Lights In The Darkness [Khyan]

[Hilana Chenzira]

Animus. He was an Animus. That explained it. Her Starshine was in fact the striking young man in her bed. At his words, Hilana relaxed considerably, the concern in her eyes fading. Well, that was something that may have soothed Khyan’s wounded pride at her reaction, at least… she settled back down on her side, still facing him, one arm under her to prop herself up on her elbow and taking him in. Her long braids framed her face, hanging over her exposed chest. It was kind of cute, really, the way he had tucked himself under the blankets. And he had called her a giantess, which did draw a chuckle from the strange woman.

“I didn’t see any,” she told him ruefully at his inquiry. “I was coming home from work when I saw you falling from the roof of the Mundus Vini taverna,” Hilana explained. “You were already a magpie at that point, and when I saw you fall… I was concerned that you were sick. You couldn’t fly, and your eyes were off… like you were concussed or in shock… so I brought you here. Perhaps that’s where your clothes are? We can go and look,” she offered. “I’ve got a cloak you could put on, and some sandals that might fit.” She stretched herself and looked to see where the sun was positioned in the sky before getting up, leaving the bed. She didn’t seem to concerned about her lack of clothes or the fact he might be looking at her as she picked out another skirt to wear, sliding it on over her hips, and laced herself in to a plainer linen sleeveless shirt, looking back over at him and untying her braids.

“How are you feeling now? I’m Hilana, by the way. Matsi Chenzira Hilana.” Experienced fingers combed through the braids, and she gave her head a quick shake, releasing the curls to fall freely down her back. From the wardrobe, she grabbed the cloak, bringing it back to the bed for him.

[Khyan Nykara]

"Mm." He grunted, and scratched at the back of his neck when she claimed ignorance as to where his clothes might have wound up. Her further elaboration provided enough context for him to work it out on his own moments later, however.

"Ah..." He grimaced, "I'm rather sure I left them on the roof of the taberna, then." He had little flashes of memory, largely thanks to the pain of the transition. Things got easier with familiarity. Whether his body get accustomed to the new shapes, or whether he just acclimated to it mentally, he found it far easier to shift into the form of a snake than a bird.

"I thank you for your concern but, well... I'm not terribly practised at being a bird just yet. Animus is a rather recent Rune, you see, and the magpie is only my most recent totem. It's quite a contrast from the other forms I've explored and, after a fashion, more complex. Flight, as you clearly noticed, still escapes me and, well... I wasn't sick. I was merely, um..." He shrugged, "Indulgent?" He wrinkled his nose and shrugged,

"Oh, I'm perfectly fine." He said with a dismissive wave of one hand. "And I'm Vinicius Nykara Khyan." His nomen was recognisable enough, if nothing else. Although he'd been suspended from his position, Khyan's father Khyos was technically still the Consul of the Senatus Minor. But even the less politically inclined would know of his Gens. Nykara was an old and storied enough name that several statues to his ancestors were strewn about the realm, and his nomen was plastered on more than a few roads and buildings. And that was to say nothing of the trial.

"Fæx..." He muttered, remembering. "The trial... Do you know what time it is? I have to get to the bloody High Court before it's in session." He snatched the offered cloak and tried to transition from being covered by the sheets to being concealed by the garment with as much modesty as he could manage. "Gratias." He acknowledged, swinging his legs round and rising as he held the cloak closed around his slender physique.

[Hilana Chenzira]

As he elaborated, Hilana listened, nodding along. That made sense to her, at least. She supposed, now, that if she should find a magpie outside of any of the tabernas, and it was having trouble flying, then it might just be an inebriated Animus. While she was not a practitioner of any magic, she did have some passing knowledge of them, a rough idea of what each involved. Past that, it had hardly been something she had concerned herself with out in the sands. Some of the older boys, especially those with ambitions, had spoken of trying to acquire such Runes. And if they managed to get them, they often moved up from flock management and protection.

When he gave her his name, Hilana smiled a bit wryly and inclined her head to him. She did know of Gens Nykara; many did. Stories were told around the fires, likely starting from imagination and statues, and quite possibly exaggerated over time to make the stories even better, but there were enough mention of them to be well-known. Chenzira was more known amongst the nomads and in Tertium, and while her father’s family was increasing its influence, it wasn’t enough for him to insist she get a place in the Sorokyne District to uphold the name. And even if it was, she somehow doubted he’d have wanted her there, lest she slip into her old ways and bring shame to them from hundreds of miles away.

