ioduanlogs | bring me some hope

Entry tags:

bring me some hope

Characters: Trahearne and Bastien
Date: June 1st
Location: At the beach
Situation: Bastien has invited him to a picnic date, and Trahearne is cautiously optimistic.
Warnings: None

Doing something new always brought with it some measure of nerves, and Trahearne was no exception to this rule. Their planned date was casual enough, but just knowing it was a date was enough to make him feel a little anxious. Perhaps that was a good thing, as it helped make Trahearne acceptably punctual when he showed up at the location Bastien had given him (after waiting five minutes telling himself that being early was probably a bad idea, because these impressions mattered, didn't they?). Tossed over his right shoulder was a knitted blanket in tropical tones of blue and green, and a wicker basket hanging off of his opposite arm that was full of the various odd-looking fruits that could be found in Aifaran.

Perhaps there were odd circumstances behind their first meeting, but Trahearne had still been looking forward to this. Never mind that he hadn't been on a date in a while, but when had he last been so free of obligations? For the first time since he could remember, Trahearne had no concerns on his mind beyond how their date might go. There was no Wyld Hunt prickling at the back of his mind, no impending trips to a dead land, no Elder Dragons to fight, and no army to organize. Bastien would have his full attention, for better or for worse.

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Guess who's already at the beach taking a sip of wine? One certain rambunctious pirate with the happiest little grin upon his face. Bastien already cracked open the bottle and plopped himself upon the sand for an early munch. He keeps his eyes peeled for his handsomely green date. The pirate is so eager to see Trahearne. Very eager. While the nature of their meeting was odd, Bastien regrets nothing. He's just moderately surprised the green bean agreed to it.

"Bonsooooir~" He cheers merrily once he sees his tall green companion. The wine is nice and cold! Chilled, even!" Bastien hops up onto his feet looking quite spiffy in a pair of pale khakis and a simple but almost flowy white shirt. His signature leather boots are resting not too far from the picnic basket filled with delights.

"Hope you like assortment, Trae-luv." A nickname. Bastien loves giving folks nicknames. "Mostly veggies and meats but I got us some tasty cheeses too."

Trahearne lifted a hand in greeting as he approached the waiting pirate, unable to help but smile. "Good evening, Bastien. I see you came well prepared." It was quite possibly more food than they could eat, but that was a minor concern. He was quite curious to see what Bastien thought of the strange food the city had to offer, like the fruits he'd brought along. Trahearne wasn't entirely unfamiliar with such things after over four months of living here, even if the fare at the Dreaming Bridge was usually what was simple or just easy to make.

He stepped over to set his basket down next to Bastien's, looking him over with more of a quirked smile. "It's good to see you. I hope you've been well since we last spoke - and keeping out of trouble." There's a note of teasing in his tone; he's not serious, or at least he's not expecting a serious answer.

Bastien's grin matches Trahearne's almost perfectly. They're both grinning, awkwardly but grinning. Though, the pirate boasts more self confidence. "Lookin' spiffy, mate." He says with his usual infectious cheer. "You came sportin' all kinds of bizarre treats, eh?" He squints at some of the goodies Trahearne brought along,

"Aw, I'm tryin' to keep my nose clean." Bastien says with a laugh. "I'm a rascal but I know my limits!" He smiles happily as he reaches for the blanket. "Come, come! Let us get settled while the evening is young." He glances over his shoulder with a grin, his eyes turned towards the illuminated horizon.

"We missin' the sunset!" The affectionate excitement in his tone is almost childish in a way but also wistful. "Sun up or sun down, I like seein' it come and go."

"I'd say you're far more appropriately dressed," Trahearne commented a bit awkwardly. After all, he was still in his typical leaves, even if they were perhaps a little glossier than the last time they met, the heat and humidity of the summer months well-suiting his foliage. The one downside to growing his own clothes was that changing one's style involved a lot of planning and pruning.

"We'd best get set up before we miss any more of it." He kept hold of one end of the blanket while Bastien took the other, helping him to get it spread out evenly on the sand. "Being a sailor must have given you ample opportunity to see it often. Is the sunset here much different from the ones you've experienced before?" Like with most of his questions, Trahearne was genuinely curious. He was well-traveled compared to your typical sylvari, yet he hadn't spent much of that time on the sea.

