RP:Charge!
Summary: Meri encounters a pixie named Aoife, who is giving lessons to children. Shenanigans occur, followed by some questions on what it is that Aoife teaches.
Abandoned Archery Range
Aoife stood like a tiny, hard faced drill sergeant among her newest students. Though these were quite a bit more enthusiastic, and quite a bit younger, than her usual pupils. The pixie had appropriated a rock as a pulpit and stood with her feet together and her hands on her unusually wide hips as she surveyed the work of a small gaggle of children slinging stones at the archery dummies. It had the air of children leading other children, even if Aoife was clearly no child. For one thing, children were never quite that full figured and leggy. For another, children lacked glittering gossamer wings as a general rule. But her high, almost bell-chime like voice, only strengthened the image of childish play. No matter how seriously the kids took her instructions when she called out. “Put your power in your shoulder, Joanne!” Even the way the pixie held her arm out, swishing her finger through the air like a sword was serious and severe enough that it only made the whole situation seem that much less severe and serious.
Meri used to frequent the Kelay-Sage area on a regular basis, as she used to reside only a short distance south of this location. Now any time she spent within this area is usually prompted by some sort of need. Maybe that need was that she was just passing through to one of the many other cities within the lands, or maybe she was here to visit one of the local Kelay vendors. Whatever the reason was, it ended with Meri traveling through these forests to enjoy a bit of archery practice before she traveled back home. While Meri is currently traveling on foot, she does not need to be, for the woman is clutching the reins of a horse and a gray mare plods along just behind Meri. Riding on the back of that gray mare is an owl, who has been tethered to the reins of the horse just in case the bird is spooked and it decides to try and fly away. The sounds of children in training may put a bit of a hinderance on Meri's plans to get some shooting in, but she does not flee the scene. She continues to make her approach until she can get a clear view, stopping a distance away to watch and observe. It was Aoife that Meri's blue-eyed gaze lingered on the longest, to the point that Meri was staring. Was that a child? A teen? An adult? Meri has not met many pixies in her day.
Aoife only noticed Meri by happenstance as one of the children did a common blunder and misgudged their grip, sending a small stone flying backwards instead of forwards. Which just happened to send it tumbling over towards Meri to land at her feet. Which, with Aoife following the curve of the stone, lead to the Pixie catching the woman staring. She looking back for a moment. Her smooth child-like face featuring a rather immature looking pout. Though not for long. Quickly, a small smirk tugged the corners of her mouth into a full-lipped smile and Aoife raised her arm to point right at Meri. “An adult!” She called out, alerting the gaggle of children and causing them to turn around to stare right back at the woman! “Get 'em!” She trilled, clearly suppressing laughter. The kids, of course, found such a command most agreeable and charged! Their voices raised in a mixture of laughter and battle-cries.
Meri does not know what is happening! Alright. Meri actually has a full understanding of what is happening, just not why Aoife would do this to her. The blonde goes wide-eyed as the kids charge at her. Kadence, the mare, is a bit on the skittish side and so Meri does not want this gaggle of children ending up getting underfoot and thus stomped on. Meri could be ruthless, but even she had her boundaries...and seeing children harmed was one of those off-limits things. So! Meri does the only rational thing that she can think of. The lycan woman issues her own battle cry and also charges forward to meet the children, effectively distancing herself from Kadence, who was definitely showing signs that she did not approve of all this ruckus. When Meri and the children meet somewhere in the middle? The blonde will do absolutely nothing. The kids are going to be allowed to have a field day and get to kick some adult butt.
Aoife did... something. It wasn't quite clear what. But she did something with her hands behind her back and winked conspiratorially at the horse. Which, for whatever inscrutable reason, seemed to calm the poor creature down perfectly. Enough that the mare barely seemed bothered when the children only cried out louder in response to Meri's counter charge and leapt at her. The wouldn't actually hurt the woman, of course, so much as just... wrestle her and clamber all over her in that way that was unique to monkeys and younger children. It wasn't until the enemy was downed that the commander stepped down from her rock-podium and marched over to the site of the battle with a spring in her step. “Hut!” She called out, causing the children to stand up and triumphantly stand at attention around their downed prey. Though their timing was far from even and their ideas of what 'standing at attention' meant was hardly uniform.
Meri :: Kadence is calmed, and the timing could not be more perfect, for the horse would have really reacted to seeing her person pulled to the earth by a group of kids. The children could climb and wrestle to their hearts content and Meri would "struggle" against their efforts. Aoife calls off the troops but even as they slowly begin to 'stand at attention', Meri keeps her rear planted upon the earth. A bit of a smirk pulls at her red lips for a split second but her amusement is masked so that she can feign exhaustion, as if the children had absolutely bested her. "Gosh you are all such fearsome fighters," look at Meri, being so nice to the children. She should get a gold star right about now. "You all definitely kicked my butt. I don't know what would have happened if it were not for your friend there." Meri winks to Aoife. "The name is Meri. And you all are....?" Admittedly Meri was more curious who Aoife was, but she couldn't just go ignoring the children. Not after that little spectacle.
