Traveling a Road Less Traveled (Evee)

[Protégé]

It had been a few hours since Protégé had left the main path through the forest. He had walked in, and had been walking the path, when boredom overtook him. His mind started telling him, "There's no fun in walking a calm path. Deviate and explore, familiarize yourself with the forest. Learn about it and enjoy in relaxation. There are less people on a road less traveled." Eventually he had given in, turning off the road at a right angle and heading in. At first he had walked in a straight line, but he soon began to meander and travel aimlessly.

That had gotten him where he was now. Having tired himself out by wandering, he had used his spear as a boost to push him up a tree so he could lean against the trunk and rest in the safety of the height. He wasn't lost, he knew that. All he would have to do is wander in a straight line and he would be out of the forest eventually, and if you are somewhere, you aren't lost. Leaning up against the trunk, he closed his eyes, not sleeping but still resting, letting his mind roll over what he had seen. He had seen streams, he had seen animals, he had seen rocks. He had seen plenty of trees, some looking exactly alike, some bent in such odd contortions they were rooted in his mind as they were in the ground.

Mulling over these landmarks, Protégé knew they wouldn't help him get to the main road again. The places were too diverse, and looked too much alike. He could easily be lead astray by a small detail and find himself lost on a different path. But then again, did he want to find the main path? He had left it because he didn't want to be on it, so did he want to go back? Opening his eyes, Protégé surveyed the area around him, before leaning back again and closing his eyes. For now, where he was was good enough. He would worry about where to go when he didn't want to be where he was.

[Evee~Natalia]

The forest was dark and still, thick fog surrounded Evee as she walked through the moist forest grass. Evee had never been in these woods before, she had only heard rumors of what might lurk here. But Evee was a relatively calm, cool, and collected person most of the time so she didn't worry about her safety. With each step she was getting deeper into the forest and it was like the fog covered up her path that she took to come in. It seemed the fog wanted her to stay inside this dark cold place for eternity.

Evee wore a dress that only came down to brush above her delicate knees, but she had a heavy black cloak on her to keep her warm in this god-forsaken place. As Evee breathed, the air was so cold she swore she could feel death flowing into her lungs and out again. Even though she wasn't near death at all, or that she knew of. She merely wound up in the dark forest today to see what all the fear of this place was about. Evee wouldn't let anything such as a rumor scare her away from nature's beauty. Though the place looked like a relative of a cold hell made up of trees as tall as the sky.

This lone girl knew that no sunlight would pass through these woods and still she brought no candle to light her way Evee took this as an opportunity to highten her senses along with her mage powers, kind of like making them intertwine. She looked up at the trees as she walked instead of watching her step. Hours into doing this she came across a tree that appeared to have someone sitting in it. She stopped walking and stared up at the dark figure almost squinting her eyes to see who it was.

[Protégé]

OOC: Cold Hell? That's in Michigan, I believe.

IC:
With his eyes closed, Protégé had to rely on his ears or nose to tell him if anything was coming. However, in a forest full of mast, any person who approached without caution would snap a twig or crunch nuts with every footstep, and animals always had a certain smell to them, although it was sometimes lost in the smells of the plants and trees. However, he had begun to hear twigs snapping earlier, and while it was very quiet because it was far away, Protégé could tell that it was human. Or some strange animal which put as much pressure on its feet as a human does.

Opening his eyes to slits so as not to reveal he had heard anything, Protégé let his hand slide off his chest towards his spear, which he had slid through his belt when he got on the tree branch. Resting it there as if his hand had slipped there in slumber, Protégé sat waiting for the person, outwardly appearing to be asleep and relaxed, but internally as tense as a spring, ready to rocket off and do damage.

Eventually, the sound of footsteps sounded close, and finally stopped. Letting his head fall forward as if his head had simply rolled onto his chest in slumber, Protégé observed the stranger. It was a girl, looking up at him with a dark cloak wrapped around herself. The cloak did not seem good to Protégé, for it could conceal weapons easily and it could also entangle his spear or him in a fight. However, since the person was not making any movements towards attack or robbery, Protégé decided to take a chance and say, "What? Is it strange for a person to naturally seek to be higher? Or am I wrong and it is a thing only birds do?"

[Evee~Natalia]

OOC: You're right, I live here so I got a good view and feel >.<

IC:

Evee realized the figure sitting in the tree was a young man as soon as she heard his voice. It was a deep, calm voice. She didn't feel threatened at all by him.
"What? Is it strange for a person to naturally seek to be higher? Or am I wrong and it is a thing only birds do?" That question seemed to play on her mind. Evee thought of him as a free person, someone who loved to explore the world around him. That was something she wanted too. She could tell all that just from his question.