Now that he thinks about it, Trahearne does look rather glossy right now. Maybe it's an trick of the eye or something but Trahearne looks positively radiant. It makes Bastien grin even more so. "True but your love for foliage is quite charming." He teases once they get settled. Bastien was about to dig in when the question catches him by surprise.

"Not much different at all, actually." Bastien answers once he turns his gaze towards Trahearne. "But that is what amuses me most. No matter how different the world becomes or how strange it turns, the sunset always remains the same. Your only friend out there in the sea is the cosmos. The stars guides, the moon spies and the sun strides. I like watching the coming and going of the day, it's the only way we truly experience time." Bastien gives Trahearne a somewhat bashful grin after that poetic moment.

"Eh, never mind. I'm just oddly sentimental about it."

Trahearne sat cross-legged on the blanket, peeking into the picnic basket before turning his gaze back to Bastien, seeming a bit surprised.

"That's a beautiful way of looking at it. There is something about the sunset that can make even the busiest person slow down to take it all in, if only for a moment." Trahearne took a brief moment to place between them the four different fruits he had brought to their picnic, along with a paring knife. "It's quite a romantic lifestyle you lead, when you can honestly say you're guided by the stars. I can see why so many are drawn to living on the sea. ... But while the sunset may be similar, the stars here look nothing like the ones at home. You may have found one of the few things that hasn't changed."

The pirate nods. "That's right. The sun is the only thing that stands constant. Not even the moon is the same here and the stars are all so...different." Bastien explains as he fetches one of those odd looking fruit. He bravely picks one up with bizarre leathery skin with a chuckle.

"Despite living all my life as some rowdy pirate, I admit this new world oddly fascinates and scares me." He says with a deep sigh. "I can't read the stars here, I can't...navigate. I have to relearn what I always knew and adapt but I'm scared." Bastien reaches for paring knife with a sigh.

"I feel like a coward."

Edited 2018-06-03 08:15 (UTC)

Trahearne listened with a small frown, before reaching out to put a hand on Bastien's arm. "I didn't mean to discourage you. Try to not lose heart. Aifaran itself still operates much the same as any other city, and its people are still people, even if they might look strange and have foreign customs."

He then drew his hand back with a small, almost sheepish smile. "I wasn't very fond of this world when I arrived, either. I still think my being here might be some kind of mistake. But you'll grow more accustomed to this place in time. There's a wonderful library, should you wish to read up on how navigation is conducted here. I myself spent most of my first month reading about this world's magic and how their planar system works."

The gentleman hand upon his arm honestly goes unnoticed. Bastien is so wrapped up in his thoughts right but Trahearne's kind words are felt. "No matter how odd, this world still fascinates me." He smiles at his date, the doubt within his gaze easing some. "I want to learn as much as I can about Aifaran, I just need to stop pitying myself and do it," The pirate gives his usual trademark grin in order to conceal his doubts.

"Maybe going to the library would be the best start." He ought read up about the history of this strange world while he can. There's much Bastien needs to learn, including magic. "You're...comfortable with magic, right?" Bastien questions curiously. "How much have you learned, Trahearne? Is it...dangerous?" Magic is obviously a touchy subject for the pirate but he's curious.

"I would certainly recommend it. Aside from the books there, the librarians seem quite accustomed to fielding questions from other Dreamfolk like us."

Trahearne busied himself with unpacking some of the food in the picnic basket as he considered how to respond. Given how startled Bastien had been to hear he was a necromancer, it seemed like this question might need a light touch. "Any tool can be dangerous. I can tell you that the magic on my world has been tested and perfected over hundreds of years. I specialize in necromancy, but I'm also well-versed in the basic foundations of magic. "

He breaks off a small piece of one of the cheeses Bastien had brought along, adding as if it were an afterthought, "I should say that other than our Talents, the magic on this world is generally quite subtle. The Dreamfolk are unusual in that regard."

A chuckle escapes Bastien as he cuts into the fruit he grabbed. The insides are a bright red, almost like a watermelon but the seeds are like that of a citrus fruit. An odd combination but no a deterrent for the hungry pirate. Bastien takes a healthy bite.

