Life is never fair

[Mira Nightingale]

The sky overhead was as clear, blue, and calm as the waters of the large, expansive lake that stretched out in front of her. Mira watched them, her mind totally blank as she stared out at the expanses. That was all she did, stare.

She had come here to escape the hassles of daily life, as usual. She was getting so fed up with it all, every aspect of her restricted, pressured life. She wanted out. And sometimes she even wished that she had never been born into the Nightingale house. Living life as a peasant, a merchant, or a warrior or mage would surely be better than living life as a noble lady. Nobles didn’t get to do anything. It wasn’t fair.

She screamed out loud for a moment, and then let out a whoosh of breath. That had definitely made her feel better, and had taken away some of her stress. With a sigh she carefully gathered her emerald colored skirts around her, and sat down underneath a tree, leaning her back up against the trunk and trying to relax and enjoy the relaxing day ahead of her.

[Verdan]

Verdan was overwhelmed by the amount of action going on in the city. Coming from a town so small it could even be called a village, where almost everyone knew one another it was a very abrupt change. He was tired and came here to enjoy the peace and quiet for a short period of time before going back to the city for further enlightenment of the arts of magic.

As he was wandering down the shoreline of the lake, picking up small pebbles and chucking them into the lake, enjoying the ripples that cascade over the glassy surface of the water, he heard a piercing scream. Alarmed, he sprinted in the general direction of the noise. As he neared the source, all he saw was a young noblewoman calmly resting underneath a tree. Verdan ran up to her, out of breath and bowed slightly.
"Is something wrong milady? I heard a scream and I thought it came from here." he said, his voice quavering with excitement.

[Mira Nightingale]

Watching the lake and letting the wind play with her hair could never be as relaxing as anything else, Mira decided with a small smile as she closed her eyes for a moment just enjoying the sunlight. She knew she’d get scolded when she returned home, whether for leaving again without permission, or for exposing herself to too much sunlight, which could make her skin darker or make her feel faint. Puh-lease. She seriously doubted she would feel weak and exhausted because of a little sunlight. Her parents were ridiculous.

She was abruptly called out of her thoughts when a young man came into her view from another part of the lake. He was sprinting in her direction, although when he saw her he seemed slightly confused. He came to a halt in front of her and bowed, which really wasn’t needed, and then mentioned that he had heard her scream.

Understanding exactly what he meant, Mira couldn’t help but flush slightly, smiling a little sheepishly. “Oh, I’m terribly sorry about that.” she told him, smiling apologetically. “Nothing is wrong at all. I was just… a little stressed.” she explained, hoping her explanation would be enough. She really didn’t want to go into the details of why she was stressed, those details being the restrictions on her life and all the pompous suitors her parents tried to introduce her to.

[Verdan]

Verdan quickly gets his breath back, having spent a weightly part of his childhood running outside with friends. That had brought up his stamina and endurance. At a bit slower rate, he calms down and forces his voice to be level and calm.
"Oh, so it was you..." he says, relief pouring into his eyes.
Hearing the young lady's explanation, Verdan was not quite fulfilled, but seeing her expression, he did not question her any more. He understood that she did not wish to indulge into long, tiring explanations. He bows once more.
"I shall be off now, if I can no longer be of service. I do not wish to disturb your peace and quiet with my presence." Verdan says, beginning to turn around and walk away.

[Mira Nightingale]

“Yes, it was me. I’m sorry for startling you, once again.” she apologized, still slightly embarrassed at how childish she had acted. Then again, if she hadn’t been so stressed she never would have come to the lake and seen exactly how gorgeous it was. She would have blown up at someone at home and gotten scolded, punished to have extra lessons in something awful like crocheting or sewing. Going to the lake and shrieking was vastly preferred over the other solution.

Then, after no longer than a second, the stranger turned around, after bowing again, and began walking away. “No, please,” she started, standing up and shaking out her skirts to remove any dirt that had gotten on them while she was sitting down. “If you don’t mind, stranger, may I accompany you? It’s getting rather boring just sitting around here.”

