Ardent

Boj tensed a little watching her sneak a look at the mists beneath the cliff, relaxing when she returned and drank the water. He hesitated before answering. "We're...seeing the woman in the tower first," he said, motioning with one large, tanned hand to the wasted tower closest to them. "It is always the first place I visit when I come here. We can stay a while, she is a good woman."

He rose slowly, watching her with unusual attentiveness. "Remember. Kind thoughts." Boj placed his hands on her shoulders as he said this, giving her the tiniest shake as if to let the words settle in. "Do not fail this."

Lowering his hands, he looked up to the clouds above, where a faint rumble reverberated in the distance. He frowned at this. "We might be seeing rain. Perhaps we should try to beat it to her home. We don't want to be caught out here if there's a real storm," he said, and after a moment more of thought, began to hurry down the way in the direction of the broken tower.

Rynn nodded as he told her they were visiting the tower. "Okay. I'd be curious to meet someone that lives all the way out here." Rynn said, making sure she agreed with him wholeheartedly mentally as well. He knew exactly what he was doing and she was glad to have that from him.

Rynn held his eyes with intensity as he looked down at her, nodding succintly as he reminded her kind thoughts. "Always my dear friend." She said, no sarcasm in her voice, she sounded quite certain. In all honesty, Boj really was her best friend. He'd helped her when no one else would have, that was certain.

"That sounds very agreeable..." Rynn assented, looking at the sky and sprinting after him to catch up to him. As she caught up, she slowed her pace a little but still kept it fast, quickly approaching the tower.

Each of the two feel a small boost of confidence and energy as a result of the conversation.

As clouds above rolled and rumbled, growing darker and more discomforting by the minute, Boj drew on the extra energy and hurried his pace with a small smile, glancing to her and nodding briefly as if she had done well somehow. Even with their extra energy, they seemed to be reaching the tower fast enough to surprise even Boj. With brows pressed together he observed the ground carefully, as if to catch it crumpling and folding to make the space between the pair and the tower smaller than it should have been. He even thought he did see such a thing once or twice, but in this place it was hard to tell between a trick of the eyes and the truly impossible.

It took them half a day at most to find themselves at the base of the white stone tower, just as the moon was low in the sky and gentle orange sunlight was beginning to trickle in. Boj cast Rynn an unsettled look and stepped inside, his hand moving to an impossibly old door handle and turning it carefully.

The inside of the tower smelled faintly foul, not so much like rot as the dust of age. Inside sat a woman whose hair was matted and tangled, of some northern Tyrisian descent. Upon her lap was perched an owl, who made a pleased noise to mirror his mistress' small smile upon the pair's arrival.

"Boj," she began an an underused voice. "And Rynn. Make yourselves comfortable."

The giant turned slowly towards Rynn, an almost sheepish smile on his face. "Rynn, this is..." he seemed unsure by what name to call her, so the woman answered.

"A friend," she said with a tired smile, her gesturing to the seats she had prepared for them--even dusted--as thunder began to rumble outside and the drizzle began.

Rynn sped up as well, grinning as she felt much happier than she had moments before. Her lithe run helped her keep up with Boj's large strides. AS they approached the tower Rynn felt herself more curious than anxious about meeting the woman. The sky however, did dampen her spirit somewhat, but the quick time they were making pleased her, so overall she was feeling fairly positive.

As they walked inside, Rynn had to stop herself from crinkling her nose up at the smell, but that would be very rude and Rynn was never rude. She looked around curiously, her eyes quickly settling upon the odd woman resting in the tower. Rynn was relieved as the woman smiled at them, at least they were welcome.

Surprised registered on her face as the woman called her by name. "You know me?" She asked, though she really shouldn't be surprised. Anyone that could survive out here likely knew far more than the average Kerrian or Tyrisian. With a smiled Rynn took a seat where instructed too. "It's nice to make your aquaintance. I'd introduce myself but you seem to have that covered." She grinned softly, a kindness to it rather than a mocking in it.

