Traveling Fancy [Riko]

[Max Kameren]

10/14

In the wake of the Earthquake and Max’s attack, the Potions Master and the town matched. Both were a wreck, barely standing on their own two feet. Scarred, knocked down, and struggling. But still they carried on. Emerald eyes were skyward as Max meandered through the town, inspecting the damage he’d missed when he was there healing only a few weeks ago. Somehow time had passed so quickly since then. He felt like a new person. A diminished person.

Two days ago Max and Rowena had fought, and three missed outgoing calls later, Max felt helpless about it. He didn’t know what to do; he searched through his mind, looking for something, anything shy of literal stalking to get her to see him again.

It was then that a crazy idea came to him. So crazy it just might work.

Max entered Riko’s Menagie warily, looking around for his old school friend. He wasn’t much of an animal person; Max found his Empathy had an affect on animals but not on him, leaving their reactions to his aura volatile and unpredictable. His uncertainty with animals kept him largely within the city, avoiding smaller towns or countrysides where he may have to interact with a shifty creature. There was a certain animal he did want to finally get comfortable around, however. He’d promised Rowena he would. So here he was, ready to plead with the only other person he knew who could help.

“Riko?” He called out, frowning in wary curiosity as his green eyes moved skyward looking for his friend. If she wasn’t around, he was more than happy to cancel…

[Nuriko]

Customer, customer, customer! Chimed the shrunken heads above the door. They swung crazily, chanting. Customer! Someone's here! There was a bang at the back of the shop and a fourth voice called out, a little hoarse, "We're closed!"

Nuri came to the front, covered in sawdust and plaster, with a bright green bandana protecting her hair. "I said we're--oh it's you Max." The shopkeeper beamed at her friend, dusting herself off with quick movements of her hands. She reached up to tighten the knot on her bandana, turning and heading back to the back as she did. "How are you feeling? You look better, sorry I can't really stop and talk, but if you follow me you can ask whatever ya like."

They reached a back wall which wasn't quite a wall yet, being mostly studs with a short section of drywall up. There was dust everywhere. "What was it you needed?" She started pulling on some leather gloves, tilting her head at Max.

[Max Kameren]

Customer, customer, customer! Chimed the shrunken heads above the door. They swung crazily, chanting. Customer! Someone's here! The chorus over his head made Max jump and he looked around, searching for the voices without an aura. "We're closed!"

“Riko?”

Nuri came to the front, covered in sawdust and plaster, with a bright green bandana protecting her hair. "I said we're--oh it's you Max. How are you feeling? You look better, sorry I can't really stop and talk, but if you follow me you can ask whatever ya like."

Max followed dutifully behind the colorful witch, green eyes scanning his surroundings with interest. “I’m better. I’ll live.”

They reached a back wall which wasn't quite a wall yet, being mostly studs with a short section of drywall up. There was dust everywhere. "What was it you needed?"

“Do you need help?” Max gestured at the wall. The state of Nuri’s shop post-earthquake distracted him from his initial reason for visiting. He entirely didn’t mind being distracted; he dreaded the idea of learning to ride a horse anyway, whatever he could do to put it off he would. Max’s hand still wasn’t ready for smaller projects like writing or potions crafting, but he could definitely hold things!

[Nuriko]

“Do you need help?” Max gestured at the wall.

Nuriko paused, then directed another of her award winning smiles at her friend. "Oh would you? I've had to force Rupert to take a day off, the poor dear, and Will's gone to get more supplies." It didn't even occur to her she'd been working just as much as Rupert. She pointed to a pile of sheetrock, picking up a pile of screws with her other hand.

"If you'd be a dear, I need this held here," she sketched out an area of the wall. Once Max had it up, she went about directing the screws to search out the stud beneath and start screwing themselves in. Soon enough that section was done and Nuri lifted a brow at her friend. "What are you afraid of?"

[Max Kameren]

“Do you need help?” Max gestured at the wall.

Riko’s smile coaxed one out of Max. It didn’t take Empathy; she had that effect on everyone. "Oh would you? I've had to force Rupert to take a day off, the poor dear, and Will's gone to get more supplies. If you'd be a dear, I need this held here," she sketched out an area of the wall.

Max dutifully picked up the sheetrock Riko pointed out for him and held it where she directed, his green eyes following as she lined up the screws and set them to their studs. When the section finished they moved on, Max grabbing the next sheet to hold as Nuriko directed. “Shop’s going well I see…”

"What are you afraid of?"

Losing Rowena. The answer came to him in a snap of instinct and his brow furrowed. Since their fight two days ago Max’s heart progressed in peaks and valleys. He would be better for a while, then something would remind him of his frayed relationship and his aura would nosedive again.

“Horses.” He forced himself to snap out of it, holding up the sheetrock for her to line up the screws again. “Well I’m not afraid of them per se, just don’t know anything about them. Ro – uh,” He paused again as the image of his girlfriend in tears flashed through his mind “she wanted to ride horses. I’ve never ridden a horse in my life and was hoping you could help me keep from looking like a total idiot.” He smiled, glancing at his friend with a faraway look. “Just don’t want to fall off or get… bitten? Do horses bite?”

[Nuriko]

Shop’s going well I see…”

"What are you afraid of?"