As he was getting up, Hilana bent at the waist with an easy, graceful fluidity, gathering the wild mass or curls and twisting and weaving them into a bun at the top of her head as she straightened up. She glanced at the small clock set in a gnarled piece of driftwood, worn smooth by the sand and winds. “It is quarter after six, Your Lordship,” she told him as she tucked the ends of her hair through the loop formed from her rope of hair, and let it be, the long locks settling in a rather thick bun. It would stay up there for the day, and she could always put it up again later if she had to. “Shall I show you the way to the Sorokyne District?” She didn’t think that the celebrity that she has come across in the night would be too familiar with the twists and turns of the Antiquine District, and it wouldn’t hurt to offer.

[Khyan Nykara]

Khyan's hackles, which were now figurative rather than literal as they'd been the night before, relaxed at the time Hilana gave him. It was still early enough for him to get home to dress and make himself look presentable for trial. He might have even considered the possibility of dashing back to collect his clothes from the roof of the taberna- or at least checking to see whether they were still there, but that seemed like it might cut things too close. It wasn't as though he could just flit to his destinations 'as the crow flies', or in this case the magpie. The transition was too lengthy and wrought a process to embark upon cavalierly.

"Are there no cabs in this neighbourhood?" Khyan said, reproachfully at being offered guidance. But perhaps there weren't, and-

"Fæx..." He groaned in vexation. "I left my bloody coin purse with my tunic, didn't I?" He had no recollection of doing so, of course, but he didn't see it here in the room nor could he imagine having carried so heavy an item as a smallish bird when he wasn't even capable of rudimentary flight. There was no way it made its way here. And even if it miraculously had, he couldn't imagine this woman wouldn't have pocketed the contents for her troubles tending to him. He wouldn't have even blamed her.

"Uh, yes. Perhaps you'd best play navigator for me." He glanced about the corners of the room, "About those sandals that might fit me?" The nicer parts of Solunarium, closer to the volcano, were fair pristine- kept immaculate for the exacting standards of the elite. He might have blithely walked barefoot down the streets nigh of his own domus, but here there was like to be all manner of animal dung caking the streets and the very notion of treading upon such filth exacerbated the nausea of his natural morning hangover.

"I shall, perforce, tip you when we reach my domus."

[Hilana Chenzira]

"I am pretty sure you left it there. Magpies don't really carry too many heavy things, and coins..." she wasn't about to remark on what she imagined he as a Patrician probably carried around with him, but she had no doubt that aside from maybe a few of those coins or a substantially lightened pouch, they definitely were not carrying off an entire purse. Smaller shinies, yes. A pouch? She only hoped it was still on the roof, but they were early enough that once she saw him to where he needed to go, she could go and look on her way in to work.

"There are, yes," she nodded at the mention of the possibility of a cab. "I can take you to a pick-up station if you'd prefer that. Your name would likely be enough for them to accept payment at your destination." From the wardrobe, she collected the newer pair of leather sandals. Judging by his feet, they looked close enough. They were perhaps a size down from what he would have normally have had custom-made for himself, but they weren't that far off. "Will these do?" Hilana extended them to him, letting him take them to try them on, and stepping back. "Let me grab Tiaz, and we can go," she added, leading the way out of the bedroom. Normally she would have made her bed first, but she could tell that Khyan was in a hurry, and she truthfully didn't know just how far he had to get to where he was going to go.

The apartment had even more plants and pots, mostly in the windows, but it was bright and tidy, what she had in there was well-looked after. It was comfortably middle-class, but to a Patrician who was used to far more, it was certainly Plebeian. But for Hilana, it was enough. She opened a glass enclosure in the living room, removing a black and white python that had to be easily half his height. That... must have been Tiaz, apparently, as she draped the snake around her shoulders and let it curl and coil up there, settling and getting comfortable. From there, she went into the kitchen, selecting a tin and a glass, adding a spoon of the contents to the glass - some sort of blended powder, it looked like - before adding water. She knew a hangover when she saw one, and she'd had her share. A quick stir of a spoon, and she extended the glass to Khyan. "Drink it. It will help with the indulgence," she advised, using his term for it. Whether he took it or not, she grabbed the remainder of the roasted chickpeas she had gotten the other night, putting them back into her rucksack that was hanging from a chair, before grabbing two pita breads from a rounded clay container. She took a few dates from another jar, putting them on the pillow-soft flat bread and extending that to her guest. She did have some manners, after all. He might feel a bit better with some food in him. She took a few dates for herself, folding them onto her pita. It wasn't a fancy breakfast, but it would do for getting on their way.

