Late Arrival

[Sablerose]

Sablerose collapsed on her bed, every muscle sighing with relief. Greystreak, her Druidical familiar in the form of a wolf was at least as tired. Given their adventure with their new friend, Nerys, she was lucky to have made it before the gates were closed completely for the evening. Though she would not have minded sleeping at an inn or in the woods again (she was a Druid, after all), the thought of a real, soft bed was more than enough to push her to make it.

Greystreak huffed out a wolf sigh of his own. Thankfully, the quarters that they had been given had thought to include a soft pad for him to lay on. Admittedly, his claws could tear it to shreds easily, but Greystreak was no ordinary wolf. He was more intelligent then many humans, to be frank. He was careful to leave his claws off as much as he could manage.

This is paradise, he said through their link with a mental sigh. I am thankful that we have a few days before you need to present yourself to the Royal Family here. I can use the rest.

"So can I," Calla confessed in a mutter. "Gods, I'm used to riding Nightwind, but the trip here has to be the longest ride we've ever done. I'm saddlesore in places that I didn't think that could occur. I'm looking forward to a long soak in a hot bath."

At least you get that option, Greystreak stated with a canine snort. I pity the servant that will have to give me a bath. I don't think any of them have ever tried to wash a dog, much less a wolf.

"Just remember not to shake all the water off once they finish," she said, grinning at the image of water flying in all directions. "I don't think that they would appreciate a room made sodden by your attempts to dry yourself, Grey."

Please give me some credit for having dignity ,my dear. I might be a wolf in form, but I have better manners than some humans, yourself included at times.

[Toph Bei Fong]

Toph had been on the way to her own room when her bare feet slapped against stone floor just outside of Sablerose's room, and she froze in her tracks, the hem of her sari dancing about her ankles before coming to stop.

Doors were kind of a non-issue to the blind earthbender, especially in a place like Sapphis Castle, whcih seemed to be composed of at least 95% stone. Her earth-sight granted her true 360 degree vision whenever she took a step, though she rarely focused on all of it at any given time. The doors that separated the hallways from the room might as well not have been there; she could still 'see' into any room she passed. She didn't mean to pry, and in truth she would have been happier had she not 'seen' some of the things she had so far (there had been that one time she had passed the room of two viera guests 'entertaining' what she was pretty sure had been a small human/orge half-breed. That one was going to stay with her for sometime, she was sure).

Once in a while, however, she did perceive something worth a little accidental breech in privacy. She turned to face the closed door that led to Sable's room, though she had no idea who it belonged to just then. On the other side of the door were two puzzles. The fuzzy outline of a wolf was one thing she noticed, most likely separated from the floor by some kind of padding. It didn't act like any wolf she had ever felt before. It seemed tame, like a faithful dog, but Toph spent enough time in the wild to know a wolf when she felt one. In any event, it was neither a threat, nor the thing that had brought her to a sudden halt.

That belonged to the strange, floating presence she felt in the room where the bed should have been.

Toph had been born blind, and though she knew words like 'glowing' or 'aura' or 'green', she had no context for them and didn't truly know what they meant. She was at a complete loss at to explain or describe what her 'sight was reporting to her. Instead of the usual outlines and shapes filling her otherwise pitch black world, she could make out, plain as anything, the outline of a woman, glowing with a green aura, hovering a few feet off the ground. That had to mean she was laying on the bed, separated from the ground a wooden bed frame and a thick mattress. Toph should not have been able to see her at all. But there she was.

The young baroness suddenly felt as though she were six years old again, when she had frist been taught how to 'see' with her earthbending by the badgermoles. The same sense of wonder, excitement a touch of fear permeated her now. A lifetime of cautionand cynicism flew out the window, and regardless of the late hour, she raised her hand and knocked on the door. Loudly.

[Sablerose]

Calla. Calla!

She wasn't aware that she had fallen asleep, much less just how long she had been drowsing when Grey's voice drew her back to consciousness.

"Huh?" she asked sleepily.

There's a barefooted woman at the door. Her knocking seems rather insistent. So, before she knocks the door off its hinges, would you please answer it?

The Druid rolled over from her back to her side with a loud groan. Part of her wanted to tell the wolf familiar to answer it himself, but she knew that he preferred to be underestimated. He had no problem with people knowing he was a familiar and, therefore, not exactly a normal member of his species. It was just how talented he was as a familiar that he liked to keep under wraps.

