Cristiana Quakenbush
Wanderer
I believe in the magic of preparation
Posts: 7 
Race: Mundane
Primary Class: Herbalist
Primary Level: 1
Soul Points: 0
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Post by Cristiana Quakenbush on Jun 23, 2014 22:33:06 GMT 1
Anna's eyes studied the paler face, muddy eyes still narrowed. While her thin, boyish face it would look rude to most, the girl was still inspecting the pale stranger for injuries. Force of habit, she supposed. Having lived with a man who often bite, scratched or bruised himself turning tantrums, she often gave her brother morning inspections to be sure he didn't need any medical care. Though besides looking a bit embarrassed - or perhaps flustered was the better term for it, what with all the eyes giving the pale one so much attention - this new woman seemed to be just fine. Putting a hand up on her stand, Anna eased herself back onto her feet, wincing slightly as she felt the muscles in her neck pull. The worst of the bruises were hiding there, the black and purple hand print from Ulysses hovering just belong her chin. After the market died down, she would have to spirit herself away to inspect herself. Even if she was having her salves for coin, a wrap of yellow herbs would also do the trick.
Taking the time to stretch out her back, the girl watched the way the other woman were staring at each other. It was a subtle sort of look, the kind of regard that distant cousins might hold for each other. But still it was there, a connection that even she, a lowly herbalist and beggar, could feel. Massaging a hand against her hip, she half wondered if they were old friends, but just hadn't realized it yet. Any moment know it seemed like lightening would strike, and arms would open in welcome. A sharp, pang of longing squeezed in her breast. How would it be, feeling that type of affection of just one moment? Even if only just?
"If you do find yourself hurting later, ma'am," Anna said, regarding the paler of the two women "you should come and visit me. Arnica is a good trick for keeping the bruises away." Arnica was the largest part of her stock at the moment. A bright, yellow sort of daisy it was the best for ailing muscles and the kind of deep, painful bruising she herself wore. Several piles of the bright flower were heaped next to the lavender and sage, but she always had managed to make a few nice oils and had squeezed them into the small, clay jars lined up near the back of the stall. The girl was half tempted to give the mismatched woman a bit of it, if only she could afford to. Anna supposed that was the real trouble with her chosen trade. There would always be a choice between money and real healing.
Easing the sore spot on her hip away with her knuckles, Anna went and perched herself back onto her stool, annoyed at the many places her body seemed to catch and complain as she moved. It was funny, all the fuss over a girl not barely two years her senior over falling down, and she was the one who was black and blue. That was the life of the poor, for you. "If you don' mind my asking, ma'am," Anna, regarding her original customer. "Would you still be needing that Valerian? I need to know how much I can put it in a proper bag for you." She had set aside a few larger leaves that she could convert into one, large bag so that the darker woman wouldn't have to be carrying so many items with her. Jangling anything in such a large city had the bad habit of catching the wrong kind of attention.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Jun 24, 2014 3:44:55 GMT 1
Zasime found herself staring awkwardly at the older woman again from underneath the veil of her long eyelashes. She could tell the other woman felt it too - whatever it was - and maybe, just maybe, if she thought a little harder about it...or not. Mayhaps it wasn't on the tip of her tongue after all. Still, she just knew this was going to bug her, like an itch that couldn't be scratched. "Are you sure you're all right?" The genuine concern in that voice just made the ranger feel uncomfortable all over again as she was stirred from her thoughts. And the herbalist - a girl who looked to be only a year or so younger than her - wasn't helping either with those searching eyes. It didn't matter that she was merely checking her over for injuries; an examination was the last thing the vampire wanted! What if she asked her to open her mouth wide next, or decided to put leeches on her skin! Okay, so maybe she was going a little overboard, but when every living thing except maybe the anthromorphics wanted to kill her, she had the right to be afraid.
The ranger only began to relax when at last the black-haired girl moved away. "I appreciate the advice, but I must assure you that the only thing hurt was my pride." Not that she had much to brag about. Still, the whole thing had been pretty embarrassing what with two people making such a huge fuss about it.
