Though, still, it's fun to use."

Her brows raise at the box's appearance. And she blinks, pointing to herself. "... for.. me?" Regardless of the answer, she takes the box, and rests it on her lap.

She hasn't even opened it yet, and she's already warmly smiling. Torch-bright eyes glance from box to Mourner before gloved hands go about opening it. <Handspeech>

Verna considers the first statement, and offers, "There are other means to establish communication with others who are willing, and in advance, if that is the primary intent. As well, some can be made permanent, though such a bond with would be rather ... intimate, for obvious reasons."

"Yes, for you," she then shifts to state the obvious, gesture to the box. The small wooden chest is plain, if well-crafted. Within sits a ring of gray metal with diameter and gauge suitable to serve as a bracelet. It appears to have a fine filligree pattern on it, though when felt or held, it becomes apparent that the pattern not decoration; rather that the ring is made up of innumerable smaller pieces which are interconnected.

Aryia nods her head at Verna's other suggestions. Yes, it would be rather intimate. And having full access to Aryia's thoughts sounds... like a recipe to have one's vocabulary book colored in some.

Her eyes widen at the sight of the metal ring, the mute transfixed for a brief spell. Carefully, she pulls a glove off with her teeth and reaches for it with scarred fingers.

She blinks. The small pieces faintly shift under her touch. Aryia looks up at the Mourner, mouth ajar (the glove flops into her lap). "Verna this is... really pretty and... intricate. The time spent to make something like this...."

She carefully picks it up, turns it over a few times to inspect it, then slides her hand on through. The hand raises to inspect it through the sun and how it sits, a pleased smile on her visage.

She looks to Verna again, her other hand reaching out to rest on her friend's arm. "Thank you..." she mouths. <Handspeech>

Verna returns the compliment with a smile. Not as reserved as such may have been previously, and there is also a hint of a new cant to it. She now signs, "You are most welcome. It is rather intricate... might I see it for a moment?" she inquires, holding out a hand. Afterall, it was a gift, and thus Aryia's. She is not about to pluck it from the mul's wrist. That would be polite. As wel, Verna prefers her teeth remaing attached where they are.

The Mourner probably has a free pass or two from needing to visit and healer for dentistry at this point. Though Aryia would certainly be pouty were it the case.

Aryia blinks, then bobs her head quickly, and carefully slides it off, palm outstretched with the ring resting atop it.

"Thank you. A brief demonstration..." Verna speaks as she carefully takes the ring. She promptly holds it between both hands; thumb and three fingers from each hand placed around the circumference on each side, trapping the ring between them. She then rotates her hands slowly in opposing directions.

First, counter-clockwise (from the view of each respective palm). As she does so, the diameter grows larger as the spaces between segments grow, until it might be fitting for a circlet or tiara. She then reverses to clockwise, and the diamter decreases... even past the original until the pieces compact to appear solid and the diameter might be suitable as a ring. She holds that a moment before returning it to its original size.

"Should you feel inclined to share, perhaps for Violet's benefit..." Her fingers press in several spots before she rotates, and the ring appears to shear down the centerline so that she holds two identical rings of the same size. Again, a brief display for Aryia's knowledge before they are rejoined in the reverse fashion.

Finally, she takes the ring in one hand and offers it in her palm back to its owner, as it was presented to her. "There are other possibilities, but I leave them to you to discover. You have already proven yourself determined and capable at discovering the unknown."

Aryia is attentive as Verna takes the jewelery, her head tilted to the side. She half expects it to do /something/, it was far too intricate to be anything ordinary.

But she couldn't help but feel her jaw hang looser as the grey metal goes through iteration after iteration. A circlet. A ring. A bracelet. Two rings.

Her eyes dim ever so faintly. A silver brooch. A mechanical rose.

Gently, and with more reverence, she reclaims her gift. The mute inspects it a moment longer, turning the small ring in her hand over a few times before gently sliding it on.

She sets the box and her bag aside, rises to her feet, and pulls the stoic Mourner into a hug.

