thefeywood | a friend like me

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a friend like me

[ Returning to Gridania and the Conjurer's Guild felt a bit like a coming home at times. Though she was never there for any extended period, her frequent trips back and forth in her earlier days as an adventurer had certainly cemented the city in her mind. Though she had long since left her training, she has a vested interest in Slyphie and Gatty's progress. It's a nice break from impending world doom and all the other sorts of pressures that come from her current wanderings. (At least she takes them more seriously, now.)

It is on one such trip as she leaves the winding path inside that great tree from the guild that she spots something she doesn't often see in Gridania. Himeka takes a pause at the entrance to stretch, accepting the warmth of the sunlight breaking through the great canopy. Arms above her head, she surveys the area around her as she decides where exactly she wants to take her lunch--

Another Au Ra!

Not unheard of, but definitely unusual, and given by his heavy armor, she has a feeling he may not be here to meet with the guild in particular. (Or, maybe he is? Who doesn't like picking up a new and exciting hobby?)

A tall man with a big sword and a rather unfriendly expression on his face should be enough to deter her, but it hasn't been before and still isn't now. So Himeka drops her hands and strides right up to him, her tail giving an excited swish behind her. ]

You must be a new recruit!

[ He does not look like a new recruit in the slightest. ]

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[He doesn't mind the trips to Gridania these days, usually. They're short, for a blessing, and Rielle seems to have even made some friends her age there recently. Halone knows she needs them. Not much for him to do, even as reportedly rife with racism as Gridania is, but it's not his territory to pick apart. And so he deals with it, enjoying the temperate weather while he can.

It is rare that he gets approached. It's the same in Ishgard; nobody wants to deal with talking to a surly-looking xaela carrying a massive sword he knows how to use. But apparently, this one is fearless. Sid's first reaction is to open his eyes from where he leans upon a tree and look at her, almost lazily.]

Hardly.

[His voice is a little gruff, but more out of sarcasm than offense. If he were a new recruit, he'd be a right miserable one. Rielle herself could attest to that.]

I'm accompanying my... [pause; his lips twitch as he tries to think of a word that isn't daughter,] charge, to her training. I take it you are a graduate, by the look of you.

[ It's the response she expected for the most, though she raises a brow in curiosity as he takes a moment to properly label his purpose. "Charge"? Is he some sort of bodyguard, then? She supposes that answers for the massive sword. ]

Oh? There are a few in training today. Which one is yours?

[ Though she doesn't know all of the newer members by name, spending less and less time in the Shroud as she has been. There were not any other Au Ra inside... That she would have certainly noted.

Himeka stands at attention and gives a little salute. ]

With honors!

[ But it's said in jest as she relaxes immediately afterwards. ]

However begrudgingly given. Was it the cane as big as your sword that gave it away?

[He does take notice at the "begrudgingly given" remark; it's entirely possible she's experienced a similar kind of discrimination here, if not the murderous Ishgardian sort. Luckily for her.

Sid gestures lazily to the group of girls chatting happily inside the hollow.]

The blonde elezen girl, the taller one of the bunch. I'll be damned if she isn't gifted at her pursuit.

[Unlike him, but he's content to swing a sword and not worry about mortal wounds when she is at his back. Mostly. His eyes shift back to Himeka.]

You've clearly no need of training, though. Unfinished business bring you here?

[ Au Ra are definitely not terribly common in the Shroud either, though she knows some of the questionable glances sent her way were entirely her own doing. She has never exactly worried about what people thought of her, for better or for worse.

Her gaze follows where he indicates and her face brightens almost instantly with what she sees. ]

Oh! It's a small world, we're here for similiar-ish reasons. The other two are mine.

[ Well... ]

--Okay, not exactly mine per-se, but they are the ones I came to visit. You're here for Rielle!

[ Himeka turns her gaze and smile back up to him. ]

She's been doing so well, too. Sylphie is very fond of her and doesn't boss her around too much. But she couldn't have a more caring member of the guild help her with her training.

"Yours"?

[His brow quirks, but he doesn't push it further, as if intending it to be just a half-sarcastic remark.]

Aye, though I imagine she'd not suffer it for long if she were being pushed around thoughtlessly. And she tells me the young padjal is a touch shy, but she seems to come out of her shell around those two. They've all got their own niche in the group.

[After that, he spends a moment in silence, unsure whether to continue the conversation himself or let her make the choice. In the end, though, he lets the little bit of intrigue slip.]

After what she's been through, she desperately needed the friends her own age. E-Sumi-Yan doesn't count when he only looks the part.