She tilted her head down toward the ground and smiled to herself before she answered his interesting question. " I'm sorry dear sir, I've just never seen someone resting so high up in a tree. I don't think it is strange at all really...I just found it 'different' that someone would come to rest in a place such as this, let alone in a tree. That's all." She said raising her head up again to look at him more clearly as she spoke. "I too am a unique being, I rarely find people who understand my mysterious ways..." She said walking up to the gigantic tree the young man rested peacefuly in.

Being here in Avaren, a comonly peaceful place, she had met all sorts of people. Perverts, gentlemen, jerks, nice woman friends, all varieties. But it was something about this man here. He was different from all of the others. He seemed to have an adventurous spirit and a kind glow about him. That was something she instantly liked about a person.

Evee, comonly misunderstood because her emotions are harder to read than fine print sometimes, she could never really have a "normal" conversation or encounter with anyone. This whole time, she had only pulled a half smile onto her face but it was hidden by her lowering her head. Which in turn her long brown locks had curtained the sides of her face. She examined the tree thoroughly before touching it's rough surface, She trailed a soft slender finger down it's woody ridges. She was facinated with nature.

She looked up at this quiet stranger once more, wondering what she should say next. Or what he was about to say. Until she just decided to make small conversation. Before she could speak a word, she cut her finger on the tree's bark and quikly snathed her finger away and sucked on her wounded finger. She scrunched her eyebrows at the sudden sting before she pulled her finger from her mouth. " I should be more careful huh?" She said with a smile, fully showing her pearly whites now. "If you don't mind me asking...What is your name kind one?" She asked before popping her sore cut finger in her warm mouth again.

[Protégé]

ooc: Seriously, there is a city in Michigan called Hell. Every winter the sign freezes.

IC:
Opening his eyes fully after she didn't advance or run away, Protégé looked down at the girl more carefully. He couldn't see any weapons out in the open, so that meant that odds were if she meant to attack, she was either confident she did not need a weapon, she was a mage, or she had no weapons at all. Looking down at her, he relaxed waiting to hear what she said.

Listening to her statement, Protégé sat back a bit mulling over what she had said. Obviously she was used to unique things to be replying so calmly, and she obviously wasn't the type to judge people badly by what they did. "Ah, you may find it different, but have you ever sat up in a tree and just relaxed, not focusing on anything but seeing everything? You could be on a battlefield before it is cleaned after a battle or in a dark mysterious wood full of enemies, but you have the same feeling up in the tree. Every breath you breathe just yells freedom, and the view of looking down on the Earth makes it seem as if any problems there are far below and just small blips on a big map. Of course, you can still look up higher and understand that you can rise to greater heights, but that just motivates me to work harder and get there. You may find it different, but if you climb up a tree and just relax like I did, you may find yourself doing it more often and thinking it perfectly normal." Leaning back against the tree, Protégé looked up and thought about what he said, before saying, "Hmm...I just made a speech, didn't I? Even by my standards, that's odd."

Arching his back and stretching his arms out, Protégé pulled the spear out of his belt. Leaning down a bit, he thrust the point of the spear as far into the trunk as he could make it, aiming for a crack in the wood. Pushing down on it, he found it decently lodged in the tree to last him a few seconds. Plus, the shaft was made of solid hardwood and the point was securely attatched, so he doubted that it would break. Wrapping his legs around one side of the branch, Protégé swung down until he was hanging from the tree by his legs. Grasping the spear with both hands as close to the tree trunk as possible, Protégé let his legs go slack and swung on the spear until he was close to the ground, where he threw his weight away from the tree to remove the spear. Landing a bit harder than he liked and sending a sharp jolt threw his legs and knees, Protégé picked himself up slowly, running his free hand over his legs to make sure nothing was broken. Fully standing up, he reached to his belt and pulled out a small knife he carried now, and cut loose a small section of his cloak, about 2 centimeters wide and 2 inches long. Returning the knife to its regular place, Protégé held out the cloak piece and said, "Here, you can use this as a bandage for now. Might be a useless precaution, but still a caution that could benefit you. As for being more careful, why should you? Too many things happen in one day for you to sensibly protect yourself, so why worry about danger that might not even happen? Me, I I woke up this morning with a restless mind and a hunger for wandering, feeling the walls of my room closing in around me. I could have just dealt with the room and stayed safe in my room all day, or I could go out here and explore? And look what happened for me throwing caution to the wind? Nothing bad has happened, my mind is at ease, and I have met a kind person like you. And as for a name, you can call me Protégé. Don't worry about a last name, I never use it and people rarely have the same first name as me." Holding out his hand for a handshake, Protégé said, "But you now have an advantage over me. What is your name?"