The woman rose slowly from her seat, rolled in furs and feathers to fend off the coldness of the tower--a coldness that seemed almost in spite of the nighttime warmth outside. She busied herself preparing a strange bittersweet tea--likely made from the same waters the pair had drunk from earlier--which she carefully poured for each of them in turn as she answered.

"No, I don't know you, Rynn. Or of you, really. My dear friend here hasn't told you what I am?" she asked, casting him a teasingly scolding look.

Boj smiled a little sheepishly and shrugged, looking to Rynn as he rather awkwardly took the tiny cup of tea and tried to drink it without breaking it, the thin handle all too delicate in his large fingers. "She is a seer, of sorts. Like they have in Bursia."

The woman smiled at this, setting down the cracked teapot and returning to her seat as she scooted the old owl out of her way. "This is true. For example," she began as she added a little more tea to her own cup and sipped it, "the man who pursues you has boarded a ship bound straight for here. Now what shall I tell him when he asks me where you are, hm?"

Boj frowned at the casual question, cupping his china in his hands and brooding silently.

Rynn took the tea, finding the taste quite interesting. Like everything else here, it was unlike anything she'd ever dealt with before. "A seer?ah... that makes sense as to why you were expecting us." She smiled, listening to the woman talk.

"Wait he's coming here?" So much for positive thinking. Rynn's face drained of all color. "He boarded a ship to find me?" He was never going to give, up, she was never going to be free. "Well you can't tell him the truth, I beg of you. If he finds me my life is over. He will take me captive and never let me go." The panic was evident in her voice. Every moment longer she thought about this, she fell into more panic and worry. "Please don't let him find me." Her voice had grown quiet, nearly desperate.

The oracle leaned over and poured Rynn a little more tea as the younger woman panicked. She smiled gently and lifted the pot questioningly to Boj, who shook his head and looked back down to his cup.

"It's possible he won't make it here, or will change his mind, or won't think to ask me, but I would prepare for the likelihood that, as the ship will find me, so will he," she said matter-of-factly, scritching the owl under his chin. "I am no liar, Rynn. Should I lie to you just as much? You seek a very dangerous thing, as does your companion. And there are those--oh, one, especially--who don't wish you to find the thing. Shall I lie to you regarding it, in exchange for lying to him, hm?"

She smiled gently and set the teapot aside, clearly not oblivious to Rynn's panic but entirely unconcerned herself. "You are a great distance ahead of him, the both of you. Oh, yes, the Ardent is fast. Very fast. But you have your friend, and the crew of the ship he flies with...they are not bad people. Though maybe the elves...but that's beside the point, hm? They suffer him only out of courtesy to the queen. Why not try reason?"

The oracle of Kerria leaned forward with a reassuring smile, squeezing Rynn's shoulder gently. "Do not be afraid."

Rynn still watched with wide eyes as the woman spoke, though the tea was calming her. With a sigh she looked up at the woman's gaze after she'd finished. "I Would not want you to be a liar. I just can't have him finding me. But considering we are weeks ahead, at least for now I needn't worry." She said, looking down into her cup for a moment before raising her eyes once more.

"It's a shame good people have to deal with Nathaniel. He is not a nice man." Rynn shook her head, shuddering a little at the thought of him. "And you are right, at least I have Boj to help me. But my question is, you mentioned reason? What reason would work on him? He does not see a woman as a creature to be listened too. In his mind, I was his property the moment my parents agreed to the betrothal." Her eyes held the oracle's gaze, searching desperately for an answer, some solution to the issue at hand. Rynn couldn't believe that Nathaniel was going to such extremes to bring her back. The man clearly was a creature of obssession.

The oracle held up a hand as Rynn spoke. "You do not need to tell me about him. You understand I already know most of this?" she asked, eyes on Rynn. She then smiled gently and shooed the owl from her lap, standing and moving to view the growing storm from her window.