"Mhm!" The surprise in his tone is telling. "This is good!" He takes a few more bites as he listens intently to Trahearne. "And you only use such power for good, right? All that magic mumbo jumbo stuff." Bastien is definitely a little nervous about this topic but he's curious. "Really? How subtle? I heard from one bloke that some of us can make stuff explode!" Of course it was meant in jest but Bastien doesn't know any better.

"I wonder what power I have." He peeps down at the tattoo upon his right wrist. "Hey, Trahearne." Bastien peeks at him. "Where's your mark?"

Trahearne smiled as he watched Bastien enjoy the fruit, not at all minding the questions. He could likely talk for hours if prompted to do so. "Well, yes, you could say I use my magic that way. I studied it to understand how to counter and destroy undead creatures. It has also been quite useful when I must fight. As for your question, the sources I looked at mentioned uses like very slowly changing the landscape. Something like that would barely be considered a talent on my world."

Taking a bite of the cheese, he gave a pleased hum before casting a curious glance at Bastien's wrist. He had caught glimpses of it before, but had always before been far too distracted to get a good look. "Mine is on my lower chest," he said, tapping a spot located at the base of his sternum. "Those symbols on the tattoos seem to represent what kind of Talents we have. Knowing that would be a good start to finding out."

The Undead. Bastien couldn't help the shiver that raced down his spine. Dead men tell no tales but they murder instead. There's been rumors about a band of pirates cursed by Aztec gold sailing the seven seas. As the story goes, a mutiny took place and all hell broke loose several days later. He doesn't know the details but the ship sailed with a black ominous flag.

"The Undead don't have any business being alive." Bastien mutters to himself as he keeps snacking. "I heard of a ship that was full of undead sailors who were swept up in a curse. It was called the Black Pearl, the fastest ship in the Seven Seas." He sure hopes that the Black Pearl and her wicked crew doesn't show up here. Aifarian might be in danger if they do.

"Slowly changing the landscape?" The pirate scratches his head curiously. "Eh? Like how? Decoratin' it with more green or somethin'?" A chuckle escapes Bastien as he smiles at Trahearne. "That's an odd as heck talent, right? I guess if I had a power, I would want the power of unlimited luck. Imagine being complete square with Lady Luck, Trae-luv." His grin widens in more. "There wouldn't be anything couldn't do!"

"Ah. So everyone gets tattoos in different places?" Bastien scoots over to Trahearne in hopes of catching a peek at his tattoo. However, he's a little too close for comfort now. The nosy pirate is just being nosy and maybe a tad flirty.

"You got leaves everywhere!" He laughs. "Like a little fern."

Trahearne's expression darkened as Bastien spoke of undead sailors. There'd been something similar in Orr, sunken ships dredged up from the bottom of the sea and full of Risen. Those ships had been deadly opponents, and that it at all existed in another form somewhere else was quite troublesome.

But then Bastien moves in quite close to him, and Trahearne pauses in the middle of slicing off a piece of sausage to pair with the cheese. "Well, ah - you're right, affecting something as nebulous as luck would certainly be powerful." The leaves that composed Trahearne's chestpiece were on the stiff side, but flexible, overlapping each other closely. Getting a glimpse would be nigh impossible without resorting to some pruning.

"I believe everyone has theirs in different locations, but I also haven't gone around asking them about it. That'd be a little too questionable, I think."

In no time flat, Bastien's messing around with Trahearne pretty foliage to get a glimpse of that tattoo. A tad rude, no? Just a little but even in his invasive nature, he's quite gentle. Rather surprisingly since he's a pirate and they're not a gentle lot. "Questionable, eh? More questionable than these odd symbols?" He smiles up at Trahearne as he strokes the stiff leaves with mild fascination.

"More questionable than you? You're an oddity in your own right, friend." The pirate says aa he pulls his hands away. He smiles pretty at Trahearne, just grinning at him. There's awkward silence for a moment before Bastien suddenly reaches for the wine. "Sorry, mate. Sometimes I can't believe you're real. You're the most unique fella I ever seen." There's true sincerity in his reply, both sincerity and awe.

"Oh! I didn't ask if you liked the food! I hope you enjoyed the cheese."