[Evee~Natalia]

OOC: Really? 0.0 This scares me....*Packs up things and moves to Japan.* (It's my dream to go there)

IC:

Evee smiled thankfully before taking the piece of cloth from Protege. "Thank you very much." She made a temporary bandage out of the cloth then looked back at Protege who was holding his hand out for a handshake. She shook his hand with a little firm grip and smiled. "I'm Evee Natalia, nice to meet you Protege." She said with a hint of happiness in her hymn worthy voice. She took her hand away from him without any quick movement as to not give the impression she would attack. Evee could tell by his stance and readiness that he was a fighter, possibley a warrior.

Her smile ebbed into a half smile when she said, "You really can give a speech. *giggles* I've never met anyone who speaks as wisely as you do protege." She listened to the sound of her voice calmly echo throughout the forest, not even the animals seemed to care about their presence in their home. Evee walked by Protege with a smirk and stern eye contact until she passed him. She was looking over her shoulder at him before she turned around facing him before she rested her slim figure against the tree that cut her finger earlier.

She closed her eyes and sighed before opening them again half way and looking at the back of Protege's head. Watching him like this, she grew more curious about him. He was so different from Maril....Though Maril has been gone a long time. Evee didn't know where her heart should be. When she was with him she felt like nothing else mattered, but now that he's been gone... Her days have grown long, lonely, and cold like they were before she had met him. It must be a miracle that she stays surrounded by such kind people to lift her spirits.

Thinking about all of her good memories with Maril started to make her feel sad so she tried to get them off her mind by keeping her attention on her newly found friend. "So, where are you from wise one?" She asked playfully as she began to play with her long brown locks with two of her fingers. One from each hand. She didn't know how long she would stay talking to ths strikingly handsome gentleman but she would try not to stay long, because deep sinful temptation could stab her pure soul and give her impure thoughts of betraying her current spouse....'But does he love Me anyway?' She would think to herself sometimes. Maybe Maril wanted to make her happy and be with her because she was searching for her chosen husband anyway....

Maybe that's why her interest in Protege facinated her so....Now she had to wonder what the real reason was that Maril was with her. All that aside, she waited patiently for Protege's reply...

[Protégé]

Protégé watched as she slowly pulled her hand back. It could easily be a defensive thing, to prevent him from hitting her, or it could be a smart thing, to keep him from thinking she was planning an attack. Picking up the hint of happiness, his master of the obvious sense kicked in: if she's happy, either she was looking for you or you are welcome company. Probably the latter. Speaking up, he said, "It is good to meet you, Evee. And you are welcome for the bandage."

Evee's giggling seemed to draw a small amount of amusement from Protégé, so he smiled, which quickly turned into a deep hearty laugh. "Wisdom, is that what you call it? It's not really wisdom, as you think. It's just taking natural human emotion and giving it a poetic twist, saying out in the open what each person thinks internally. As for the speech part, it was as it is now: my mind is latched onto a subject so it goes off, putting that little poetic twist around words as I did before, though possibly not as much twist."

Seeing her walk past him, he didn't move, feeling a small sense of security about her. He didn't seem to feel the need to worry. She was an individual, he agreed on that. But that's a good thing, for who likes a world without a few strange acting people? Really, each person was entitled to their own way of thinking and being. Not focusing on his thoughts, Protégé sort of dropped off focus, seeing everything in his eyesight yet noticing nothing. Gathering all this information but not taking it in. Really, just living in a detached sense with no real connection to the world. It was, as close as he could put it, a small amount of bliss. He had never thought he would lapse into this state with another person around, but maybe Avaren was changing him. Of course, if he befriended a theif, he was obviously changing. Smiling with this thought, he turned to face Evee. He had been feeling her eyes on the back of his head for awhile, and now was the time to ask about it.