"You misunderstand. While reason will work on nearly anyone--we are all human after all, you really must forget this 'evil' nonsense they teach in those Tyrisian schools of yours..." she chuckled to herself as she leaned over to view with amusement a strike of lightning on a nearby tree. Oddly, the lightning struck close to the tower but never the tower itself. "I referred to reasoning with the Ardent. They seek the same treasure as you, after all. And I...have a feeling they will need help to get it, as will you." She glanced over her shoulder with a small smile at that. Boj only continued to brood.

The oracle turned fully, leaning back against the old window. "But I must tell you this: it is not Nathaniel on that ship who you should be fearing. There is an old man who rides with them, one I know all too well." She looked to Boj, speaking to him instead of Rynn now. Boj sat up in his seat slightly, frowning. "He was with them the last time they were here. They crashed around the same time as you and your wife. It's odd that so many aboard both your ships survived that day, isn't it?"

Boj frowned into his cup. Clearly her question had been on his mind before, but her voicing of it seemed to unsettle him more than even the chaotic landscape around them or the voice-ghosts they had encountered. He remained silent, the oracle's eyes on him.

"Si l'un de vous meurt, je ne suis pas le nettoyer."

Deryn didn't really have enough time to relish in the moments she had caused the Captain to smile, for the repercussions of the scuffle were to come quickly after. It wasn't surprising, behavior like that at his table wasn't something to be proud of but then again it wasn't something she could hold back on and neither could Cas. Those kind of antics were mild compared to their history and could never be erased.

Much like the two disobedient children they were acting like, the elves took the scolding quietly and respectfully. Following almost in precise time with her equally guilty counterpart Deryn gave her words like an apology, "Yes, captain." Although as her dim eyes sat on her lap shamefully she couldn't help smile when the bread was made hers once more. These games were fun, but perhaps acting them outside of his watchful eye would be an intelligent idea.

Taking hold of what was left of the pastry she placed it on the plate before her, eyes glancing down the table as the Innate took a seat, only to be joined by the female prodigy of a gunner. What were the odds that the two would click so easily, most likely high. Deryns fingernails tapped on the table, beating out a pattern of irritation thinking, "What a bother? If mother only knew I was sharing a dining table with one of you..." Rolling her eyes about in her skull her mood was uplifted once again by the close presence of the scholar.

He sat down so sheepishly, and kept ever so stiff in his seat. If she didn't know any better she would assume that he was next to be boiled, sliced and thrown on the table. But it wasn't just him that was quiet, the whole captains table had drawn to a silence. And no, it was not a time for grace... something strange was just in the air.

Looking about; Cas had seemed to be silenced by a mix of what she had consumed and inhaled earlier, the scholar was just... timid and Alcy was tossing a playful stare at something... just what was she staring at? Following the imaginary dotted lines across the table she finally saw what she had her aim on, that disheveled man from before. Deryn was so caught up in the excitement of boarding along with the astonishment of seeing Cas' ghostly face she missed him entirely.

Strange. Who was he? He looked awfully familiar, like she had read about him recently. Reaching behind her to rest her laced fingers behind her neck with elbows pointed out she searched the depths of her mind. Moments passed before it hit her, but no... it couldn't be. The photograph and article she had read regarding the past crew of Ardent was old, but old enough that the mistress time had ravaged him so? This man was none other than her new boss, Cain Nakim. Eyebrows perked at the thought and she smiled to herself, It looks like I'll have to try and be sure to make a good impression on this one. Which could prove to be a task if he felt she was stepping on his toes.

The silence of the table passed for quite some time, and it was getting to the point that it was become quite painful to withstand and Deryn being the kind of elf that doesn't care to waste time her gloved hands hit the table as she raised from her seat. "I think I'm going to take a walk about topside, might bother ya for a game of cards in a while if you're interested Cas." With that offer she nodded her head to Captain Fort and his crew before heading toward the door.

Captain Fort will find that night that someone has had what appears to be a walking stick or an old man's cane delivered to his room, with a note that reads: "Happy birthdays". Presumably, his missed ones.