Trahearne is starting to get an odd look on his face as Bastien messes with his leafy clothes, but he also doesn't protest or try to stop him. It's possible to pull away the leaves far enough to get a peek down his chestpiece at his slightly shimmery Restoration tattoo, but what he's lacking might be equally notable. Trahearne doesn't have nipples. He's all smooth bark there, the shape of his chest formed by leaf-like impressions and outlined by faint patterns resembling the veins of a plant.

"Bastien. I meant questionable in the 'invading privacy' sense, not just that it's odd." There's a note of amusement in his tone, though, and Trahearne is smiling back as he reaches over to pat the poor pirate's shoulder. "If only I could show you my world, you'd see that I'm not as unique as you think. I just stand out quite a bit here. I do still appreciate your... honesty about how you feel." The more he thought about it, the more he liked it. With another sylvari, Trahearne could easily know what they were feeling, but it didn't work that way with any other race. It made him appreciate all the more that Bastien wasn't trying to hide anything.

"And I did enjoy the food quite a bit... though I wouldn't mind taking a taste of that wine."

The tattoos don't match. Bastien glances down at his wrist briefly with a frown. They definitely don't match. This sudden discovery asks more questions than it answers. Bastien is no closer in discovering the nature of his talent. He simply can't figure it out since almost everyone have something different etched upon their flesh. This is frustrating but he's trying not to dwell on it.

Though, he feels a little bashful now after rudely accosting his date with his questing fingers. Bastien promptly stops and would've scooted away if Trahearne didn't pat his shoulder. The touch makes him smile some but he notes the lack of warmth in the touch. "You're unique to me." Bastien says with a kind smile. "Even if I was to see your world and meet others like you, I think I would still prefer you." He chuckles a little when Trahearne asks for the wine.

"Ah! Have at, mate." Bastien grabs the neck of the bottle and presents it to Trahearne with unnecessary flourish. "For you, Trae-luv! Don't drink it too fast."

Trahearne took the wine from him with a visible flare of his bioluminescence. The further the sun dipped below the horizon, the more his natural purple glow slowly became brighter in response to the lack of light. It still wasn't nearly dark enough for any of his blushing to go unnoticed.

"You truly mean that, don't you? You're a rare sort, Bastien. It's not often that I meet anyone as genuine as you are." Trahearne took a small swig out of the bottle, as delicately as he good manage. The taste wasn't quite what he was expecting, but it was still quite good. Much like with the rest of Aifaran's fare, he'd have to grow used to it.

"Will you tell me more about yourself?" Setting the bottle in front of them, Trahearne gave him another small smile. "There's still quite a bit that we don't know about each other. I'm quite curious to know how it is that a pirate captain can be so kind. Most of the pirates I've ever known of were either ruthless combatants or just ruthless businessmen."

Bastien can't help but grin from ear to ear. "Who says I can't be kind and ruthless, hm?" He teases with a merry chuckle. "But it seems you found me out! My mother raised me to be a 'good boy' but I had other plans." A wistful smile lingers upon his lips as he thinks of his dear mother. "My father was a pirate according to mum but she was a mermaid. An honest to God mermaid, an actual siren." Bastien mutters that last bit quietly as he munches on some more food. His thoughts are a little jumbled now, almost garbled. It's difficult for him to speak about his mother, especially since he misses her so much.

"The mermaids are known to be beautiful sea maidens who pull helpless sailors to a watery grave but instead of killing my father, she fell in love." Bastien explains tersely. "I was raised in Singapore, the busiest country of all of South Asia. When I was old enough to work, I started off as a mere cabin boy for various ships before eventually trying my hand at piracy." A little smirk dances on his lips now. This odd little tale is bound to pick up.

"Poverty is second nature in Singapore. Only the strong survives while the weak die. When I first got into piracy, I did it for only the riches but soon, I found myself wanting to make a difference."

... Well, that was a good point about being kind and ruthless at the same time, but Trahearne keeps his thoughts on that to himself. He didn't want to think that he might be setting himself up for disappointment, not when everything else had been going so well.

Trahearne's attention hardly wavers while he listens to Bastien. He might be eating while he listens, but that can't distract him away from a story about another world, particularly with those details. The tale of his parents seemed equally as interesting, though it was hard to imagine that a creature as beautiful as a mermaid was at the same time so hostile as to drown people. It put him in mind of roses, whose beauty could blind the eager or the unwary against seeing their thorns.