[Verdan]

As Verdan began walking away, he heard a stirring behind him and a gentle voice asking to accompany him. A noblewoman accompany me? Verdan was slightly flustered by the request. It couldn't be... Nobles are always so stuck up and so ill-treating to commoners like myself. He pauses and does a half-turn to face the lady, his expression mildly doubtful, half-wondering if it was really her who spoke. Seeing that it was indeed her and she was getting up to walk with him, Verdan turned all the way around and replied.

"It would be a great honor to be in your presence, milady." Verdan bows once more.

[Mira Nightingale]

A flicker of doubt, disbelief, and shock passed over the stranger’s face in less than a second. Finally, he schooled his features and bowed to her yet again, saying that her presence would be an honor. “Please, no formalities.” she said with a slight shake of her head, obviously meaning the bowing and continual calling her milady.

After a moment she walked forward, and turned to look at the young man who still hadn’t introduced himself. “Do you have a name, stranger?” she asked him after a moment. “Mine is Mira… and I prefer my name, instead of milady.” she told him, and then continued walking. She was going to walk with him, but he had to actually start walking for that to be a possibility, after all.

[Verdan]

Verdan sees the young woman walking away from him and hurries to catch up. Once he does, he matches her pace and walks alongside her, still slightly shocked he was being accompanied by someone like her. Hearing her telling him to stop with formalities shocks him even more. Nobles usually like all the fancy name-calling. This one was different, Verdan knew. She was very different.

"I'm Verdan, mila-- er, Mira" Verdan wasn't accustomed to calling nobles by their names. He wasn't accustomed to knowing their names at all. "Tis a peasure to meet you."

[Mira Nightingale]

“It’s nice to meet you as well.” Mira said to Verdan, ignoring how he had almost called her by a formal title again. He probably wasn’t used to friendly nobles, because from personal experience she knew that all most cared about was gossip and money. She had always been a little different, never caring about formalities or gossip at all. Constant politeness always made her feel awkward, and gossip always made her feel bad for the person the lies and rumors were about. After her accident she had changed even more, often leaving home for hours on end to be alone and away from her pressured life.

“What brings you here today… Verdan?” she asked him after a long moment. She might as well make small talk, since there was really nothing else to do at the moment.

[Verdan]

Verdan was strolling down the shore alongside Mira, still pondering the fact that this beautiful, young noble was not looking down on him, but actually willingly accompanying him. Lost deep in a train of thought, it was not for a while did he realize that Mira had spoken, and even longer to comprehend what she actually said.

"Pardon me?" he stuttered, caught slightly unawares, "Oh yes, right -er- what brings me here? Nothing of importance. Just taking a break from studies and practice." Verdan replied, getting his stature back. "I'm training to become a mage, you know. And what brings a fine noble like yourself all the way out to this wilderness?" he asked.

[Mira Nightingale]

As Verdan stuttered for a moment, obviously having been lost in his thoughts, Mira didn’t speak as to let him regain his bearings. As he spoke and said he was training to be a mage, Mira’s interest was caught. She had met so many different people as of late- warriors and thieves and orphans. But never yet had she spoken to a mage who practiced the magic she had heard so much about. She didn’t even care that he was in training, being able to do magic always sounded so exciting.

“A mage?” she repeated, looking at him eagerly. “What’s it like? I’ve heard so many tales, but never actually met one. Can you really do… magic?” she asked him, curiosity taking the place of the former gleam in her blue-gray eyes.

“As for myself,” she continued, feeling strangely comfortable speaking to this person that she barely knew, “I was getting away from the daily hassles of life, to put it nicely. Being alone out here makes me feel free, like I have no other obligations.” A thoughtful look passed across her face, but it vanished just as quickly as it had appeared. Being alone all the time without any obligations but to herself made the whole prospect of leaving home seem even more glorious.

[Verdan]

Verdan was slightly taken aback by Mira's sudden peak in interest, though he did not show it. Surely someone like her has met a mage before. On the other hand, Verdan did not know much about nobles, so he had no way of knowing. In addition, this one was full of surprises, so anything was possible.