Aryia's shift of the item to a ring before donning it was deemed reasonable; afterall, less volume and/or chance to slip off. The hug may have been less expected, though Verna does not resist. She gives the fullblood's back a pat, adding a further note quietly (as there is no need to shout into the mul's ear) and with a trace of amusement, "Be aware that much of the item is adamantine, so you need not be concerned of it as a ring should you be inclined to strike something."

The addendum garners an extra firmness in the embrace, Aryia's frame faintly shaking in a chuckle. There's a faint wind, a soft whisper on the air that intones, "You thought of everything. This... this is a wonderful gift. I love it."

One more squeeze, and she pulls away. Her smile bright, her eyes bright. A leak of a tear crests on the edge of her eyes but she wipes it away. She inspects the ring some, taking it off to morph it into a band like she saw earlier and puts it on her wrist. It's held to her chest for a moment before a sigh leaves her and she gestures, "Now my Yule gift feels tame in comparison." The full blood chuckles. <Handspeech>

Verna waves away that concern before signing, "It was made by you, and shall keep me warm. There is naught inferior with either of those facts." Even if the scarf was not intended as a Yule gift, it still assuredly qualifies.

Aryia shakes her head, snickering. "That wasn't for Yule, I told you that already," she signs back, reaching into her bag. There's a spell where she is inspecting the grey metal for a moment overlong before she shakes her head and resumes rifling around.

She pulls out a small scroll tube, and holds it out to Verna. <Handspeech>

Verna ahs. Yes, she said that, but Verna presumes that is to what she referred. The presented tube is not expected in the slightest and she blinks. She nearly signs an inquiry, though realizes that 'For me?' would be a possibly foolish question; Aryia isn't presenting it to anyone else, afterall.

Instead, she offers a "Thank you" before accepting. The tube is examined before she opens it to inspect the interior.

The tube is simple, something one would pick up in a stationary to seal an important document. Though it pops open with no such wax fastenings.

Unraveled is a three foot long sheet of parchment. There's some writing on the bottom, numbers, degrees, cardinal directions. Coordinates in the sky. Ink splays across the page carefully. Colors in dots and lines in the backdrop, but predominantly a large array in black and silver takes the stage. Many black dots in a swooping arch, conjoined by black lines to connect them all together.

A map of a piece of the night sky, with The Grey Harpist's constellation as the focal point.

"I figured you'd like something to hang on the wall that doesn't back talk," Aryia grins, resting a hand on her hip. <Handspeech>

Verna is likely more familiar with that particular constellation than many, as is also passingly familiar with some facets of astronomy. Still, it takes a moment before she fully recognizes and comprehends the significance.

"This ... is lovely. It must have required much time and precision to scribe... I am most grateful." She appears midly torn, then, between regarding it and having it exposed at the moment. In the end, the latter is victorious and she, very carefully, rolls the parchment again to replace it within the protective tube. "It is more than fitting to be displayed in my vault, and silently."

Aryia beams and silently snickers. "I'm glad you like it! I had to annoy a lot of mages to get into the records to find a copy. A lot of 'why do you want that?' and 'how did you get in here?'"

She plays with her bracelet a little bit before picking up her bag, the now empty box placed inside of it. "Where are you off to? I'm about to go get food." <Handspeech>

Verna considers the responses that Aryia received, and is not surprised in the least. "We can be protective of knowledge, at times." In answer to the question, she gestures further west. "I thought to travel to the Soldier's Defense, to ensure that the relocation of all is finalized, and any that remained, or arrived since, do not require further aid."

Aryia whistles and looks off to the side, pretending she did nothing wrong. The notion westward makes her smile, and heft her bag onto her shoulder. "I can walk with you! Need to eat the food I got at home. Seyardu gave me cake and bread." <Handspeech>

Verna does not appear to believe that Aryia mis-stepped in any way. She nods, stowing her future wallhanging within her robes, yet not making any move to don her hood. "I welcome the company," she agrees and begins to head eastward.

-End Scene-