"So you're technically half human?" he observed. "Not only are you uniquely suited to sailing, it seems to run in your family. Were you ever able to make a difference? It sounds like that'd be quite difficult in an environment like that."

"Yep, only half-human."

Bastien gives a nod, his gaze resting on Trahearne briefly before glancing up at the sky. He looks as pretty as a picture right now with his long flowing hair swaying in the wind. Pirates aren't suppose to be pretty. They're suppose to be cutthroats who'll kill a man for just looking at them the wrong way but Bastien seems to be the polar opposite. Odd, no? Definitely. It's almost as if Bastien is pretending to be a pirate than anything else. Certainly seems like it.

"I don't know." He answers the second question honestly with a deep sigh. "To be honest, I don't think I done anything right. I stole from the rich, gave to the poor...but it didn't seem to make any difference." A frown lingers upon Bastien's lips as he ponders this.

"My deeds were like a drop in a bucket. Not enough to fill it."

Frowning a little himself, Trahearne reached over to put a hand on Bastien's shoulder. "I know what it's like to be faced with a task that seems impossible. It takes no small amount of perseverance to remain on that path. Perhaps giving to the poor didn't seem to make a difference, but even a small amount of help can make someone stronger. You were still doing good, Bastien."

That did relieve his fears quite a bit. Yes, robbery wasn't the best way of going about it, but just because sylvari were essentially hippies didn't mean that Trahearne was completely unfamiliar with how the world worked. He did, in fact, occasionally poke his head out from his books to take in what was happening around him. Poverty hadn't been quite so severe in Tyria, but it still existed, particularly between humans fleeing warfronts or charr veterans and gladium that could no longer fight.

"There may even be a better solution that you just haven't discovered yet. That's very much like what happened to me."

That gentle hand upon his shoulder is met with a catlike nuzzle. Bastien rubs his cheek against Trahearne's knuckles with a faint smile. While he silently notes that the sylvari's hands feel a tad cold, he welcomes the touch anyway. It's then that Bastien realizes just how attention starved he really is."That's all I wanted." He mutters quietly. "Was to do...some good in that sad bleak world. Just an ounce of it but I barely could do that." Bastien sighs.

"I got caught up in the glory, you know? Caught up in my own legend, my own diluted sense of grandeur." There's a tinge of sadness in his eyes that is barely concealed by the approach of night. "I hope you had better fortune, Trae-luv. You got a better head on your shoulders and all." He reaches for the necromancer's hand and kisses it.

"For once the heroes in these sad little tales ought to win, no?"

That gesture makes Trahearne break out into a smile, his glow briefly flaring up. He squeezed Bastien's hand in return, seeming unwilling to let go now. "No hero wins without a struggle. Or without sacrifice."

He's briefly silent before he says, "I spent nearly my entire life working on a single problem. You see, sylvari don't have childhoods. We're born fully formed, but before we emerge from our pods, we experience something we call the Dream. It's a reflection of the world, where we learn about it, and see distant places or past events. Sometimes, the Dream gives a sylvari an important task to complete. We call this a 'Wyld Hunt', something we simply know we're called to do. It buzzes at the back of your mind, always prodding you towards accomplishing it. I was born with a Wyld Hunt that asked me to cleanse the dragon corruption on the land of Orr. ... This was widely regarded as being perhaps the most difficult Wyld Hunt to ever be asked of anyone. Even my sister who was called to destroy the dragon had a more tangible goal in mind. For many years, I didn't even know where to start."

Bastien doesn't mind them holding hands. Not at all. If anything, he likes that Trahearne is that comfortable with him. It means he's doing something right. So he entwines his calloused fingers around Trahearne's green digits as they speak further. This little picnic out on the beach is more rewarding than he thought it would be.

"The Wyld Hunt, eh?" The pirate repeats with a sense of awe. "Leave it to you to dream of purging the world of monsters." He mutters jokingly before quieting down. Bastien watches as Trahearne speaks, his eyes filled with that near innocent wonder as he speaks about the sylvari. "Why were you gifted with such a daunting task?" He questions suddenly.

"I would've been scared out of my wits, mate. That's a tall order." Bastien says as he starts caressing Traehearne's hand in hopes of chasing away any unsavory thoughts. "You found a way, didn't you? A way to purge the corruption, I mean."

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