Aoife nodded to her troops and let them introduce themselves one at a time. Each more proud than the last and doing their best impression of a soldier shouting out their name while at attention and – in their mind – covered to the gils in medals and honors. There was Gil, Joanne, Fredrik, Bill and more. After a while it became hard to remember the names as the last few overwrote the memory of the first. Aoife, however, didn't introduce herself. Instead she said; “At ease and dismissed! Go tell your parents of your heroics today.” And then she stood saluting the children as they happily ran off, still giddy with their victory.
Meri :: The fact that Aoife did not provide her name did not escape Meri’s attention, nor did it deter her from prying. If anything, it had much the opposite effect. Meri was pushing herself up to her feet and taking a moment to brush off any bits of dirt and grass from herself. Not that it fully mattered? For she ended up just dusting her hands off on the pants that just tried to free of dirt and debris. It was all a bit circular, but Meri gave up on her efforts to compose herself after wiping her hands on her pants. The children run off but Meri does not move back to her horse to make her own departure, instead she steps closer to Aoife with a hand extended. It’s a mostly clean hand. It’s not like Aoife saw Meri spitting on the appendage or anything. What’s a bit of dirt? Meri is about to launch a slew of questions at the pixie, “Sorry, I don’t think I caught your name. What was it? And are those...your students? What subjects do you teach? To what sort age range?” Meri’s own daughter was still too young, but there was a reason the blonde was so interested.
Aoife didn't take the hand. Though she somehow manages to soften the snub with what appeared to be an edge of curiosity. She slowly rose into the air and circled Meri in a wide circle. Her own hands behind her back. “Hua Po Aoife of the scattered petals.” She finally answered a question, drifting off towards the animals instead. She rested both her hands on the horses muzzle in a calming, affectionate gesture. Even though her face was seemingly stuck in a permanent and petty frown. As if she was sulking. “They're just children. I gave them some quick lessons, since they were practicing anyway.” Her airy voice really did not suit her disinterested tone. “I teach the Breath, usually from birth.” The equivalent of a swords-master spotting children playing with sticks.
Meri took the snub in stride, a bit of a smirk curving at her red lips as a direct result. The blonde has put up with worse. Aoife circles around the woman and Meri’s gaze trails after the pixie, she did not know this woman and was never keen on strangers shifting to positions that she couldn’t see them fully. Nothing happens though and Aoife drifts closer to the animals, prompting Meri to follow. “You teach breathing? Usually from birth?” The psion is confused, clearly. “I thought that...you know...kids just sort of did that naturally….?” Meri’s brow furrow together but the expression does not last, she instead dug into the pack that rested upon Kadence’s back so that she could retrieve an apple and a small dagger. The weapon is not wielded in a menacing fashion, at least not toward Aoife. That apple is about to get it though! It’s sliced right on up so that Meri can present a few sizable chunks toward Aoife. “It’s her favorite. Her name is Kadence. And the owl…? I have not named him yet. I will once we spend a bit more time in each other’s company.” Kadence has seen the apple, she can also smell the apple. She will be devastated if Aoife does not accept the offered treat and absolutely heartbroken if the pixie does not give the mare those apple slices.
Aoife wasn't that kind of heartbreaker. She does take the apple slices and goes about feeding them to the horse one by one. Still keeping up that strange mixture of apparent affection for the animal while everything about her – save her direct actions – spoke of a near antisocial level of disinterest and a mood nearer to sulking than anything else. “Anyone can breathe. But very few are good at it.” She finally explained, “Just like anyone can swing a sword, but you wouldn't call them blademasters.”
Meri did not put much thought into the air of disinterest that Aoife was presenting. It was noticed, but the pixie still opted to linger in the area, and so Meri took that as some amount of interest. The remains of the apple are placed on Kadence’s saddle, along with the dagger that Meri used to slice it. Just in case Aoife needed more treats. “You speak in riddles, or maybe I am just not smart enough to understand what you are saying.” The blonde smirks as the insult she lodges at herself. “I would like to say I understood your meaning. I don’t. Not fully. Just your point that not everyone can claim to be a blademaster.” While the blonde speaks with Aoife, she also works to free her bow and quiver from where they have been secured upon her horse. It didn’t take much effort for Meri to get both into her possession, she intentionally made them easily accessible during travel. Just in case. “Which is exactly why I am here today, to be honest.” Meri motions to the target area with a toss of her chin. “Since the children have gone home, it seems to be like the area is fair game for claiming now. Unless you had plans for more lessons…?”
