• Mature • Getting Salty

[Woe]

"What do you mean? Do you expect me to swim and keep pace with a ferry? What are you thinking?" Woe frowned incredulously at Sywena. "Have you really ever done this before?"

She shook her head and grinned, "I expect you to kick and keep your head above water, at the least. Which you'll be able to do before we get done here."

Woe was skeptical, yet something about the biqaj's easy manner made him comfortable with what she told him. He had a sneaking sense, though, that he'd regret it.

She paddled up to him in the water, a smile still on her lips as she placed her hands on his shoulders. "Okay, now we're going under. I want to see how long you can submerge before you have to come up, yeah?"

Woe eyed her uncertainly, then nodded. And without another trill of hesitation, she lifted herself upward on his shoulders, pushing his head beneath the surface of the water. At first Woe's instincts took over, he began flailing his arms, his lungs complaining over the unavailability of air. The trills seemed to turn to half a bit before she finally released his shoulders, and they came to eye level again in the water.

The mortalborn gasped for air as he came out of the salt, his lungs complaining about every trill of deprivation. His first instinct was to repeat the same treatment toward Sywena, and he took her by the shoulders, pushing her down under the water. Their fight in the saltwater lasted all of a bit before they became exhausted by the absurdity, and Sywena began to laugh. Woe let the waves of amusement to wash over his tangle until he began to chuckle himself.

[Woe]

For a few moments, Woe's spark began to yearn to reach out and grasp for Sywena's tangle, intrigued by the foreign threads running through and caressing his mind. He almost allowed it, before pulling back, forcing himself into a stoic expression as he declined to let the spark take control. His thoughts drifted back to Emelia, and the chaos he'd unleashed. And though he barely knew this little biqaj woman, he didn't want to do similar damage to her, until he was confident in his ability to command the spark and not the other way around.

Sensing his apprehension, she sidled up to him and wrapped her arms around his neck again. With a little dip of her head, she nuzzled his neck. "U'frek's chum bucket, your muscles are stiffer than a coffin. What's wrong?"

Woe ground his teeth together, resisting still the urge to reach out and take hold of her emotions, the delicious threads that wrapped around her mind and radiated outward. To thrash and chain them with his own superior threads and reform her emotions to his own purpose. Woe said nothing, however, knowing that he was only a breath away from dripping etheric honey in order to push and pull the sweet biqaj's tender threads of emotion.

Instead, he shrugged and shook his head. He had an idea what she wanted him to do, anyway. So, for a trill or two, they pulled together and kissed. Woe wrapped his arm around her waist, while their legs kicked to keep above the saltwater, pulling her lips toward his. She returned it, tensing in surprise for just a moment before letting it happen.

[Woe]

On the face of it, there was nothing unusual about what was going on there in the water. The Salt Lake of Lysoria had likely seen much of the same in its long history, with tourists and locals braving the briny waters in order to bring their lover out for a bit of mischief and romance. So for a few bits, Woe let the doubts and insecurities plaguing him wash away in the salts of the water. Here no ghosts could interfere with this moment, no worries over lovers past, or a vindictive, Immortal mother and sister. There was just the water in the void between their bodies with no daylight between their lips.

A few trills more, and she pulled away, her hand trailing from the back of his neck, along his ear and jawline. Looking at her was all he could do not to say something, lest the Empathy spark rises to the occasion and drip with its etheric venom to enslave the biqaj woman's whims and emotions. He could feel it's influence on the tip of his tongue, as he wanted to say something, anything. To fill the empty moments with words. But he held back, and only looked at her.

After a few trills, her face twisted into a silly expression, "What'sa matter Wolstan?" She snickered, pushing him away. He let her, floating on the water, away from the woman he was sharing the day with. "Anyway... We better get to the next step. Time for you to learn to take a long dive!"