[Khyan Nykara]

"If it isn't too far, perhaps we should just walk the whole way, if it isn't too long..." Khyan suggested with a slight, unintentional scowl. His name wouldn't take him very far dressed in a cloak that looked like it was bought off the rack at some Port Vasta bazaar. Even so, he didn't wish to make a thing of it. The girl was going out of her way to help him and, besides, he was still prevailing upon her generosity and had no desire to rankle her with critiques while he still needed her.

"They'll have to." He said, forcing a smile and accepting the footwear. He sat back down on the bed to put them on, glancing up to inquire: "Tea what?" He misheard Tiaz, and took it for a beverage. Perhaps it was wishful thinking that she might have something refreshing to slake the abounding thirst that always followed a night of indulgence.

He rose to follow her out of the bedroom and promptly took note of the snake, adopting the first genuine smile since he'd arrived.

"Oh! Salve, Tiaz..." He said in a gentle rasp as he slowly, cautiously slithered his hand through the air and tipped it wrist up submissively to allow the snake to inspect him with the keener of its senses. His interest in Animism had been borne out of an interest in animals. He was no slouch at handling reptiles, and serpents had been rather a speciality with two of his first three totems falling under that umbrella. He'd never taken on the qualities of a constrictor, and so he had no particularly familiar pheromones to emit in support of his introduction, but he'd spent enough time in similar forms to know how they processed the world around them and to seem more appealing than threatening with the sounds and movements he produced.

"Beautiful." He said to Hilana, and accepted the beverage she offered and downed it unquestioningly as to what it might contain. Perhaps that sort of behaviour would serve as an indication as to how he'd gotten into this predicament to begin with.

"Mm, gratias." He took the food, as well, and promptly bit into it. It tasted much better than the drink had, so he was glad of the chaser. He hadn't realised how hungry he was, but the transitions were taxing and he tore into the rest of it ravenously. It didn't even survive the trip to the apartment door on their way to the corridor leading to the stairs.

[Hilana Chenzira]

She saw the smile on his face when she produced the snake from his comfortable terrarium, and she was pleased at his reaction to what was clearly a well-loved pet. "We'll walk. It's not that far from here to Sorokyne. If it was, then I could always get Hayima'el out for a ride," Hilana offered by way of reassurance. She was satisfied that he drank the liquid, and while it did have a harsher, herbal taste, it would certainly help. It was a blend of milk thistle, red ginseng, and ginger. Normally it would have been better hot and sweetened up, and maybe with a bit of milk for thickening, but as it was, the concoction was definitely helping with the hangover symptoms. The thirst, the headaches, and the uneasy stomach would settle, and he would likely feel less fatigued and return to a more normal energy level.

When she saw that he'd finished the pita and the dates, she offered him hers once she locked the door to her apartment. "Here. I had a dinner, and you didn't," she told him with a small smile. Besides, she had the leftover chickpeas in her bag that she could eat later, and grab a stuffed pita somewhere else at lunchtime. There were some vendors that got less attention, but she'd grown up on that sort of fare. Down a couple of flights of stairs, the colourful skirt flouncing the entire way, and Tiaz was certainly regarding him with a curious sort of interest. By the time they emerged from the apartment building and hit the streets, the snake had circled around her chest so that he could hang off of her shoulders a little more to check him out, his tongue flicking.

"He likes you," the young woman remarked with a sunny smile as she led the way. This area of the Antiquine was rather nice. It was tidy, and the way she was taking him had had the streets cleaned from piles of dung from the beasts of burden that hauled carriages and wagons or carried their owners. "Do you feel a bit better?" she glanced over the snake's head to look at the noble with her. She may have only have gotten here in the first days of the season, but Hilana had had a habit of combing every inch of her space and exploring it. She knew where she was going. "That was milk thistle, red ginseng, and ginger root," she added, "in the event you liked it."

[Khyan Nykara]

“We shall walk.” Khyan confirmed. He didn’t know who, or presumably what, Hayima'el was, but he had a feeling a morning stroll would be kinder on his roiling belly than whatever means of conveyance it offered.

Khyan arched an eyebrow at the offer of another sandwich. His initial instinct was to take umbrage, but that reflex didn’t last long enough to warrant broaching. Instead, he snatched up the offering with a grunt by way of gratitude and tore into it with his teeth. The oversized bite filled out his gaunt cheeks, as they made their way out and down the stairs.