Aoife me shrugged, idly. “It's the sort of thing that's hard to explain and easy to show.” She said, without making any motion or attempt to go about showing Meri. Instead she laid her forehead against the horses long face for a moment before drifting backwards and away from the animal, her arms and legs slightly spread and trailing as if she was floating through water. She made a vague gesture in the general direction of the dummies, “Go ahead. I won't stop you.” The 'lessons' hadn't been planned in the first place anyway.
Meri presses red lips together for a moment, disappointed in the answer she is given. The blonde was starting to pick up on the fact that Aoife was adept at answering questions without answering them. Even getting a name took a bit of effort! The blonde regards Aoife with a thoughtful look, half contemplating if she even wanted to move away from the pixie and her horse to begin a bit of archery practice. What was the pixie woman even doing right now? The only reason that the blonde decides to assume a position an appropriate distance in front of a target is that she is -pretty sure- that the unfamiliar woman was a bit of an animal lover and that neither the horse nor the owl would be harmed. “Isn’t that how it usually goes? Harder to explain, easier to show…” Meri says before retrieving an arrow from the quiver and lining up her first shot. Honestly, the lycan has practiced with her bow enough that she’s a solid shot. If anything, today’s session was to help make sure that she did not get rusty, also to blow off a bit of steam. It was hard for the woman to fully focus though, her blue-eyes kept shifting away from her target and back toward Aoife, trying to keep an eye on what the pixie is doing with her horse.
Aoife smiled very slightly at that observation. She'd expected a different answer but that one seemed to suit her just fine. She didn't do anything more to the horse but actually floated all the way away to the rock she'd been standing on before. Settling down on it with her legs folded under her, both her feet nestled into the crooks of her legs in a way few could actually manage. She took a breath, and seemed to draw in all the world with it. The inhalation and the rising of her chest somehow in sync with the breeze blowing through the trees. Some unknown energy or spirit within all things living around her – Including Meri – drawn towards her, instinct prompting the two animals to turn their heads towards the pixie as if drawn in, identifying with their own kind. An absolute calm fell around the small woman, a near perfect tranquility. All was motion, heartbeats, thoughts and the chaos of life and through that... harmony.
Meri :: The number of glances that Meri steals toward Aoife decrease when the other woman distances herself from her horse. At least Meri’s concern could be taken as a sign that she actually valued and loved the creature, the horse was not just some beast of burden to her...even if she was carrying a bulk of Meri’s gear. With Meri being less focused on the pixie, she can devote more of her attention to going through the motions of pulling out an arrow, knocking it, taking aim, and firing at her target. One might expect that at some point the woman would have to cross the range so that she can pull her arrows out of her target, the psion takes a different approach to accomplishing this. Her telekinetic abilities are employed so that it seems as though the arrows are pulled free from the targets by some unseen hand and then dropped to the earth in a pile. At some point during her target practice, Meri also finds her attention being pulled toward Aoife with enough force that the blonde lowers her bow to the earth. She’s admiring...with a bit of jealousy…how Aoife was currently looking, perched on the rock and calm. The psion in her would benefit from learning a bit of that calm, the wolf in her usually prevented that and clouded her mind with anger. “If only,” Meri murmurs more to herself.
Aoife exhaled to much the same effect. Her hands resting idly in her lap and her eyes on Meri as she practiced her archery. … Not that she looked elsewhere when the psion stopped practicing archery. The pixie didn't do anything dramatic, the rapidly deepening bond between her and everything else didn't seem to serve any purpose other than existing in the first place. She didn't say anything but raised her eyebrows in an implied question at Meri's murmured words.
Meri is not quick to pick up her bow and return to her practice. Her bow remains stilled, resting idly at her side and clutched in one hand. There were times where Meri was able to still her tongue, keeping her questions to herself, but this was not a moment that she felt inclined to do so. “Is that what you mean when you practice breathing? Like uh...meditation and stuff?” The lycan was still confused, but intrigued enough that she was trying to make an effort to understand. The archery range would be here, Meri could come out and practice at any time, who knows when she and Aoife would cross paths again. Meri was determined to try and be a little bit less confused, pixie willing.
Aoife shrugged. It wasn't really the sort of thing you'd expect from someone at the center of what appeared to be a supernatural phenomenon of one-ness by way of the circle of life and the sphere of nature to do. Didn't stop her though, apparently. “And stuff.” She agreed, “The Breath is the spirit. All things that live also breathe, in one way or another. It's becoming one with everything.” A vague explanation, but still an attempt at one. And maybe it couldn't get much clearer than that.
Meri did not interpret Aoife’s answer as vague. The blonde just assumed she was speaking on some next level, deep topic that the psion could only dream of understanding. Becoming one with everything? The blonde begins to articulate her thoughts, rather than internalizing them, “Like. Everything? And all at once?” Both brows are lifting now. “Or like everything in a certain radius?” Meri presses her lips together for a moment, thinking really hard. Look, the psion is not always the brightest but she’s trying her hardest, but her brain fizzles out and completely fails her. “I’m not really sure I understand what the benefit to being connected to everything is.”
