Lysandra Tereviel
The elf buried her face into a tome, attempting to absorb the information from the literature. Even if it had nothing to do with anything that she wanted to research, she felt strangely at home in the archives--there was an eerie sense of calm that she felt when she could isolate herself from the rest of the world. Whether out in the wild or lost in a book, pushing herself away from any potential... mishaps was the best way to go.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw someone walking toward her wearing thick wolf pelts--something that seemed rather out of place in a library. The elf ignored this newcomer, assuming that he would be doing his own research as she was; minding one's own business was the norm in a library, so why was he so intent on sitting close to her?
And then, the strangest thing--she saw this newcomer reach into his bag and pull out a small glowing crystal before setting it on the table next to her. She froze, feeling the skin grow cold as her face paled. What was the purpose of this particular action? Did he know about her condition? Could he have seen something at all? Were these new sleeves not nearly as opaque as she had thought? The elf looked down at the fabric of her new robes, a look of panic in her eyes as she found that her clothing was completely opaque. There was no way he could have seen anything, so why did he place a crystal on the table as if he did? The elf cautiously turned toward the newcomer, recognizing the race. She had seen a few of his kind wandering the forests before she began travelling the land in search of answers.
"Hello. Do you mind if I ask you a few questions about you and your people?" the vere asked. The woman in red remembered that the few that had come to their tribe were also wanderers--archivists for their race, they called themselves. They asked all sorts of questions to the various tribesmembers--everything from culture to crafting, from hunting to dancing. She had no idea why the elder members were so open to them in the first place, but she could not imagine what had happened to the information that these past vere had gathered from their tribe. Had they onlynow realized that their information was possibly outdated, or did they perhaps lose their entire record on the elves? In any case, she was in little mood to do any talking, especially to nosy archivists that she thought knew too much already.
"...is this what your kind does?" she asked, avoiding eye contact and trying to keep her voice down as to not draw further attention to herself. This was proving to be somewhat difficult, as a few wandering eyes had followed the wolf-creature for the sheer novelty. She did her best to attempt to keep her voice steady but was finding it more and more difficult to hold back her apprehension. Did she sense fear in her tone now? "Do you always go around asking random passersby for their life stories? What if--"
A loud noise interrupted her train of thought as her attention snapped toward a young girl sitting on the ground, surrounded by a pile of books. After getting a glimpse of the interrupting force, the elf had a sickening revelation: this was the same girl from the market who had thrown herself in front of her to save the familiar that had torn her sleeve! What was she doing here in the archives? Was she spying on her? Had she suspected something and followed her here? If she had been attempting to remain hidden, she had obviously failed; however, how long could she have spent studying her from afar?
Shutting her book and placing it on the table, the elf hastily grabbed the flask from the floor and stood up from table, quickly making use of the distraction created by the fallen girl and ducking around a bookcase out of view of the vere and other onlookers. She could feel her heart pounding in her throat as she ducked out of the archive, frustrated and disappointed that she could not be left alone to her own devices. Why did everyone seem to be so interested in her on this particular day? Why had the fates conspired to make her feel more alone than ever before?
The streets were eerily empty outside the Archive, almost as if something had chased the masses away. The elf did not seem to mind nearly as much, despite the fact that her nerves were still spiraling out of control. She had to keep her cool, though--she couldn't let anyone see her falling apart like this: not here, not now. Once she was outside the city, it wouldn't matter anymore. She would be away from these people and she could get away from this awful place; away from prying eyes and curious noses trying to force themselves into private matters.
You knew this would be a bad idea... Why did you decide to go back when that girl followed you in?
How was I supposed to know that she would want to follow me? What if she wasn't there because of me at all? Maybe she wants to do her own research...
How can you be sure? What about the vere asking questions? Don't you think he was a little bit too eager to get your story?
I was never planning on divulging sensitive information, especially when I don't even know myself... It's not the right time...
Don't you see? It will never be the right time to tell anyone, least of all a vere with no sense of personal space!
...perhaps I was too harsh... If it's what they do--
Does it matter if it's what they do? If they find out about your condition, they'll never leave you alone... No one will ever leave you alone after they find out...
The elf appeared visibly stressed, her face still pale and her pace quickening as she barreled down the empty street. She was so focused on trying to avoid any potential route where people could be hiding. Would it be better to stay out in the open? At least there she would be able to find her way out of the city, but she would draw attention to herself being the only one out and about right now. On the other hand, if she were to duck into an alleyway, she could maintain an element of stealth at the expense of being utterly and hopelessly lost...
Before she could make that decision, she noticed a figure sitting alone in the plaza, the setting sun outlining the silhouette. The most striking feature she noticed were the two cat-like ears atop her head poking out from a cap. She stopped, recognizing this figure from before as the owner of the familiar that had torn the sleeve from her old robes. The elf was about to walk in the opposite direction when she remembered the weight in her hand. The flask! This girl had forced it into her arms after apologizing for the foxarms after apologizing for the fox's behavior! Unfortunate that she had no extra money on her, otherwise the elf would have relinquished the sum given to her.
Slowly, cautiously, the elf made her way toward the girl, keeping her bad arm behind her back and holding the potion with her other. She felt ridiculous, willingly approaching someone that might have actually seen something she shouldn't have. In fact, it had been her ineptitude that caused her to panic in the first place! Shaking aside the negative thoughts, the elf finally approached the girl, unsure of whether she had actually noticed her approach.
"...I believe this belongs to you..." she finally broke the silence, placing the flask on the cobblestone ground next to the frazzled-looking girl.
If she says anything about your arm--
She was too busy trying to run after her familiar!
How can you be too sure? Perhaps she's more observant than you think!
If she has, then I merely turn around and walk away...
You know it's never that simple, right?
Nothing is ever simple anymore...