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The place smelled like old money, a first impression that was impossibly true. Light filtered through imperfect windows, bleached the cracked paint layering the unassuming building. It seemed entirely out of place: one had to wonder what a library was doing in the middle of a windy plain. But the location had been chosen, and a good choice it was, difficult to find and all. Though the wind made the trees shiver and the building creak and groan, and through it would at times find a seam in the wood of the structure and scream shrilly, it was home. Andy had taken a liking to it.

He carefully stepped onto a stool and reached for the highest of the shelves, retrieving one of the introductory books he liked to use. Blowing and shaking the dust free from its cover, he returned his footing to the ground and set it carefully upon the desk. It had been too long since anyone had read it. Andy smiled a little as he lowered himself onto his chair to flip through it--he still had some time before she'd arrive--and thought back to his last student. What had been his name? Some boy, from one of those southern cities if he recalled correctly. Smart kid. A bit willful, but he'd made himself useful in the decade or two since completing his studies.

Andy closed the book carefully and rose back to his feet, smoothing out his worn vest. He'd never get used to all this wood, all this thread, all this paper...something in the window caught his eye and he rose the both of them.

Four riders on horseback a fair distance away, their miniscule figures cupped by the empty vastness of the Coron Valley and the mountains looming over them from behind. Andy squinted, wiping his glasses and wishing he'd had better. A young, light-haired woman accompanied by three men on horseback--the three he'd sent out to retrieve her.

So his student had arrived.

He made his way out of the office and towards the front doors, taking his time and contemplating how to get her settled. There'd never been many women in their number, and he'd never been the best at knowing how to deal with them. And it had been so long since he'd taken a student...Andy nodded to one of the few women in the grand library, what was her name? Skald? Brigit? Some damnable northern name...perhaps he'd ask her to take over. He really didn't see the need to teach every new student. After all, this was his library. Andy had passed whatever-her-name-was but stopped himself and turned, tugging his sleeve down a little as he looked to her.

"One of our potentials passed her last test," he began, his words causing her to look pleasantly surprised. "She'll be here in a few minutes. Prepare a bath for her in one of the spare rooms."

The woman's expression became mixed as she tried to hide her dislike of the order. She was not his servant. Yet Andy returned the half-scowl with a patient, stern stare. "Now, please." She sighed and nodded, putting down her book on mollusks down and heading into the hallway to fetch some heated water. Andy couldn't help but be amused: no matter what wonders he and the others in the library managed, no matter what magic, it still...simple facts could not be ignored. Water could not carry itself. Students could not teach themselves. Technology could not be so easily rebuilt...

A fist began to pound on the door, slow and patient and demanding his attention. Andy sighed and hurried towards the grand doors, pulling them open carefully and greeting the student with a face a little unlike any this side of...anywhere. His face, eyes, nose--all strangely flat, naturally so, but a trait not granted to these northerners, nor any within any distance that might ever be traveled.

Cas' interest was piqued when the scholar--gripping his notebook like a terrified little...mouse-thing--took Deryn's offer and plunged into the seat beside her. The young elf's lips were beginning to rise into a smirk when she recognized him as the expert on wizards. Huh.

She was about to lean over and ask him about them when a familiar smell met her nose. Cain. Her smile instantly became a scowl and she glanced up, the edge of her lip curling. "You should eat elsewhere," she said half-teasingly and half-seriously. "You're spoiling the food." Though her annoyance with his presence had less to do with the scent of coffee and sleep surrounding him and more to do with her wish to avoid being face to face with him. She'd grown more tolerant these past two years, certainly, but she had more than a few incidents involving him she'd rather not have spoil her mood right now. So she'd claim it was the food he was ruining.

Cas' gaze followed Deryn's to the Innate and the redheaded gunner, and she briefly wondered what had caused the expression of dislike on her friend's face before turning to Barasa just as the other elf began to rise and say goodnight.

