nysalogs | january open post + catch-all

Entry tags:

january open post + catch-all

Who: Yona (

cutefaced) & you!
What: A catch-all for January with OTA prompts and closed starter toplevels.
When: Throughout January
Where: Mainly in and around Olympia; some visits to Wyver, too.
Warning(s): Nothing yet, but I'll edit if that changes.

olympia proper;

one - getting reacquainted;
[Before taking ill, Yona had spent much of her time in the market district - mainly because she's always been easily distracted by interesting things. As a result, she hadn't been completely familiar with other parts of the city before then, though she did make a few forays into the theater district.

No more. Now that she's back, she has every intention of learning her way around the city she and her friens have returned to.

Her wandering takes her almost everywhere - and as a result, she ends up hopelessly, uselessly lost. Maybe you'll catch her looking at her surroundings with a puzzled expression.]

...wait, was I supposed to turn right at the last street, or the next one?

[Help.]

two - weapons galore;
[You must never touch weapons, Yona.

Her father's words are fresh in her mind as she stands outside the weapons shop. Of course - she's already disobeyed him once, when practicing throwing daggers. But she can only keep "borrowing" from Jae-Ha and sneaking them back to him for so long, and they're his weapons, in the end; she needs to find something that suits her.

Sooner or later, she was always going to have to look out for herself.

So in she goes, although she nearly immediately looks a bit overwhelmed at all the different choices. Oh boy.]

There's so many of them...

three - order up;
[She can't just rely on other people to buy her things forever (although to be truthful, it's worked for her so far).

So, not long after they return to Olympia, Yona starts looking for work. Her problem is there aren't a lot of things she already knows how to do well - but part-time work serving food at a cafe seems simple enough, and she's managed to get a job as a waitress at the Wyvernest, which suits her just fine. One of the most interesting things about Wyver was the dragons, after all.

Now she's sort of got the best of both worlds - she can see the baby dragons while she's working, and can learn about them as she does. (The owner doesn't rebuff her when she asks for employment as some others have, but maybe that's because they remember she wore a Wyver pin at the gala. Maybe they think she knows more about dragons than she actually does.)

But at the moment? It's time to serve some customers! Yona looks up when she hears the door open and fixes the person who's just entered with a smile.]

Welcome to the Wyvernest! How many would you like a table for today?

the outskirts;

one - neutrality problems;
[The first time she borrows a mount to go exploring, she runs into some of the people who have left the city.

...up until that moment, she hadn't realized just how bad things had gotten. Sure, there were people who were vocal about wanting to keep themselves separate from the people of Wyver, and people who were talking about fighting with them... but she'd believed it was just talk. After all, when she'd gotten sick, the medicine that had cured her had only existed because they'd cooperated with them.

But, no. Apparently it is that bad. And when she hears that people on both sides have been refused help from the Sanctuary and the Altar of Volkkra...

Well, she can't take it. She really can't take it.

So, from time to time, she ventures out from the city on a mount for a "picnic," though what she's got packed is more along the lines of simple food for traveling, cloth cut into bandages, and other things she's managed to purchase with her earnings from the Wyvernest cafe. Some days, when she's gotten especially good tips, she has a little more.

Some days, when business has been slow, she's got a little less.

Either way, she's trying. And she could probably use a little help... be it with passing things out to people who need them, or actually providing effective medical assistance, or not getting mugged or attacked by wild animals or something.]

two - edrathe ruins;
[Is it foolish to be out here? Probably. Is that going to stop her from looking around? Probably not.

...except it really should have, because enough time has passed that Yona's borrowed mount has decided to head back to the stables and has definitely left her behind. She's wandering around near the entrance now, unsure if she's actually where she left it or if she's just gotten terribly turned around.]

Hello?

[...there's that strange rumbling noise; she jolts, then glances over her shoulder.]

Is someone here...?

a visit to wyver;

one - dragonwatching;
[No amount of tension is going to keep Yona out of Wyver - for the time being, anyway. But even she's not that stupid; when she does take off for the hotter country, about midway through the month, she at least has the sense to change the style of clothing she's wearing and smooth down her hair. It's perhaps not the most effective disguise she could have gone with, but at least when her hair reverts back to its usual frizzy state, she can use that as an excuse -

It couldn't have been me you saw! Do you really think I could get my hair to look like that?

Et cetera, et cetera.

Anyway, now that she's back in Wyver, she's going to be visiting some friends - but she's also going to be taking the time to go observe some fully-grown dragons. ...from a distance, of course; she doesn't want to be eaten. Still.

There's no small amount of admiration in her eyes as she watches them.]