"Well, it's nothing special, really, being a mage." Verdan says, trying to be modest. "Well, aside from non-spellcasters always gaping at out abilities." He continued onto her next question. "And as for doing magic, it's not so much magic as a strong willpower and a true desire. Of course some heredity is necessary, like in anything. But anyone can do magic if they truly wanted to."

"I myself come from a small village far away," he continued, "where magic is unheard of. Back home, only old wives' tales tell of the power of magic. I, having heard them, learned to do some basic tricks and found that I have a knack for it; so I came here, to Aesir for further training." Verdan fell silent, as to hear Mira's next words.

He found it strange that she was talking to him as if she knew him her whole life. Maybe we knew each other in our past lives... Verdan pondered over the possibility.

[Mira Nightingale]

As Verdan mentioned non-spellcasters gaping at mage’s abilities, she flushed a little. That was exactly what she had been doing, after all. Being always cooped up at home and escorted wherever she went, she didn’t have many chances to speak to other people that she passed, especially the ones wearing armor or mage cloaks. She had always been steered in the other direction; away from the kinds of people she found the most interesting.

“So if I really wanted to, then I could?” she asked him, pondering the thought for a moment. She wasn’t sure if she really wanted to, though. Magic had always seemed so forbidden, so different than what she was used to. But it was interesting. “I honestly don’t think I’d ever have the talent.” A pause, and then, “Could you show me? Something simple, of course… but I’ve never seen any magic before.” She wondered if he’d actually acquiesce to her request, or if he would think her too excited and say no.

“As for Aesir, does it really float in the sky? I’ve never been there, or ever seen it.”

[Verdan]

Verdan, though lost in thought was wary of his surroundings and this time reacted to Mira's words in time. "Of course you could. If you wanted to. Though I don't see that you're too sure of learning the ability to cast spells." Verdan looked at Mira. He could see she was doubtful. She did not truly want the life of a mage. Neither was she sure of her ability.

"I could show you, though something simple is as far as I can get. Maybe sometime in the future, then I shall show you something more exciting." Verdan stopped abruptly in his tracks and started looking around as if he lost something. He walked a few steps toward the lake and picked up a small, round pebble about the size of an acorn. He held it in his hands and stared at it intently.

In his mind, he was visualizing a soft glow radiating from it, concentrating all of his thoughts on that single pebble. The longer he stared, the lighter the pebble seemed to get. Then, gradually, a light began emitting from the stone. It grew brighter and brighter until it illuminated Verdan's whole palm. Verdan blinked. In his hands lay a small pebble, dark as ever. He tossed it up in his hands and caught it, the flung it into the lake as far as he could, sending ripples cascading over the surface.

"The City of Aesir does indeed float in the air, far above the ground." Verdan continued as if nothing happened, resuming his slow pace alongside Mira. "It floats by the power of an Arcane Altar, which I have only heard about. I could take you to the city one day, if you so desire." Verdan offered.

[Mira Nightingale]

“I’m not too sure.” she replied with an absentminded shrug. “I’ve never really believed that magic existed. Like you once did, I only thought of it as an old wives’ tale.” She paused as Verdan said he’d show her, and then she remained silent as he scouted around for something on the ground.

Finding the something, which turned out to be a pebble about the size of an acorn, he stared at it. Mira shifted her weight from one foot to the other as she watched. And then, without any kind of warning, the pebble started shining. Just as suddenly as it started, the pebble darkened and Verdan threw it into the lake. “Do… do you think I could try something like that?” she asked him softly, slowly, hesitantly. Even though she doubted anything at all would happen, everything was worth a try.

Unable to keep the broad grin off her face, she tried to hide it by glancing elsewhere, letting her hair fall in front of her face. Finally able to hold the grin at bay, she looked back at Verdan, her eyes sparkling in excitement. “Would you really?” she asked him, barely able to contain her amazement. “I mean… getting away from home would be an adventure by itself, but I’m sure I could convince my parents that I should be allowed to take a day or two or visit the neighboring city to broaden my horizons.”