OOC note: This is part of a series of vignettes that are player inspired, and not directly related to the official storyline.
Special thanks to GM Quillic, and to the players of Yardie, Jaysehn, Alosaka, Yukito and Kalyrra for the use of the children they developed for sideplots.
The scent of petrichor after the recent heavy rain filled Talinvor’s nostrils as he headed toward the lighthouse late in the evening. Pausing near a row of shops, he spent a moment gazing upwards, finding familiar pictures in the pinpricks of light that shone crisp against the black velvet of nighttime. Here, he pulled his peaked hood up to shadow his face and continued his path toward his favorite perch above the town.
Climbing up to the catwalk, he settled himself comfortably with one leg bent and the other dangling over the edge. Licking a finger, he held it up to the breeze in order to access the wind’s direction. Satisfied, he twisted about slightly and drew his flute, testing a few notes quietly to himself. Nodding, he hummed a few bars of a melody and then picked up the song on his platinum instrument. The metallic trill of notes floated across the breeze to be heard across all of Mist Harbor in its hours of silence.
Evening was best he knew, when most of the town was asleep. They would mainly be quiet in their dreams, and thus could hear the cascade of music even in their sleep. The music wafted in through the windows opened to let in the tropical breezes that he harnessed with his magic. He repeated the song again and focused his command through it and felt a half-dozen minds acknowledge in their tranced state. Carefully setting the flute back into his case, he pulled out a flask of bloodwine and a bundle of brown-sugar bacon. Leaning back against the rails, he settled into rewarding himself with a small personal indulgence.
Some time later he started seeing the first bits of folded paper, catching the air as they floated toward him. The first, shaped like a square kite folded at the corners, tipped, swayed and spiraled through the streets and then upwards toward the lighthouse. The second and third shaped like birds all spun and danced in the streets before swirling up and toward the lighthouse where they were caught, and set into a small pile.
It had not all gone unnoticed though. A small girl, with two twin braids was still awake longer than most children her age decided that paper birds flying about in the middle of the night was unusual. And so, she thought to follow where they were coming from and where they may be headed so that she could report back to Yardie and Kalyrra. She was excited to give herself her own mission too, and she stalked amongst the homes and business places of Mist Harbor keeping out of sight as best she could as she peered in windows and watched.
Reaching Greth’s, the girl hesitated. Zofiya frightened her, as the training with Socius gave the teen an air of danger with every glance and every movement. Taking a huge breath, she squeezed her fists and lifted herself on tiptoe to peer inside. Like others, Zofiya was writing information on paper with the quill so forcefully that ink had spattered. Then, pushing out her chair with a bit more ease, she then folded her paper into fourths and walked to the window. Her expression was pained, and her lips were a tight line. Medijine ducked quickly, hoping she wasn’t seen as the giantess opened the window and released her ink stained paper kite to the swirling air that picked it up and carried it away.
The girl with braids fell to the grass below the window with an audible gasp, slapping both hands over her lips and her eyes filling with tears. She knew something wasn’t right, and all the overwhelming emotions of responsibility flooded her small body in that moment. Through watery eyes, she stumbled forward to follow this last particular paper kite, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. Yet she was still a child, and children as we know do not always make the wisest of decisions.
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-player of Talinvor