They really are amazing...!

two - lagoons;
[Before she goes back to Olympia, she has to stop at the lagoons. Has to. There's no two ways about it. They're one of the things she enjoyed most about the jungle country, and she doesn't know when she'll get the chance to bathe in them again.

The public bathhouses in Olympia are perhaps a little more elegant, but the lagoon has its charm, too.

For now, Yona lounges in one of the public pools, her hair fanning out across the surface of the water and preserving her modesty. But ultimately, a bath is a bath. There's a time and a place for being naked; this is one of them.

So she doesn't really think twice about it when she catches sight of someone's feet at the water's edge - she waves them over with a smile.]

Come in, the water's great!

wildcard;

[If none of the above works for you, just hit me with whatever! I just ask that you let me know when and where it's happening; I can come up with a justification for Yona to be wherever you'd like. Alternatively, hit me up by PM or at hungriest and I'll be glad to write a personalized starter for you.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[That kind of reaction might be cute on a girl a bit younger, but it really just shows off Yona's naivete.]

We're still new here, we ain't in a position to just get our way just because we want it.

[Walking right into a war was more than enough trouble on its own; best to keep their heads down for the time being.]

There's somewhere close by that has some pretty good food. Let's go there.

[It's definitely not going to be the kind of place that Yona would have been allowed to visit back home. It's too dirty, a little overcrowded, and the clientele (and that's a polite word to describe them) weren't friendly. But it wasn't an unsafe place, and it was easy to listen in on gossip and find some quick work. And surprisingly, the food was honestly good, if greasy.]

But it would be better for them if they didn't fight, too...

[Yona just doesn't see the benefits of not getting along with your neighbors, particularly not neighboring countries as close to each other as Olympia and Wyver are.

Nonetheless, she'll let it be - and she'll eagerly follow Shura along to her restaurant of choice. Yona looks around with wide, curious eyes as they enter. ...it's not just back in Kouka that she wouldn't have been allowed in a place like this; Slaine would probably have a heart attack if he knew where she was setting foot right now.

Mephisto might have, too.]

Do you come here very often, Shura?

[It's definitely sketchy, maybe not the kind of place Shura would have taken a girl Yona's age to back home, but things are different now. She had serious concerns about this girl's common sense, and this was a test of that as much as anything else. As soon as they're inside, Shura will quickly raise her hand to Yona's neck, applying a gentle Vulcan Mom Pinch and ducking her head to whisper in her ear.]

Don't say a damn thing about gettin' along in here, kay?

[But now that she's made her point, she'll answer Yona's question.]

It's a good place to hear about jobs. Food's cheap, and it ain't bad. C'mon, let's go sit over there.

[It's an empty table! It's not clean. But hygiene wasn't the reason this place was so popular. Just shove the plates to the side, Yona, it's the only open table. And in a great spot, near enough to other tables that it isn't hard to peep in on the conversations going on.]

Ggk—

[Shura, what the hell. Yona goes tense a the pinch and makes a low noise of distress, but the point is made and taken - she rubs at her neck, looking disgruntled, when her companion lets go.

But she does keep quiet about the idea of getting along.

...she also gives the dirty plates a sort of sidelong glance as they sit down, but she just nudges them out of the way and doesn't make a fuss.]

What's good to eat here?

[At the next table over, there's a group of four or five sketchy-looking men pounding back some beers - one of them drains his glass and raises a hand.

"Next round's on me, lads! I found the easiest source of money this side of the outpost!"]

[Better some preemptive discipline than getting thrown out in the first five seconds. Admittedly, there were probably more gentle ways to go about it than that, but Shura wasn't going to leave any room for misunderstanding.

Entirely too comfortable with this setting, Shura doesn't give the plates a second glance. In fact, she almost looks a little too casual, throwing one around over the back of her chair as she slouches. But she fits in, and sitting like this let's her turn a ear towards the conversation going on close by while still mostly facing her company. Likely, those were full of crap, but it was worth a listen.]

Anything--order the special. Just don't ask what it's made of.

[It was probably poultry. Probably. The waitress is too busy trying to earn tips from the rowdy table to pay attention to them for the time being. Mister~ this and Mister~ that. Jeez, leave them alone, lady. Shura wants to know if they have something legit!]

...the special... okay.

[The waitress isn't here to take their order, so Yona still has some time to come to terms with the idea of not asking what she's going to be putting in her mouth. She's also got time to eavesdrop, and a glance in Shura's direction tells her that she's doing the exact same thing.

On the part of the rowdy, sketchy men, they don't seem to be too worried about being overheard. Or rather, the one doing the talking doesn't; one of his companions tries to shush him, but he pays them no mind.

