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Entry tags:

[closed]

Date & Time: 01/24 onwards
Location: civic gardens usually, or just generally out 'n about
Characters: Bariyan e Kodhi (

blacklord), Martin Darkov (

theguideless), Ranka Lee (

symbioses), Koltira Brightdawn (

brightdawn), Ico (

hornedomen) POSSIBLY MORE TO BE ADDED IN THE FUTURE
Summary: Catch-all log for timeswap Bariyan 'n flower shenanigans
Warnings: timeswap Bariyan is weird

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Oh? [Koltira's finding it hard to keep up, here. Bariyan seems to open and close on a dime, as though he both wants and yet also very strongly does not want to share anything about himself. He's cute enough that Koltira doesn't mind, but he's not sure how to navigate--especially since it's rude to just go on and on about yourself, isn't it?

He smirks, shaking his head 'no' again.]

There are a number of us, admittedly, but I'm among the most senior. And I don't like to leave my little brother alone for too long. He's shy with people, but completely reckless in battle.

[His tone is wryly fond as he thinks of Faltora, wonders what he's doing right then. Stumbling over his words to Merriel, most likely.]

[ Flighty. Flighty as his mind races to try and cope, just as it had in the days following Komini's death, but... better than that, in a way. Easier to think about his own impending death than the death of his son, hard as both were to fully accept. Even now.

Bariyan merely laughs. ]

I will hope for his sake that you are returned home soon, then.

I am worried about him ... but being here isn't terrible or anything. In a way, it's a bit like a vacation.

[He eyes the stormy, slate-colored sky.]

A dreary vacation, true, but I've never met so many humans before--and, of course, never from so many different places. I hope I'll remember everything when I'm sent back. If I am.

Oh? And how are you liking humans so far?

[ Bariyan crosses his arms, but the gesture looks nervous on him, as if he's hugging himself. He hadn't made much attempt to interact with the others here, for various reasons of his own. ]

[Koltira's sharp enough to catch that there's something sad and anxious just below the surface of the man beside him. It makes him want to reach out, to offer comfort, but he similarly does not want to press into Bariyan's personal space, to be untoward.

Instead, he just murmurs, his voice warm as he looks back at Bariyan.]

Quite well, in fact. My people live a long time ... they can sometimes lack the vitality and sincerity that comes so easily to humans.

Edited 2013-01-26 21:40 (UTC)

I wouldn't say that sort of thing comes easily to all humans, either. [ Bariyan's smile flickers, but only momentarily. To make up for it, he grins at Koltira. ] You seem quite a bit more vital and sincere than half the people I've met, anyway.

True, not all. But a short life guarantees a little more urgency than most of us tend to possess.

[Koltira scratches his chin, looking sheepish.]

Anyway, I'm young by our reckoning of time, and I'm also somewhat more forthright than the average quel'dorei. Give me a hundred years and I'm sure I'll be just as jaded and myopic as any pampered noble in the city.

[ A hundred years... he wondered what the normal lifespan of the quel'dorei was, in that case. He couldn't imagine living that long.

He sighs, rather more dramatically than needed. ]

That's a depressing way to look at it. Are you sure? I'd hate to see that-- you seem so nice, right now.

Ah, well, maybe I can avoid it, provided I have the right influences around me.

[He leans back against the bench, folding his arms behind his head.] If I am returned to Azeroth, I'll be certain to make a few human friends like you. People who can give me perspective.

[ He reaches out, gives Koltira a friendly pat on the shoulder. ]

See to it. Jaded cynicism is no way to live, not even after a hundred years.

[Aw, what a nice pat. He likes this, but relaxing too much produces another yawn.]

Mmmm ... what about two or three? Some of my people can even go into the thousands ...

Would be a waste of a good two or three or thousand-so years, if they spent most of it bitter and blunted.

[ Bariyan lets his hand linger for a moment, as if to reassure himself that Koltira is still solid and real. Then he pulls away. ]

How old are you, then?

[Koltira don't mind that lingering at all. He sits there, eyes closed, his breathing soft and even.]

Nearly seventy, I think. [He opens one eye, grinning.] You lose track after a while.

Seventy? [ Bariyan raised his eyebrows. You seem much younger than that, is the first thing that comes to mind, but he realizes that it'd be a stupid thing to say.

He looks away, upwards. It'd been raining before but the clouds seem to be coming in heavier now, though it's hard to be sure. He's not used to this sort of weather. He can't predict it very well. He smiles at the sky, vaguely. ]

I wish you many more years, then. It seems you've got a full life ahead of you.

I hope so, but ...

[He laughs, waving his hand in a 'no, no, wait' kind of gesture.]

Like I said, I'm young in my people's eyes. Early adulthood. Roughly ... thirty? To a human lifespan. Somewhere in that ballpark. Our adolescence lasts for decades.

So... am I allowed to think of you as slightly younger than me, then? Does it work like that? [ Bariyan tilts his head towards Koltira. ] I'm thirty-four. Though I'm practically an old man, where I come from.

[Koltira holds up his thumb and forefinger, pinching them together as he replies.]

Very slightly younger, yes, in terms of relative life-spans.

[He tilts his head to one side. He knew that humans had brief lives, but thirty-four as old seems strange to him.]

How many years does the average person typically have?

Edited 2013-01-27 04:19 (UTC)

Hmm... forty. Maybe fifty. With the rate my life's been going, it would have been forty. [ That slips out absent-mindedly, without any real bitterness to it. He's always expected to die young. He's led a fairly stressful life, all things considered. ]

[To Koltira, forty years is the life expectancy of a mayfly. Such a quick, intense flash of time. And 'the way my life's been going'? That's a worrisome statement, too.

He yawns again.]

Say, Bariyan ... how about you let me buy you a drink sometime soon? I think we could both use it.

I'll take you up on that one. I think you're right.

[ Bariyan stretches, arms, legs, rolls his shoulders. Then he stands up, and offers his hand to Koltira. ]

You, however, need a place to sleep. Come with me?

[Ordinarily, he would have waved Bariyan off, as he still doesn't want to impose on anyone. But exhaustion has come upon him like a wave, and so he just nods blearily and acquiesces, taking the offered hand.]

Yes ... all right.

[ Bariyan closes his fingers around Koltira's hand. His grip is strong, firm, and he uses it to pull Koltira up to his feet. ]

I'll take you back to my room. It'll be warm in there, too. Come along, now.

[ He takes a step back, still holding on to Koltira's hand. ]

Your room ...?

[He's pulled along, walking slowly after Bariyan down the street. He realizes that he hasn't had a full night's rest in several days, and it's catching up to him.]

Bariyan, I won't -- [yawns.] -- won't take your bed from you, all right? The floor will do.

If you insist.

[ Bariyan sighs, letting go of Koltira's hand once he's ascertained that the other man can walk on his own. It takes him a bit to figure out how to get back to the apartments; he's still very new to the city, and the search for Koltira earlier had gotten him lost.

But he manages it, in time-- feeling bad about how long it'd taken him, hurrying them up the steps to the room which was apparently his. Once inside, he guides Koltira towards his room. And towards the bed. ]

There. Yours.

[By that time, Koltira is incredibly tired. He protests feebly as he's drawn toward to the bed, but once he's within range of it, he just about collapses.

He sighs, closing his eyes, already drifting off.]

Thank you ...

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blacklord - 2013-01-27 06:40 (UTC) - Expand

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