"I'll join you in a moment, " she said, glancing up at Deryn with a vague smile before looking back to the scholar. Her lips grew wide and wicked. "You, they tell me you know about wizards. You should tell me about them sometime, hm?"

What the oracle said about the Ardent did make much sense. Perhaps they could speak with the captain, she could plead her case, and perhaps he'd keep Nathaniel from getting to her. Although if she knew Nathaniel at all, she knew he'd thought through the explanation of finding her well. Suggested it was a kidnapping, perhaps. Which would incriminate Boj. But Rynn was thinking too difficult and too negatively. Besides, the oracle had changed the subject anyhow.

As she spoke of Boj crashing and his wife, it all clicked. That's what had happened. His wife had died. Thats why he was so distant and cold, so haunted. He had lost a loved one. She would be certain to be more mindful of that in future. Rynn really didn't have much to contribute to this, as the information was clearly sinking into Boj with a sad solemnity.

"This man.... what is to be feared from him?" Rynn asked after a long moment, looking up at the oracle.

Boj kept his eyes on his tea, unwilling to answer his old friend out loud. So the oracle turned to Rynn and answered her question--sort of.

"I cannot tell you, precisely. But know that he can be a dangerous person to oppose, and he seeks the treasure as well. You must not help him, do you understand me? Boj?" The giant glanced up briefly, looking mildly confused at her words but nodding.

"An old man is so dangerous? And if he is so dangerous why is he on the Ardent? I thought they were after it themselves...." Rynn said, fully intending to obey the woman but confused as to what they were really trying to defend against. An old man couldn't be that threatening, could he?

"I understand as well, Rynn added, though her assent was not anywhere near as necessary as his.

Boj excused himself as they spoke, heading into the kitchen. From time to time, the sounds of clinking dinnerware could be heard. The oracle watched him leave with a sad expression before looking to Rynn and regarding her thoughtfully for a long time, after which she shook her head slowly.

"I am very sorry, Rynn Arokit. But all I can tell you is that he is a danger to them as much as you, and they do not know it," she said. The woman looked in the direction of the kitchen before lowering her voice. "He will attempt to sway the Kerrians to his side, for he needs them. Should he meet him, this he will try with Boj as well. You must not allow this to happen, understand? I have told him this, but I fear he will listen to their guide's and forget mine should the time come."

The oracle leaned back in her chair, watching the owl hop across the floor to peck at Rynn's shoe. "This storm is nearly over. The two of you should stay the night: I can give you some advice to avoid these changes, but as you see--" she gestured towards the kitchen, "change will happen either way. My advice takes the form of an unpleasant process. Would you prefer to wait until morning?"

She listened attentively to the woman, her large emerald eyes showing how much she was paying attention. "It's good to be forewarned. I just hope Boj would listen to me. I don't know if he really would. I have no idea why he even came with me on my mad quest." She shook her head, looking back up at the oracle.

"I had no idea how dangerous this would be when I decided to embark on it." Rynn regarded the owl with a quiet curiosity, though nothing more, he wasn't doing any harm. "I never knew that it would be so difficult, but I am thankful to have Boj, I would be dead by now I'm certain." As she spoke about the changes, Rynn's interest was piqued more. "When do they happen, the changes? And how do you mean an unpleasant process?"

In all his awkwardness, the scholar had failed to notice Enris and the young woman join them, perhaps a little too focused on dealing with his own bundle of nerves now that he was presented to a more... abstract group of people. But worse yet, he'd failed to see the somewhat dishevelled looking man sitting on the other side of the table from them, staring. Almost overtly so over his drink. He couldn't really determine the purpose, his thoughts more panicked by the fact that he'd been so out of it that he hadn't even noticed who all, apart from the elves and the captain, were accompanying them. He stared back only out of potential surprise but it flickered as he started feeling uncomfortable by it, unclasping his hands and habitually rubbing the back of his neck, his gaze shuttering down back to the tables surface.