“Horses.” He forced himself to snap out of it, holding up the sheetrock for her to line up the screws again. “Well I’m not afraid of them per se, just don’t know anything about them. Ro – uh,” He paused again as the image of his girlfriend in tears flashed through his mind “she wanted to ride horses. I’ve never ridden a horse in my life and was hoping you could help me keep from looking like a total idiot.” He smiled, glancing at his friend with a faraway look. “Just don’t want to fall off or get… bitten? Do horses bite?”

Nuriko gave him a look, wondering if she should ask about the sad look on her friend's face. He must really have it bad for this Ro. She had seemed like a nice enough person, ultimately being a good sport about Nuri putting her to work clearing debris when she had come for endurance training. They finished another sheet when she finally spoke.

"Yes, horses bite, its a fact of life. I'll help ya but just so you know not even the smartest horse is as smart as my aerions." She smiled at his dismay, "buck up laddo, you guys can always come here to ride if you're too afraid of her horses." She wiped sweat off her face, taking a few breaths. "I promise you'll be OK, just trust me! We can go out after Will gets back, if you like."

[William Anderson]

Customer, Customer, Customer



"I am not a customer." the voice called out to the shrunken heads as Will swung the door back closed. He glanced up at the heads as they had swung about -- they honestly wierded him out a bit. It was strange...but hell, this was magic--there wasn't much that wouldn't be considered strange. He shrugged. That was neither here nor there. He had a lightening charm on some dry wall and several containers of various screws and nails and things of the sort in his hands as he carefully made his way to the area where Nuriko, Rupert and he had been working. Will was really grateful for Nuriko offering him this job at her shop. He had kind of been wandering around for the last couple of months and unsure as to what to do, but she was helping him regain somewhat a sense of normalcy...even if he didn't think he'd even get back to where he was before the flux. He shook his head. That was another thought for another time. There was no time to think about such things right now.

Now he had to focus on not knocking the dry wall into anything or anyone. It was a balancing act to say the least, but he had managed it. He wasn't sure how he managed it but he had. He walked into the room that they were currently fixing. It had just been him and Nuriko today. She and Rupert had been working their tails off. She had sent him home to rest and honestly -- she should probably be doing the same as much as she had been at it, but there was no stopping the shop owner. Will admired that. 

"Hey Nuriko, I got the supplies you wanted me to get. Heads up." he brought the dry wall in and used the charm to gently lay the pieces on the floor. He then sat the buckets down. Whew! That stuff was heavier then he had thought it would be. Maybe it was just because he had to walk from point A to point B? He was just glad he had made it. He then saw the other and he knew he had seen the other before but for some odd reason, names were just not sticking with him as of late. He was getting good at recognizing faces, but usually he was just as good at remembering names. Now? Not so much. It was kind of embarrassing but he had to just roll with it -- as was true with a lot of things lately, 

"Opps. Sorry I didn't see you there. Did I just barge in on a conversation here?" 

[Max Kameren]

"Yes, horses bite, its a fact of life. I'll help ya but just so you know not even the smartest horse is as smart as my aerions." Max’s heavy shoulders lightened a bit with the reassurance of his friend. He slowly smiled, pushing himself off the wall to inspect it for more work to be done. "buck up laddo, you guys can always come here to ride if you're too afraid of her horses."

“Starting with smarter might be better, actually. Animals’ knee-jerk reaction to hate me will be easier to manage if I start out on a higher-level creature, right?” He chuckled with the question, letting his depression ebb away so as not to put a burden on Riko. She was doing him a favor, he didn’t want to impose more than he already was.

"I promise you'll be OK, just trust me! We can go out after Will gets back, if you like."

"Hey Nuriko, I got the supplies you wanted me to get. Heads up." A man Max could only assume was Will suddenly entered; Max shrank backwards to avoid the path of his charmed drywall, green eyes following it along its path. A warm waft of confused recognition radiated off the man and Max concurred; he definitely had met him before at some point, but they hadn’t spoken or he would remember his aura more clearly. The Watch, perhaps? "Oops. Sorry I didn't see you there. Did I just barge in on a conversation here?"

“Oh, no barging. You must be Will? I’m Max,” the Healer held out a hand to shake on instinct, remembered his four-fingered and bandaged hand and thought better of it, replacing his hand at his side and nodding instead. “Pleasure.”

[Nuriko]

“Starting with smarter might be better, actually. Animals’ knee-jerk reaction to hate me will be easier to manage if I start out on a higher-level creature, right?”

“I’m sure animals don’t actually hate you,” Nuri laughed along as they finished up the last sheet. The wall was really beginning to resemble a wall. She was happy to have a wall between the shop and the back space.

"I promise you'll be OK, just trust me! We can go out after Will gets back, if you like."

"Hey Nuriko, I got the supplies you wanted me to get. Heads up. Oops. Sorry I didn't see you there. Did I just barge in on a conversation here?"

“Oh, no barging. You must be Will? I’m Max,”

Nuri settled the supplies as the two men managed introductions. Once that was done she turned to Max again. “Well?” she challenged, raising a brow up at him. Merlin but he was tall! She looked at Will. “Wanna come Will? You haven’t met the aerions yet, have ya?”