Aoife tilted her head slightly, brow furrowed. “As much as you can handle at once, I guess.” So both? Let's say both. “Everything is connected. How much of that you can actually tap into is a matter of skill and how much ego you've got.” That got far more concrete very quickly. And it was about to get still more concrete. “Besides the benefits to the spirit...” she started, slowly standing up. “Being able to connect with and understand the creatures and the world around you...” And like that her calming the horse down so easily had a lot of context to explain it. “When you are connected to everything, everything is connected to you. And you can use that connection.” She leapt of the rock into an arc well over Meri's head, twisting in mid air as her head came forwards and down and her feet came up and then continued that circle until she landed in a crouch, one leg coming down in a wide arc like an axe-kick to land with her heel against the ground. Only for the earth several meters away to explode up and outwards as if the druergar had left a bomb there that only now saw fit to detonate. Except, of course, they hadn't.
Meri attempted to follow along as best as Meri could. There were certainly some points that were resonating with the psion, and some others that she accepted might just be over her head. She had a deeper understanding than she did only moments ago though. Aoife might even see that light bulb finally going off above Meri’s head. Aoife leaps off the rock and over Meri’s head and the blonde holds her ground during this display, though her blue eyes do trail after Aoife throughout it all. When Aoife’s heel connects with the air and an explosion occurs meters away, Meri’s eyes widen. The expression was not one of fear, but Meri had not expected such results and was both thoroughly surprised and impressed. And while the blonde was adept at masking and mimicking emotions, this time the expression was a sincere one. Meri issues a low whistle before speaking,“Niiiiice, you might be a shortie but I don’t really think I want to tangle with you any time soon. I feel like you would leave...just a few marks.” Meri smirks.
Aoife stood up in a smooth motion, her arms over her head and her fingers knit together in a leisurely and entirely unnecessary stretch. “Only as short as I choose to be.” He said, very helpfully. Or at least as much so as Aoife usually got. “Besides, everything includes yourself. There's obvious benefits to knowing yourself and your body properly.” She didn't bother expounding on what those were, but then she'd just said she considered them obvious. So go figure. The admission of not wanting to do the knuckle-tango with Aoife drew the tug of a smile at her childish frown in a way that, so far, only siccing a gaggle of children onto the psion had before.
Meri met Aoife’s smile with one of her own, the blonde’s gaze eventually turning up to the sky to judge how much time she has spent in the clearing. “Ah, at some point here, I am going to have to head on out and pick my own kid up,” Meri determines and declares after doing her best to judge the time of day. An announcement Meri is going to prepare for by moving to collect the arrows that have been grounded in front of the target, her bow and quiver are hauled along with her during this short walk. “But I’ve got one last question for you before I hit the road. Can anyone do what you do…?” Meri motions toward the rock, with the calm. “Or is it like, almost like a club, where only certain people can do it. You know...only some people get to be mages and only some people get to be necromancers?” With her final inquiry posed, Meri deposits her arrows back into the quiver. She’d examine them later to see if they were suitable for reuse, or if they had taken damage during her brief practice session.
Aoife seemed confused by the question, if anything. “But anyone can learn magic?” She pointed out, as if refuting Meri's assertion that only some could become mages or necromancers. “Since anything that's alive has the breath, anything that's alive can learn to breather right.” She went on, moving past the apparent point of confusion. “It'd be hard to teach your horse, though.” She added, that small smile of hers widening a little. But also growing more wicked. “But I might manage it.” She added, pinging her chin with two fingers.
Meri was equally confused, to the point that Aoife has just about blown her mind with this assertion. “Huh…I thought…” Meri shakes her head, “Nevermind. I have a feeling this topic of conversation would lead us both down a completely new rabbit hole. And, well. Kid. Single mom life.” The blonde issues a shrug, now taking her belongings toward her horse so that she can load up. For her departure, Meri actually climbs up onto the back of the gray mare so that she could make better time for the return home. “But I’m not going to lie. I’m curious. I’d like to meet with you again. If you can manage to teach my horse, I am sure you can manage to teach me too. Though she is much smarter than I am…” Meri smirks, giving Kadence’s rein a gentle tug as an indicator of the direction they were going to travel in. The mare turns accordingly. “If you are open to it, maybe we can speak again when I travel out this direction?”
Aoife raised one hand into the air. Two fingers held up in some foreign gesture or greeting. “Come by beat up my student sometime and we'll talk.” She said, rather matter-of-factly. She didn't exactly seem excited by the prospect but she wasn't fully back to her anti-social tone from earlier either. Rather than watch Meri leave, the pixie climbed onto her rock and took another breath.