Had be been feeling up to it, he would have introduced himself, but he found it difficult to even force words out of his mouth without expecting it to fall wayside into a loose gibberish. It bothered him how his obnoxious anxiety seemed to pull him from his usually temperate state. His conversation with Enris, after all seemed to have been all too easy compared to now. It probably didn't help that the mood seemed to have quieted down dramatically, no one speaking apart from the quiet chatter from other crewmen sitting elsewhere. Which made him rather grateful when the elf beside him offered to break it, if only to depart moments later. He watched as she got up, but was pulled abruptly to the attention of the remaining elf, something of a wicked grin on her small face.

He blinked. Wizards. Yes, he knew a fair bit about them. More than most could say, he was sure. He'd studied their archives and their old documents to no end, of those he could anyway. Often times he'd found he couldn't read some of the print, either faded with age or undefinable in context, or sometimes even for the fact that the words itself didn't appear to be anything he could fully comprehend. They were a frustrating topic in some cases. Their relationship to the koysqatsi being one of them and the contradictions about it scattered in their writings. But, probably more privy to the one inquiring, he knew a fair bit about their relation to the elves. If not, enough to supply a good deal of information should someone ever seek it.

He shifted awkwardly, trying to find his words now that he was expected to say something, however, “Sure,” was about the only thing he could muster, nodding his head only briefly. He wasn't sure he would be comfortable with the idea at all. But, he was inclined to remain on the better side of the crew, even if it meant reciting old wizard stories to an elf or two. No matter how dangerous or terrifying they were. Besides... if it was one area he could feel confidant in, it was his studies. At least there if he felt threatened he could hide behind his books... for all that would do.

The oracle turned and poured more of the soothing sweet tea for Rynn, her eyes on the redhead. "He was headed here anyway," she answered. "As he has many a time. As for you..." She tilted her head and lifted the pot to her bosom, stroking the cracked china thoughtfully. "It depends, when they happen. They might be sudden, or slow, or something you don't notice until years later. It just depends. As for...my advice. Hm."

She walked towards the kitchen and leaned in, letting the door open a little to reveal a dishwashing Boj. The oracle motioned him in, and he retook his seat. "These changes are more pronounced if your view of yourself is skewed--if you think too highly of yourself, too lowly, don't understand yourself 't'all..." she began, pouring Boj's tea before picking up the owl and sitting back down, stroking its feathers. "The help I offer is an honest view of oneself. It is not always a pleasant thing."

"Well its good to know that I didn't drag him vastly off course from where he was planning to go. So there's no way to tell what is coming then?" Rynn asked, sighing. It was all very frustrating and it was starting to make her anxious. She didn't want to have a stomach made of stone like Boj did.

When he returned, it also made Rynn question what trait of Boj's had led him to have a rock solid stomach. She looked at him for a moment before looking at the woman, and she wondered what he was like before his wife's death. Perhaps he had been warm then? Rynn didn't linger on that for too long however, as she heard the oracle's next words. "I suppose there isn't much choice though then, is there? I can't prevent the changes if I don't know what my flaws are...." She said, somewhat nervously, growing more unsure of herself by the minute. She'd started this journey so confident, but now Rynn didn't know what to think anymore.

The oracle gestured vaguely with one hand, and pet her owl with the other. "You say you don't know what your flaws is. This is an odd thing to say: do you really not know? Most people can at least say some flaw of theirs, even if they aren't willing to look hard at themselves. Is that really what you meant?"

Despite the creaks and groans of the Ardent, Barasa manages to maintain his focus during his sessions with Andy, excitement often bubbling almost obviously as he takes to his notes, often adding details to old documents, crossing out areas of suspicion proven irrelevant or wrong in their context. But it is the times where he watches the older - possibly ancient man – writing his own notes that Barasa shows a great deal of interest, as if he'd seen them before, learning fairly quickly however that the man showed no intent to elaborate. As it's something he comes to learn in general when dealing with the man. But he catches moments, expressions(often a result of the elves) from the man that concern him on some level; a largely developed interest in the reasons behind them.