So, despite her body arguing that it would much rather be back sleeping, Calla managed to get off the bed and rise to her feet. Since the familiar did not seem to think that their visitor was a threat -he would never had suggested opening the door to her, if he had- Calla did not worry too much about grabbing a weapon. Still, she wished that her body and mind were a bit more awake than they were.

"Yes, I'm coming," she called out as she made her way to the door. Though it was possible it was a servant coming to see if the Princess of Laurelmoon needed anything, said Princess doubted it. So, whoever it was had been have had a bloody good reason to come so late.

She unlocked the door and swung it open. On the other side, she found a rather odd sight. A woman who towered over her by just shy of a foot. She was, Greystreak had stated, barefoot. Calla guessed that he could hear her feet as they slapped on the bare stone. Tanned and well-muscled for her size, the woman was also surprisingly attractive in a down-to-earth manner. Callouses were evident on her hands, but her clothing showed that she was quite well off. Then there were her eyes, a grey-green, including where the whites would be. Whoever she was, the woman was not a servant of the castle.

She heard Greystreak rise to his feet, seemingly unconcerned. Where are your manners, Calla? he chided mildly. There was a bit of humor behind the reprimand, though.

"Yes, can I help you?" Calla asked as politely as she could muster, given her exhausted state.

[Toph Bei Fong]

Toph fascination only increased as the floating woman slid from the bed like a sack of potatoes and it was only then that Toph remembered how late it was. But by then it was too late, the person (?) was already crossing the room toward the door, her wolf rising to its feet.

Now that the other woman was touching the ground Toph could 'see' her properly. She was almost as tall as Toph, but slimmer in some places. She felt -- well lean was the best word Toph could think to describe her figure. Lean in the way a deer might be, appearing sleek and soft to those with sight, all hiding the hidden strength within.

But the interesting thing for Toph, and what caused her to gasp as the door was thrown open, was her face. Normally, Toph could make out the gneral shape of a person's head, but never their facial expressions. But with the odd glow that she perceived from this person, she could make out quite clearly the shape of Sable's nose, her cheekbones, even the bags under her exhausted eyes.

Toph heard the question without hearing it. Instead of answering she blurted out in a stunned whisper: "What...are you?"

[Sablerose]

What...are you?

Of all the possible questions that Calla could have anticipated, this was not one of them. Even Grey seemed taken aback, given the confusion in his mind. He was more on guard now, though it was only showing in his stretching and yawning, showing his teeth. Calla was a bit on edge as well. And given the questions bluntness, she decided that the answer should be just as blunt.

"A tired traveler who you awoke to ask this question," she replied, putting a bit of an edge to her voice. "Now, shall we try this again, this time providing a bit more information in the question?" Calla could feel a mixture of annoyance and humor at his Ward's answer. The wolf liked to remind her that she was a Crown Princess whenever it seemed she forgot, but in this case, he seemed to be willing to ignore her slip of royal veneer.

[Toph Bei Fong]

Toph had not realized that she had been raising her hand to touch Calla's face until the other woman's sharp reply made her freeze, her hands dropping back to her side well short of their goal.

Gaia, I saw her lips move, Toph thought. I've never seen that before!

Normally, no one could speak to Toph Bei Fong with such a tone of voice and not walk away with at least a shiner. In truth, it did blunt her sense of wonder just a bit, but enough of it remained to stay her hand. She did finally remember to pay attention to her normal earth-sight, and could feel the irritated tension radiating though the woman's body, and her wolf pet as well.

"I'm... sorry," Toph apologized, slipping effortlessly into her 'baroness voice'. "Its just that... well... I can see you." She waved a hand towards her face, indicating her cloudy, useless eyes. "I was born blind," she explained, "and although I've found ways to deal with that, I've never..." she struggled with words, another Toph first. "My world has always been dark," she tried agian. "That's not complaint or a lament or anything, just a statement of fact. But just now, I was walking past this room... and I could see you. You're... glowing. I think that's the right word. I've never seen something glow before, but... here you are."

[Sablerose]

If the question had caught her off guard, the woman's answer would have swept Calla's feet out from under her. It certainly was not one she would have expected. She had not seen the hand coming up, possibly to touch her face. Greystreak had, though, yet he had not responded defensively. It seemed that both of them were stunned by the admission.