[Woe]

For the next few bits, Woe experimented with how long and how far he could dive under the water. With the buoyant saltwaters pushing him up through the surface, Sywena reasoned that it'd be that much more difficult to dive down, and stay down. So she made it a contest of seeing who could reach the bottom of the lake in a dive before the other. They kept this 'game' going for as long as ten bits, before Woe came up from the water, to find himself alone.

"Sywena?" He cast about, looking for signs of her above the water. He swam this way and the other, looking for any sign, an air bubble pushing to the surface, a head popping up above the water. Nothing all around. "Sywena!" He reached out with his magic, to try and feel out the woman's presence, wherever it might be. Having attuned to her moments earlier, while diving underneath the water, he had a bead on her, but it was strange. She wasn't anywhere near him.

He turned around in the waters, swimming to try and find out where she'd gotten off to. He attuned to his compass, to push him generally in the right direction. That is when he saw her. Far in beyond the shore, meddling with their clothing.

A wave of relief fell over him then, and he began swimming back to shore. "Sywena!" He called again, this time waving one of his hands as he kicked his way over. Then he noticed her meddling with his own clothes. Thinking that she'd help carry them over to him, he thought nothing of it at first. But then, she gave him one last smile, and bolted back for the village Inn.

Woe'd been had. Again.

[Woe]

Having had his clothes stolen, every last article, save for his boots, was a humiliating prospect. Not that Woe was any stranger to humiliation. His life to this point had seemed to be designed to teach him the virtue of humility and self-doubt. From being charmed into spilling every last secret he possessed, to falling in love with a harlot. This was the most recent blunder yet. Still, he couldn't find it in him to be too angry at Sywena. It was his own gullibility that had prompted this episode. He knew she was mischievous, irreverent, and overall playful. Even so, had he known what she planned while carrying out the diving contests, he might've given extra thought to letting his spark have it's fun with the threads of her tangle.

He arrived at his lone boots, and looked up from them, at the tall hill that stood before him. He didn't relish the idea of walking naked back to the village Inn. Even less attractive a prospect as walking in there, and seeking out his rented room to find a change of clothes.

The mortalborn remained attuned to Sywena, which meant he knew that she'd traveled in that general direction, so perhaps along the way she'd take pity and bring his clothes back to him.

But he doubted it.

So with just his boots on and nothing else, he began the long walk back to the village, keeping his eyes stoically forward and ignoring any jeers of passing people of the Lysorian country, who hollered at and catcalled him.

[Strange]

Thread Review

Woe

Woe

Skill Points: +10 (cannot be used for magic)
Magic XP: None.

Renown: +5 (for walking back to the village naked).

Injuries/Overstepping: None.
Wealth Points: None.
Loot: - loss: a set of basic clothing

Skill Knowledge:
[*]Swimming: Getting Salty (1/5)
[*]Swimming: Getting Salty (2/5)
[*]Swimming: Getting Salty (3/5)
[*]Swimming: Getting Salty (4/5)
[*]Swimming: Getting Salty (5/5)
[*]Swimming: Long Dive
[*]Swimming: Freestyle
[*]Swimming: Breaststroke
[*]Swimming: Dog Paddle
[*]Swimming: Backstroke.
[*]Endurance: Holding breath underwater for a half a bit.

Non-Skill Knowledge:

• none requested.

Notes: n/a.
Skills Used: Swimming (Untrained); Endurance (Competent); Running (Untrained); Strength (Novice); Seduction (Competent); Socialization (Novice); Empathy (Competent); Attunement (Novice); Discipline (Expert); Meditation (Competent)
Skill Review: Appropriate to level.

Oh Woe.... Woe, is you. Falling for biqaj women and their tricks. He needs to find himself a not-harlot! At least he learned how to swim some, so maybe he won't drown and die in the future.. or uh, is less likely to, that is.

Enjoy your rewards!

PM me if you have any questions, issues or concerns.

Total Word Count: 4,360 words.

Review Request Link: viewtopic.php?p=139186#p139186
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