He poses no questions there however, not wanting to dissuade the guide from his teachings. Even as he teaches him to remain to avoid their attention. He finds this difficult however, being known for his studies on wizards and the like and thus already obtaining more attention than he can warrant. But he heeds Andy's warnings, and remains wary when in the presence of the elves, not wanting to give away his new found standings. He quickly finds, that while he spends precious time making himself unnoticeable enough to keep away from others thoughts, that the longer he's amongst the crew, the harder it is, not only because of his 'mental presence' but because of a requirement to communicate with some of the crew members so as to discourage complete suspicion. It begins to frustrate him on some level, but he manages, fully intent on pressing forward in his secret sessions with Andy.

As he begins to learn the basics he learns much more than he could have imagined, learning how wizarding magic works not only different to the Innate, but on a level he sees as more complex. He understands it nonetheless, but often dwells on it in private moments. Trying to weave pieces together with his knowledge both old and new.

It quickly subsides as he starts heavy into sciences - a realm, while somewhat familiar, takes time for him to understand, often having to hole himself up in his quarters long after, or even before his sessions with Andy just to grasp his previous learnings fully. Nevertheless he pulls through with hard dedicated focus starting to see the world from a much broader perspective, and starting to piece together their relevancy to the answers he seeks.

It does not go without questions however as even studying on his own does not always give him the answers he seeks. He refrains from most however, fully aware that he his unlikely to get much of an answer. Possibly no more than a laugh – as random as he's noted those moments to be.

"When you describe it in that manner, what I said was not what I meant. What I meant is that I do not know which flaws would cause a change. I know that I am brash and overestimate my skills. I've learned that one quite heavily with Boj recently." Rynn said, this one was easy to admit, there was no shame in it for her as she was learning to correct it.

"But there is another." Rynn started, sighing, not wanting to think about it very much "Pride. I have a tendency to believe myself better looking, more important, and more special than I really am. I have snubbed decent men because I felt they weren't worth my time, I have used my charms to make people do things that put them out of a job. I'm certain it runs much deeper than that, but that is a start for you." She said, staring into the tea. She didn't want to look at them.

The oracle nodded and looked to her old friend. "Boj, you've done this already. You should leave, and give us some privacy." He nodded and once again left, but this time for the stairs higher into the tower, taking his pack with him and heading for the guest room.

She turned to Rynn, smiling very faintly: but there was something not quite sinister, but almost predatory in the way she looked at Rynn. Her voice took on a blunt, almost harsh tone.

"You've admitted some of your faults, and not ones that are bullshit endearing traits disguised as faults. Good. That is, in fact, a start," she began, leaning forward and clasping her hands together, eyes hardened on Rynn. "But it doesn't take a Seer to see that's not all. Pride, yes. But worse than that--everyone's proud."

The oracle leaned back in her old chair, stroking the owl as she lazily took shots at Rynn. "Everyone," she went on, "has a skewed view of themselves. Higher than they deserve, or lower than they deserve, it matters not. What matters is how one acts based on that. And you have acted very poorly, my dear."

"You think yourself Queen of Cann, fine. So many do. Yet it is no excuse for how willing you are to use others and toss them aside. How hard would it have been to smile to one of those boys, just once? How difficult was it, truly, not to abuse their affections?" The oracle calmly sipped her tea and went on. "I'm sure you think you've changed. But you're no less willing to rely on the help of strangers for--well, you said yourself you didn't know why Boj was taking you out here. You didn't even know he was coming anyway. Did you stop to consider you might have been abusing his feelings? And you were, though those feelings were not affections and not for you. And what of the woman in Aun, or the number of people who have gone out of their way to assist you? Did you consider what consequences they may now be facing as a result of helping you?"

Once again the oracle calmly sipped her tea, stroking the owl.

"You endanger the lives of the people who help you, whether you realize it or not I do not know. But you do it regardless. You don't think, you just do what you want and let the world pick up the pieces. You insist to yourself you've shirked your nobility yet I don't see you acting all that different. And Boj, I know you're listening. It's very rude."