"When you've got a talent for sniffing out traps like I do ya don't have a thing to fear from that place! Just grabbin' something that looks valuable will net ya a couple hundred silvers if ya take it to the bird man. And since everyone who used ta live there is dead, there's no one to come after ya for thievery!"]

[The guy might be good at sniffing out traps, but he doesn't seem to be too skilled at keeping his own trap shut. Well, those were two separate skill sets...

Shura drums her fingers on the table, taking in the details. The bird man--that was name she had heard tossed around a few places, but she had yet to investigate further. No need to get involved in something she might regret later on so early in her new life.]

The beer ain't half bad here, either.

[Pretend to keep a conversation up, hopefully they won't attract much attention. But even this much was a lead. Grave robbing? Well, she hadn't quite done that, but snooping around wasn't too hard. Maybe it was worth a look-see if the weather was decent...]

Is it?

[Yona leans forward a bit, resting her head in her hands as she makes a point of paying attention to Shura (and not looking at the loud men while she listens to them).]

It's not going to explode all over the place like the first time I tried it, is it?

[The men, meanwhile, are busy drinking away their companion's dirty money.

"I'm tellin' ya, gettin' involved with the Gilded Cage was the best decision I ever made for my wallet."

"But aren't you worried something might go wrong?"

"Pffft. What's he gonna do, tweet at me?"]

No, everythin's on tap here.

[this poor girl... Maybe she shouldn't be encouraging her to drink, but Shura was a safer drinking partner than some of other refugees she's apparently keeping company with.]

They'd open it for you, anyway.

[Gilded Cage. Yeah, she had heard of that, though there was apparently a trick to getting there. Men were monkeys, spilling their secrets like that. But Shura wasn't about to stop their lively hooting about their ill-gotten gains. No--she had some time to spare that afternoon. Maybe she could make some quick silver...

Of course, she's not thinking about pulling Yona into the actual work part. Maybe if one of the exwire girls was with her, but this girl wasn't reliable enough for her. She'd just have to take care of her, which would be a pain.]

[...she doesn't know what "on tap" means but she'll let it be because she doesn't want Shura to think she's any more of an idiot than she already does.]

I see... that's kind of them.

[For her part, Yona's a little more interested in all this than she should be, maybe. She does need to make silver - especially now that Hak an Jae-Ha have both fallen back to sleep (it's unfair to put all of that responsibility on Slaine, even if he'd do it without her asking). And from the sound of things, it doesn't seem that dangerous...

According to the braggart, anyway.

"So how'd you get in there in the first place?"

"It's this place up Namarak Mountain. Easy to get in, and even easier to get around if you're smart about where you step."

"Sounds like there won't be much left then."

"Nah, I'm goin' back soon as I find someone to take with me. There are some secret passages that I was too big to fit through, but if I can find some short brat in need of some coin, I can bribe 'em with a silver or two from my earnings and take the rest for myself once they get me what I need."

Yona frowns at that. Rude. But someone small enough to fit through small passageways...? She could probably do that. She shoots an inquisitive glance Shura's way and tilts her head to the side, considering.]

[yona stop... just admit you're a pampered princess who's trying to be more self-reliant, it's okay...

But Shura can tell what Yona's thinking about, and the answer is a no. At least, a firm no until she gets some booze in her. She barely knew this girl and Yona didn't seem hardy enough for running around in ruined crypts. Sure, the payout might be good, but if Yona got stuck one one of those passageways... Nah.

Shura's just about to tell Yona to stop dreaming when they're finally visited by the waitress after delivering the drinks for their noisy neighbors.]

My friend and I want the special today! Oh, and an ale for me!

[She'll let Yona make the choice on whether or not she wants to risk booze that evening.]

I'll just have water, thank you.

[Yona has learned by now that the judgment of others tends to be impaired when they have alcohol. And so she is definitely going to let Shura drink a bit before she actually brings it up, since she didn't immediately agree when she looked at her.

It's fine, probably.

The waitress nods and hurries off to put in their orders and get their drinks, and Yona settles back in to listen to the rest of the men's conversation.

"What're you going to do if whoever you hire turns on you?"

"They won't. I'd slit their throat first."

"Should you really be saying that so loudly...?"

"Who cares? Half the people here are so sloshed they won't remember a thing they hear come tomorrow."]

[She'll regret not immediately turning her down later; it doesn't take very much for Shura to get drunk, and it's much easier to provoke her or talk her into some kind of scheme when she's tipsy.