He blinked at the light of the morning sun and squinted until it didn’t feel as abrasive. Ere long he was able to assess his surroundings with a discriminating eye. He’d certainly stirred in sketchier situations, upon further inspection. It was a bit of a relief, since he was averse to a long trek back to his neighbourhood and the clean streets implied they weren’t far away. He clocked their distance from Mount Sorokyn to further clarify their closeness to the eponymous district.

“I like him, too.” Khyan noted with a pointed smile.

“Actually…” He broadened that smile and bared his teeth. The canines extended into long, sharp fangs that might have made his grin more sinister to some audiences, “Snakes are a particular speciality of mine.” The fangs created a marked lisp in so saying, but soon retracted to pass for normal human teeth once more.

“Well…” He chuckled, “I’ll say that I certainly prefer to results to the taste, but I used to say the same about liquor and just look at me now.” He held his hands out to his sides playfully, before stuffing the last bit of his second breakfast course into his mouth.

[Hilana Chenzira]

With the sun streaming through the taller buildings, the day was beginning for more of the working class of the Antiquine. It was still early, but the streets were beginning to come to life as people sought to get to their destinations before the overhead sun became too much. Hilana herself would have normally have taken another hour or so and relaxed with a breakfast and properly made tea or coffee before making her way to Port Vasta, but her guest was in a bit of a hurry, for something that was deeply important to him. While she wasn't attending the trial, she knew the gossip from listening, and she wondered if the drinking was part of that. Or maybe it was just a habit for a young man from a wealthy family who had had plenty of access to parties of all kinds.

Maybe both.

She considered asking him how he was holding up about it, but she had a feeling that she wouldn't get an actual answer. Sure, they were strange bedfellows for a night, but didn't have any sort of credence to the intimacy one might need to speak honestly about something so personal, so serious, so severe. That, and to him, she was certainly a nobody. A useful nobody for the moment, but a nobody nonetheless. She wasn't put out by that, either. But there were still rules about interactions, even if her usual thoughts were to damn the rules where she could. And then he showed his teeth.

Her eyes widened, but not with worry or fear or horror. She was apparently delighted, if the broadening smile was anything to go by. "Truly? What species?" she was curious. "Do you like them more than the magpies? What drew you to snakes? Have you been an Animus long?" The questions practically bubbled out. There was a common ground there, at least, because the girl was very clearly a fan of the serpents. At his comment about the taste, Hilana did have to chuckle, sounding at least a bit apologetic. "I am sorry for the taste of it. I could have doctored it up a bit better... heat and honey would have made it go down easier, but I know you're in a hurry to get home."

[Khyan Nykara]

Although Hilana's remedy helped soften the edges of the morning's afflictions, Khyan wasn't a morning person at the best of times and this was still quite early for him. As silence passed between them, the Patrician made no effort to rush back into discourse. His hungover mind was hard at work trying to piece together the majority of the prior evening, and attempting to stave off the vague, inexplicable guilt that tended to haunt him the day after a particularly indulgent bout of drinking.

Khyan blinked at her enthusiasm about snakes, though. He supposed he ought to have inferred she bore a passion for the creatures, given her choice in pet (and current accessory).

"Well, my very first totem was Vipera aspis. My Rune was carved at the Academia Arcanum, and we were told to research animals that interested us. I was between a Vasta Crocodile and the Atraxian Asp, and I went with the latter after my professor noted two advantages it had over the crocodile. Firstly, its shape is simpler to assume for a beginner and secondly?" He half grinned, "Venom." He chuckled,

"My adolescent Patrician brain went back to my childhood tutors and all my Nykara ancestors lost to poison over the years. It seemed wise to acquaint myself with the mechanics of snake venom, so I went with two of the most commonly used by my stately peers- The asp and the cobra." He shrugged,

"At present it's easier to assume the form of snakes than of birds, and so I prefer them in that regard, but honestly I only recently got to the point of making full body transformations. First it was just the fangs, then the tongue... The fangs ended up sticking." He observed, running his tongue over his top row of teeth.

"That happens with a first totem often, you know... You retain some trait or another. I'm just glad they're retractable, else I'd be cursed with that ghastly lisp all the time..." He trailed off, considering her last question.

"Just about a year or so. I mostly focused on my first Rune, but I was particularly adept so I placed out my penultimate year and they offered me a second. I only had the final year to study that, so I didn't get terribly far, but there you have it."