[ Himeka raises a brow in turn, but her smile only widens as he seems to share the same appraisal. She nods in agreement, casting a glance back towards the group of girls. Part of her wonders what it would have been like to have friend group like that as a child, more familiar with some of the strange ways the world works for them--then again, she had no idea that it was different for a majority of people, so who can say? Himeka did turn away from the one real avenue for her abilities back home. ]

No, he's really an old man at heart. He ought to be careful or it might catch up with him.

[ She says rather bluntly yet somehow still cheerful as she turns on her heel to stand beside the other Au Ra, allowing her a better view of the girls as they chat. When she speaks again, however, her voice is quieted a little. ]

I did hear a bit just in passing, that's a lot go to through for someone so young.

[ And probably not terribly unique in it's displacement, even if the methods themselves are horrifying. Just how disjointed the world really is still shocks her sometimes. ]

...but I didn't realize that her surly guardian was another Au Ra.

["Surly"... he grumbles.]

--She called me that?

[Not that's it's untrue, but-- Sid rubs his temples, his voice lowering.]

...Right, I guess it's not too far from the truth. She got pretty heated when I when anywhere near the suggestion of her being my daughter. Not that I'm all that broken up over it, but... teenagers.

[And it's probably a result of lingering trauma, one he doesn't dare go near for the time being. She still remembers her real father as she does her mother, with what fond memories she had of them. It's not his place to try and usurp that if she doesn't want it.]

You're right to be surprised, though. I've not seen another like myself for a long time, not until very recently when Ishgard opened its doors to outsiders. And never more than in passing, with good reason. Few are the fools who come up for a friendly conversation... and frankly, I'm surprised you did, either.

[ Himeka chuckles at that. Teenagers, indeed. She's been collecting quite a few of late although she doesn't think that Alphinaud and Alisaie would be too keen on the notion that she considers them part of her collective of sorts, no matter how much she loves them dearly. ]

I might have detected a hint of fondness in all the exasperation, so I would take it as a compliment if I were you. After all--no one fights like family!

[ She says as if it's an old proverb.

Though his own appraisal gets her to raise a brow, placing a hand on her hip. ]

I hope you're not calling me a fool before you even know me...but you may be right.

[ Despite being offended, however, she offers a bow in greeting, which is still a little more ingrained than offering a hand as she's learned. ]

My name is Himeka Sui, and now that we're not strangers, I'll allow you to call me a fool after...

[ She glances back towards the girls who are still in an intense discussion, in which Sylphie starts to usher them back inside of the guild. Himeka tilts her head up towards the other Au Ra. ]

...lunch, maybe?

[He looks more than a little surprised by the invitation, reeling back slightly. Yeah, she's a fool, all right. He makes one more glance at the girls, as if looking for a way out, then sighs and shakes his head.]

Sidurgu. You can call me Sid.

[And so he relents, his shoulders rising up in a shrug and then dropping.]

All right, then, you've got your lunch date. [Pause.] What was your plan?

[ Local Au Ra abandoned by his daughter and forced to socialize. A recent tragedy.

Relenting though he is, Himeka is visibly pleased. ]

Sid, then! It happens to be your lucky day. I made an excess of curry before visiting the guild. Let's go to Apkallu Falls, I always enjoy the misty air you get when you sit near them.

[ Without waiting for his agreement, she smiles and touches the aetheryte and ports over to the Amphitheater, fully expecting him to follow. ]

[She seems so happy about it that Sid has to wonder if this was a good idea or not. Nonetheless, he follows her, taking a few brisk steps to catch up with her.]

...I've never had curry before.

[An awkward admission. It's not the easiest dish to come by in Ishgard, and as for cooking... well, he's had to learn some things for Rielle, but a mentor and his two boys tend to find themselves hard-pressed sometimes in that regard. They don't teach knights how to cook; they teach them how to damn well appreciate whatever slop they're given.]

What is it, exactly?

[ It's a fair concern and it probably isn't, but it's too late for that now! But Himeka is more than happy to talk about food in any capacity and getting to share it with people is half the point of cooking it, in her opinion. It's an even bigger boon to get to introduce something new to someone. ]

It's like a heavier soup made with herbs and spices. People like it with rice or with bread of some sort, but I have the latter right now.

[ She elects to plop down on the ground itself within a reasonable distance of the falls--enough to get the light mist but not close enough to be in splashing range. As promised, she pulls out a few bowls of the hammer space of her bag, still nice and warm thanks to the advent of using fire crystals to keep it during travel. A very large loaf of bread follows, which she sets out on top of her bag. ]

But the best way to know something is to try it, so dig in!

[ Notably she has not offered any utensils. ]

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