"You'll have to pardon my rude greeting, then. It had been a long trip, and I arrived late and very tired. Your question and its timing struck my already frayed nerves." Though she doubted that the woman could see the flush of embarrassment that came to her cheeks. She could even feel Grey's reluctant shame. "Let's try this again. I am Calla Valerian, Crown Princess of Laurelmoon. I am also known as Sablerose, Druid of the same lands."

She took the raised hand between her own, patting it comfortingly. "And you are?"

[Toph Bei Fong]

A bit of the Blind Bandit seeped though her baroness front as Calla introduced herself. The ghost of a smirk touched her lips. "That.. certainly is a lot of names," she said. "I'm Toph Bei Fong, baroness of Gaoling Province of the Gaia Kingdom. At least by birth. Governing really isn't my... strength."

Toph manged a half curtsy, unwilling to let go of Calla's hand for a full proper one. "I realize its very late, your highness, but may I come in? I have so many questions, and the hallway doesn't seem like the place to ask them. I'll try not too take up too much time... but I have to understand what is happening here."

[Sablerose]

There was the very selfish part of Calla that wanted to simply ask if the whole thing could not wait until tomorrow, especially hearing the slight sarcastic tone in the Baroness' response to her title. In all fairness, Calla rarely liked to pull out her rank. But now that she was here as part of her country's official ambassadorial staff for the near future, she figured that it was going to be something she had to give out more often. That did not mean, though, that she did not want to hear it scorned, even if unintentional.

However, her curiosity had been awakened. She could feel it in Grey's mind as well. Which made another point she would have to keep in mind, literally.

"Come in, Baroness. And for the record, please call me Calla, Sablerose, or even Sable. I prefer not to get too caught up in titles when not on official duties. I should also mention that as a Druid, I have what is known as a familiar, named Greystreak. He's in the form of a wolf, but is quite more than that. He is capable of telepathic communication with me. However, he's also capable of the same with many other people, something unusual for most Druidical familiars. With your permission, to make this conversation much easier, would you be willing to let him enter your mind, solely for that purpose?"

As she spoke, Calla led Toph to one of the chairs in the room, which in this case was across from her bed. Grey trotted over to place himself between the two women. Whether Toph was honestly curious or not, the familiar was obviously not going to take to many chances.

[Toph Bei Fong]

Toph stride faltered at the request. Her instinct was to say no, and this impulse was so instant, so knee-jerk that it confused her. It was a perfectly natural reaction -- ones minds should stay private -- but the voice that she though the of the reply in... didn't sound like her own.

"I... guess that would be fine," she said hesitatingly, before taking the offered seat. She crossed her legs, careful to keep one foot in contact with, and scraping across the ground, and kept her posture straight, figuring that keeping a more noble air might get her further with a princess. One didn't have as many names as this woman did, and really meant it when they said they didn't care about tittles in Toph's experience.

"You mentioned a word twice now. 'Druid' What does that mean, exactly?"

((Sent you a PM))

[Sablerose]

Calla debated how to describe it. It was one thing to be one and know in your heart and soul what you were. It was another thing to find words to tell someone else what was as much a part of her as an arm or a leg.

"In the simplest terms, a Druid is a priest of Nature. But, as you probably guess, it's far more than that to those of us who are one. Let me make a quick diversion, though. When Laurelmoon was first founded, the king, who had taken the name The Forest King, decreed that all members of the Royal Family who were in direct line for the throne would have to be trained as Druids. Laurelmoon is basically a nation placed in a forest, and he wanted to avoid having future rulers strip that forest bare in pursuit of growth and power. The Forest King was the First Druid, though the study and worship of Nature and Nature Magic had been around for centuries prior, as had the Druids. Technically, anyone who hears the voice of Nature calling can become a Druid, if their faith and strength of will is strong enough. But only Druids of the Royal Family can rule Laurelmoon.

"As for what we are, we're custodians of Nature, though technically not just Laurelmoon. We protect Nature from abuse, but we do not prevent humanity from making wise, informed choices in using Nature's bounties. If a man needs to make a home, we will not stop him from making use of wood and stone. We don't prevent people from balanced hunting or farming. In fact, we can tell him that there might be a good spot to hunt where the numbers of deer have grown too much for the local vegetation to keep healthy, or we might help them find a set of trees where new growth might be a good idea, so he helps Nature along in those ways."