The embarrassed giant peeked around the door to the stairs, clearing his throat and quietly apologizing before the thud of his large feet on the stairs could be heard going up, up, up...the Seeress turned her gaze back to Rynn with a faint smile.

Rynn listened intently, the words not easy to hear. Not once did she lift her eyes to meet the seer's gaze, unable to stare at the truth in those words. The seer had been right, this certainly wasn't an easy to thing to hear, and the woman's small compliment at the beginning was no salve to the injuries inflicted by the brutal review.

"You are right...." Rynn said quietly, somewhat miserably "I mean of course you're right, you're an oracle. I don't know if I'm supposed to justify my actions to you or just listen to them and suffer on them quietly." She added, unsure of what to say after the painful drilling. What could she really say? There was no excuse, no way to make the sharp words any less true.

"I should have been nicer to them back in Cann, my behavior got me the attention of Nathaniel in the first place, but that doesn't matter, no one really wants to hear about my life story." She said with a bitter laugh, feeling very low on herself at the present moment. "I'm selfish, I don't deserve how people treat me... I don't deserve any of it. " The thick sound of tears was starting to show its way into her words, but Rynn stifled them before they could make it all the way to her eyes. She wasn't going to cry over this, she'd known what would happen, and she'd known her mistakes.

The oracle laughed a little bitterly when Rynn wondered out loud if she was supposed to justify her actions. "No, no one does want to hear your life story. Or anyone else's. Not trying to tell them? That's a good start," she added in a somewhat softer tone as the young woman before her started to choke a little on her tears.

She rose carefully, leaned over and gave her a gentle twice-pat on the cheek, then began to collect the teacups the two had left behind. Motioning towards the stairs to the rooms where Boj had left for, she headed into the kitchen.

"Things won't be too bad, don't you worry," she called out from the kitchen. "Besides, worst comes to worst? I get the feeling you'll get a chance to fix it."

The oracle certainly knew how to be harsh. Laughing as the girl discovered the harsh reality of it all? That seemed a bit over the top, but who knew, maybe Rynn deserved her laughter, though Rynn found it difficult to believe that her sins were the worst this woman had encountered. She did wonder momentarily what the woman had told Boj, he seemed to be fairly lacking in the faults department except for being closed off, but that wasn't the worst fault a person could have.

"Fix it? How? And also... how does knowing this equip me against the changes? What do I have to do? I thought I had to think positively out there, but after this I don't know if I'll be able to be quite so positive. I mean, how can one think positively yet revel in their faults at the same time?" Rynn looked up at the woman, it was clear the girl didn't understand. Rynn had a long way to go, that was certain. She felt like such a stupid child who went too far out into the water and now expected someone to swim out after them.

The oracle sighed as she returned to Rynn's questions, tea all put away. She seemed a little impatient as she sat back down and once again stroked the old owl, resting her chin on her upturned palm.

"Think positively? Well, that gets you part of the way. I suppose Boj told you that, didn't he?" she asked, laughing a little and lazily brushing some dust from her armrest with her fingertips. "How can I put this? Thinking poorly of your friend here--or he of you--is a bad way to start things off here. But unless you have an accurate vision of yourself--unless you know yourself--then you will only be preventing your friend damage as your own body deteriorates."

The oracle tented her fingers, browsed pressed together as she wondered how to explain to this...child...the nature of the place she resided.

"You're not an Innate, I don't suppose you would quite understand my best analogy, would you...? Oh, where do I begin?" She sighed and chuckled a little. "The nature of this place is unnatural. In this place, the laws of nature were made wrong. Stupidly. No, that doesn't work."

Looking a bit annoyed, she rubbed the bridge of her nose and tried again.

"I suppose the simplest way for me to explain this is that we are all innates, in the smallest of ways. Here more than anywhere else. And that is why here, more than anywhere else, it is vital to be careful what you think, just as those who do truly wield that power must be careful what they think. You must think of yourself accurately, or you will change. Do you understand?"