The last of the tension left Zasime's body as the transaction she had accidentally interrupted now resumed. With all the attention more or less lifted off of her, she was free to go. Free to disappear into the crowd and try to make some sense of the festivities surrounding her. Maybe she could enjoy herself after all if two people hadn't screamed, "Vampire!" even after close interaction with her. But- the ranger hesitated. She had had sharp eyes even before her transformation. Probably passed down from Mother; that woman had the eyes of a goddamn hawk. And the stretching, the kneading, the cautious way the herbalist had returned to her seat...heh. Someone might as well have slapped Zasime in the face, it was so obvious the younger girl was hurting. Not that it was any of her business since she was a complete stranger and all. She didn't owe any favors to some poor, aching, sad...ugh.
Apparently, vampires could have a conscience after all. What'd ya know? Pa'landri's teeth. She was about to do something stupid, she just knew it.
Zasime looked on in silence, waiting for a good moment to pipe in timidly, "If you don't mind me asking...what else do you got?" As if there would be anything a vampire ranger needed.
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Fayne Valkeri
Wanderer
Chase the wind and touch the sky
Posts: 7
Race: Undead
Primary Class: Beastmaster
Primary Level: 1
Morality: Chaotic Good
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Post by Fayne Valkeri on Jun 24, 2014 5:51:00 GMT 1
It wasn't quite kinship that Fayne had niggling at the back of her head. For twenty eight days out of the cycle of the moon, she was utterly mundane. She didn't have any sort of sense for the supernatural, for the undead like the monster she was forced to become. So while the girl might sense something off about her, maybe something in her natural scent that was something more than mundane, Fayne had none of that. Instead she had the things her husband once warned her off, the unwritten warning signs of creatures best left far from civilized company, creatures like her. That was what clawed at her for attention. She had been so worried just moments before, and now faced with a threat she was erringly disarmed.
There was definitely something not right about the girl, that much Fayne was certain, but why...
She shook her head. It was a festival, she told herself. She needed to relax, needed to not see everyone in the world as a monster waiting to reveal themselves. The dark haired girl was fine. She wasn't a threat. She wasn't a thief. She was just some clumsy girl, Fayne you old fool. There was no reason to be so suspicious all the damned time.
Fayne glanced back at the herbalist when she resumed their conversation. Right. Valerian. "Yes, please." She hesitated for a moment, trying to figure out how much was reasonable to get all at once. Well, she had said she was restocking wares, hadn't she? "How much for a full bag?" she asked, gesturing to the largest of the girl's bags. With that, she reckoned, she wouldn't have to be hunting down valerian for a long while. It would give her plenty to return to Valcanion for a time, where any herb was scarce, and do some work around those parts. Folk were always looking for guides through the desert and Fayne had become quite good at timing her trips to get her in and out of merc contracts before the full moon rolled around. And the desert offered less of a bloodbath for the monster's nightly runs. Yes, a bag that large would do nicely.
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Cristiana Quakenbush
Wanderer
I believe in the magic of preparation
Posts: 7
Race: Mundane
Primary Class: Herbalist
Primary Level: 1
Soul Points: 0
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Post by Cristiana Quakenbush on Jun 24, 2014 6:50:54 GMT 1
The hair on the back of Anna's neck prickled again, but she let it pass. She knew when someone was watching her, it was a sense she had picked up from having people stare and gossip about her for all of her life. So she let it slide when she felt one of the women watching in a way that wasn't unlike what she had just done for the pale one. They would be gone soon it enough, though, and would forget her twice as fast. "The full bag, eh?" Anna said, trying to hide the big grin that threatened to spread across her thin lips. Valerian wasn't quite rare, but none to easy to find neither. Anna could have easily asked for five coin and still let the woman have a bargain. But as it was festival, she supposed she could take a bit off the top. "Give me four coin for it, and it'll be wrapped up nice for you."