But seriously, that guy was going to get stabbed if he kept up that attitude. Maybe not tonight--his buddies seem pretty happy with the booze he's buying, but it wouldn't be long. People were vicious when it came to money. But Shura keeps her mouth shut/]

Heheh, it's prolly better for you to drink somethin' good for you.

[And it meant that if Shura really wanted to get wasted, she could make Yona carry her home! Maybe. Well, Yona probably wasn't the best choice for that, but still. Having a sober friend along usually worked out.]

[Yona beams at her.]

The water here in Wyver tastes really good! I've sort of missed it.

[Olympian water isn't bad, but it's not quite the same. Maybe it's because of the springs out here...? She's really not sure. She'll probably never be sure, if the factions end up fractured enough to keep her from coming to Wyver with any degree of regularity.

All the more reason to do what she can here while she still has the chance to.]

What's your favorite part about this place, Miss Shura?

[She's just gotta keep her talking while they wait for their drinks... since the rowdy men have quieted down for the moment.]

Eh?

[Well, the water wasn't bad. It isn't like Shura drinks a whole lot of it on purpose, but she's had worse.

But what kind of question was that? A decent question, actually, but it's not one that Shura knows how to answer. She's never lived somewhere because she liked it. It was always a matter on convenience or where she was told to go.]

Mm, the weather's better here.

[Sure, humidity sucked, but she'd take a warmer climate any day.]

Mostly, it's where I settled first, so there's really not much more than that.

[Rin was here, and he seemed happy enough. Good enough for Shura.]

That makes sense... it's more familiar for you here than it would be somewhere else.

[All of the connections she's made - save for the ones who chose to go back to Olympia - are here in Wyver. Yona can't really fault Shura for that; she might do the same thing in her place

(Of course, she might do the opposite too, to get away from the humidity. But that's just her.)

Their waitress arrives with their drinks a moment later, and Yona stays silent as she places them on the table, then reaches for her glass to take a long sip.]

Mm... it's just like I remembered.

[Neither place was really more familiar to her, but Shura won't point that out. She'll give a noncommittal grunt in reply.

The beer is a welcome sight for sore eyes, and after thanking the waitress for it, Shura will be quick to down a big gulp before slamming the glass back down on the table. There was nothing better than the first beer of the evening after a hard day of work!]

I'm sure it's good, but this is better~

[definitely, Shura is not as ladylike as Yona...]

...you really like beer, don't you?

[To each their own. Yona isn't exactly a fan, but hey, that just means more beer for Shura! ...and more shenanigans for Yona to get up to under Shura's supervision, once she's wasted enough to agree to it.

Skipping on ahead... some indeterminate number of hours and beers later, Yona finally feels like Shura might just be inebriated enough to not immediately shoot her down. The rowdy men from the next table over are gone, too, so they don't even have to worry about being overheard.]

Hey, Miss Shura... what did you think about what those guys were saying before? About finding artifacts in some kind of crypt to sell?

[It doesn't take long for Shura to get drunk, and maybe after a couple beers, she'll move into drinker some har liquor. Because she doesn't have to go to work after this, okay??

She's moved on from the subject of the crypts since there's probably been something better to talk about. Maybe they saw some cute butts or something. It's only mildly suspicious that Yona brings the crypts back up, and it has Shura pausing mid-sip, raising a brow.]

You're not thinkin' about goin' and gettin' in trouble, are you?

I'm not thinking about getting in trouble, but... it might be a good idea to make some money.

[Gotta eat to live and she's not willing to steal to eat. ...also she wants to buy pretty clothes, so. Y'know.]

I had some friends who were taking care of me, but they're not here anymore. I need to start doing things for myself. This could be a good way to start.

[A good way to start... Shura chokes.]

It's a nasty business, grave robbing. Y'sure you want that to be your first part time job?

[seriously it probably smells like shit in there?? yona dear no...]

It's probably okay... if I wasn't around anymore, I'd want the things I used to have to be of use to someone.

[If she thinks about it that way, going to pick up some heirlooms out of a crypt isn't scary at all.]

And that person before was talking about needing someone who can fit into small spaces... I can do that!

[you're joking right]

Yeaaah, that's not jus' wedging yourself in tight in a little crevice, y'know. You'd probably get claustrophobic jus' stickin' your head in there.

[just go be a cute little waitress or something!!]

[no, she really is that stupid]

No, I won't! I'm not scared of small spaces! ...probably.

[she's never been in them before, actually...]

Pft, you don' even know, but you wanna go climin' 'round in mucky places?

[y o n a wow]

And how are you going to get around all of the traps that might be layin' 'round, huh? If you can't spot 'em, then you're dead.

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