We Familiars are sent to the Druids, Greystreak said, projecting his thoughts to Toph as well, as both advisers and protectors of them. We are called by their faith and strength, and when a Druid goes their full initiation into their role, the rite that is used calls us forth. From that point on, we are both bonded in a way that only death can sever. And sometimes, not even then.

[Toph Bei Fong]

Toph nodded slowly at the information, her unfocused yes staring off into space as her foot continued its slight scarping of the floor. Both wolf and woman were obviously weary, she could feel it in the sag of their bodies, but neither were lying to her. Or at last they believed what they were saying was the truth.

Her eyes crossed as Greystreak spoke in her mind. Even though she was expecting it, having it happen was still unsettling. "Okay, that was a little weird," she mumbled to herself as Greystreak finished.

"A priestess of nature..." she said carefully, speaking up. "And as the crown princess, I can assume that you are trained in that...faith?... more rigorously than others. That...actually explains a lot.

"I'm an earthbender," she said. "Its a form of martial arts practiced where I'm from. The long and short of it is that we have the ability to use our chi to sense an manipulate earth and rock, as well as the things made from them."

She pointed at her bare foot, still moving in its side-to-side motion, sole rubbing against the floor. "I use it to sense my surroundings. By sending out vibrations along the ground, i can 'see' anything in contact with it. I basically see with my feet. Its technique called 'earthsight'.

"I think my earthsight is some how picking up on your nature magic. That's how I was able to 'see' you, even when you weren't touching the floor." Toph stopped moving her foot, and the word around her faded expect for the glowing form of Sablerose.

"Amazing," she said, mostly to herself. Then she frowned. "Can one be taught to be druid? Or does it require some natural, inborn talent?"

[Sablerose]

Calla started to reply, but stopped herself after the intake of breath. After a few seconds of contemplating her answer, she said, a bit of embarrassment in her voice "I'll defer to Greystreak on that last question."

The wolf's warm laugh sounded in the minds of both women. That's because in truth, we don't know. We suspect that the talent for it runs strong in some families, such as Calla's. But not everyone who is a Druid seems to have the same level power, even though many have quite a strong level of faith. It's likely a combination of factors. The talent must be there, weak or strong, to touch the power of the natural world. However, faith in that power is what allows a Druid to call for such powers regularly.

He stopped momentarily and his ears turned slightly, as if listening for something. Let's try a different way of looking at it. You mentioned that you Earthbend, and that part of your talent for doing so has given you this ability to see through contact with the ground. I am unfamiliar with the ability as a whole, though it does sound similar to certain spells that Calla would have access to as a Druid. But I take it for others with this skill to Earthbend your 'earthsight' is not common, yes?

[Toph Bei Fong]

Toph shivered and the mental conversation.. "Okay. Still weird, but a little less so, I might just get used to it by the time we're done.

"But to answer your question, no, earth-sight isn't a common ability among earthbenders. Technically, any one of us can learn it, but its difficult to teach to someone who can actually see. They're so used to using their eyes that they can't just supplement or ignore that sense at will. Whereas I've been using earthsight since I was six. To me its the only kinda of sight I've ever known."

She looked back up at the princess. She sat a little straighter in the chair, as if gathering her resolve. "I'm sure you came here for your own reasons, Princess Calla, same as myself and every other woman in the castle. But if you think you'll have the time... and if it is not considered taboo by your culture... would you consent to teaching me more about your faith in a more... structured sense?"

[Sablerose]

The surprises continued to happen. Calla's russet eyebrows rose, then she looked over to Greystreak, who spoke to the Druid specifically.

I don't see why not. Consider it a...cultural exchange. She is a baroness, after all, and as such, she can act as a representative of her country, just as you are acting as one for ours. Besides, Druids do exist outside of Laruelmoon; they just tend to be a bit rarer.

Calla's relief was visible, even if the source of said relief had been silent in origin. "I would be honored to do so. I can't say how good I am as a teacher, though. I will try my best to represent my faith accurately. And I suspect that Greystreak will be able to fill in any gaps in my understanding or ability to explain things." She smiled at Toph, hoping that her Earthsight could pick it up. "And maybe you can show me some of this Earthbending as well. I'd actually like to compare it to how my spells work."