Pulling at the vine around the other bags, Anna went to the business of gently transferring the crushed up powder from one group to another. Her bony fingers were nimble, and she was sure to lift up the edges of the leaf bags to keep any of the precious herb from being lost. "Hmmm," she hummed as she worked, her eyes momentarily flashing up towards the paler woman before going back down towards her the stall. "I suppose, ma'am, I have a bit of everything.' Nodding her head a bit towards the dried herbs. "If you find yourself interested in cooking I do have some very nice rosemary and basil, and that bit of sage there is good for that and for burning. Or ills. I have have some oil from that. If anything, it will keep a shine to your hair." P incing all of the big leaves together, Anna started to wrap the morning glory around and around the larger bag, lifting it every moment or too to shake it and check for any leaks. "Then of course I have lavender, cut fresh last week. Ooh, and some very nice blackberry."
Anna lifted her eyes, something a bit more sneaky than a smile tucking into the corner of her mouth. This was a new trick she had picked up on the roads, listening to the gypsies and other superstitious folk that came and went on the wind. "Did you know that if you take blackberry and spin it into a wreath for yourself, it will keep the monsters away? The vampire and werewolves and such?" Anna did not believe such bed time stories, but most of her customers seemed to. Vampires, and werewolves and other spooks might haunt her brother's dreams, but not hers. Reality was all that she cared for. Still, stories of herbs having magical properties was nothing new, so if anything spreading such knowledge was a part of her job. "They try to cross your door, and it will burn them right up before they can get a foot in. Add a bit of those Hawthorne sprigs, and you might even be able to keep the ghosts away too."
Giving the finished bag one last shake, Anna held it out to her customer. "There you go, ma'am. And while those leaves might not look like much, they should keep the water away for a while at least. If you want the best protection, though, there's a man down that away." Another little nod with her head, though this time she gestured down towards the right side of the line of market stalls. "He will sell you a nice mole skin, which will keep the water off. He may try to give you rabbit, but really that is just an old squirrel so you shouldn't bother." Anna gave the darker woman a playful wink as she waited for her coin, and then looked back to the paler woman with the mismatched closed. "And did you have anything you would like to have, ma'am? Any herbs, any oils?"
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Fayne Valkeri
Wanderer
Chase the wind and touch the sky
Posts: 7
Race: Undead
Primary Class: Beastmaster
Primary Level: 1
Morality: Chaotic Good
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Post by Fayne Valkeri on Jul 4, 2014 20:47:16 GMT 1
[Going to go ahead and give a post without Leo since Fayne doesn't need to interact with her much unless she wants to give chase or something after dealing with Ana]
Four coins? Fayne gave the girl a curious tilt of her head. She has expected more. She would have been charged more if she'd gone to one of the larger stalls or shops of a Boul native, she was sure of it. This wasn't her first time around these parts after all. Perhaps it was the festival. Perhaps the girl as trying to break into the market with the prices none of the other herbalists or merchants would be willing to go. Either way, Fayne's purse was thankful for it.
She watched the girl package her valerian in the heavy leaves and only vaguely listened in as the girl tried to sell her wares to the ranger who had stumbled in. It was when she made a mention of vampires and werewolves did Fayne tense her hand on her spear and decide to pay further attention. Blackberries? Blackberries were supposed to keep the monsters away? If something as common as berries in the woods did the monsters in there would be almost no need for hunters. It was a gimmick, she was sure. An old wive's tale the merchants and the gypsies spread to make a couple of coins off of those who knew no better. What would those tricked do about it when they found out they were wrong? Most likely, they'd already be dead.
"I wouldn't spread rumors about things untested," she warned, her words firm even as she tried to keep her tone gentle. She wasn't going to stop the girl from doing her business, but the ranger seemed like a bit of a spook enough as it was without the herbalist trying to scare her.
Fayne counted out five coins instead of four in her hand and passed them to the herbalist as she took the pouch. "Thank you, dear, that'll be all I need. You have a happy Awakening, now." She tucked the pouch into her satchel and gave her a small smile. She already had a pouch for the herb, one that was fairly worn down by now, but would do the job just as well. Fayne nodded to the herbalist, gave the ranger one last glance before nodding to her as well, and slipped out into the crowd. She still didn't know what about the ranger gave her an off feeling, but there was definitely something... Oh Fayne, she told herself, you're being paranoid again. Just enjoy the festival, won't you?
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