Listening to her question, Protégé answered it with a small amount of concetration. "Me? I'm not really from anywhere. I had a hometown, but I left it when my parents were dead. After that I traveled around mostly, traveling from town to town, doing menial tasks to get me an occassional roof over my head during bad storms or food when the land isn't yeilding its bounty. Other than that, I was a nomad, sleeping outdoors and eating what I gathered and hunted. Basically, I'm from the wilderness." Normally, he wouldn't have given a history like this, but when his mind was elsewhere, he easily drifted on in storytellling. He could tell something was bugging Evee, but he didn't know what. Finding another tree, he leaned against it, watching her.

Pretty soon, he decided waiting was no good. "Evee, I can tell something is disturbing you, so what is it? If I can help, I will."

[Evee~Natalia]

Evee was suprised by his sudden concern. She had just met this boy not even moments ago and he already cared about what was bothering her. She looked him in the eyes very gracefully before she answered him. " It's not much anyone could help me with really. I have to deal with this on my own..." She said looking down and away from his gaze.

She wasn't sure if she should tell him all of the details but, she felt his kindness and wanted to know what he'd say. So she looked around the forest at what she could see, which was trees and fog, then she began again. " Maril Mazmo and myself are together and, I have not seen him for some time now. I've given up hope that he'll ever return to me....That's all...." She said with a deep sadness in her voice.

She wasn't sure if Protege had ever been in a situation like this before and she thought he wouldn't understand how she felt. so she stood against the tree closing her eyes again and waited for his reply to such a story. Evee thought of Protege as a future wiseman, someone who would be looked up to for advice one day by others. All that, she got from just talking to him for that amount of time.

She sighed, turning her head on the tree, her feet were starting to feel moist from the ground beneath her and she cared not. The fog seemed to swollow the two of them and hide them from the rest of all existance. It was like they were the only two left on the earth and the rest of the world had perished, at least that's how the scenery and silence made it seem.

[Protégé]

Leaning back, Protégé listened to what she had to say. His mind didn't just hear the words, it picked up emotion and feeling in the words, and noted her actions to pile together into an evaluation. Her looking around meant she was afraid unwanted ears might hear her, so obviously she was worried that although she had given up hope of Maril coming back, she still believed that he might. The sadness in her voice showed she had apparently felt deep affection for Maril, and she was saddened by his dissappearance. Sighing, Protégé looked up into the canopy of trees above and began to speak. "Hope...one of the strangest human emotions there is. A trait of an optimist; the more optimistic you are, the more you hope. Too much hope can lead to denial, so knowing when to give in to it is a good thing...sometimes. Hope is what keeps some people from despair, and from making decisions they may regret later. However, the longer one hopes, the more it hurts if they hoped in vain. Especially if they begin to think, what would have happened if I hadn't waited, what if I had gone on with life earlier? Hope....an instrument of happiness and despair, what separates realists from denialists (ooc: I'm not sure that's a word in Webster's dictionary, but it's in my mental dictionary.). But really, sometimes it is better to decide for youself: Should I hope, or should I give in? Don't let other people make the decision for you, decide for yourself."

Leaning back, Protégé thought about what he had just said. Second speech of the day, a new record. Second speech of the week, a new record. Suddenly I have become a man of many words... Letting that thought drop from his brain, Protégé began to think about why she would confide in him. Either she trusted him, she saw his as a source of knowledge, or she really needed help deciding what to do. "Amazing what wisdom can be. Whether you agree with it or not decides whether or not you think it is wisdom, but something I have found is this: wisdom is normally not what makes a decision for you, wisdom is what keeps you from having someone else make the decision. Wisdom, thought of as a source of knowledge that lessens the strain of deciding, in reality, just keeps it there." Sliding down the tree, Protégé sat on the ground, eyes closed in a thoughtful state, waiting for Evee's reply. His strange speeches might provoke some strange thoughts.

OOC: Sorry it is only two paragraphs. They are pretty long though, so I think it can be tolerated.

[Evee~Natalia]

Evee looked down at the sitting Protege who had nearly froze her train of thought with his words. She had to think of what to say next. Evee understood what he said to her completely, but her emotions and her mind weren't in unison at the moment.She looked up at the star studded night sky and wondered if Maril was watching them too.

Soon she finally was able to respond to Protege's er'...words of advice. " I want to wait for him and never let anyone else have me...But I fear that will not happen. My heart is in a steel treasure chest that he has a key to, but the key he has isn't the only key. I have spares but, he has the special one..." She said with a small soft giggle at the end of her sentence.

Evee wasn't sure if Protege understood her metaphoric speaking but if he wanted to know what the "spare keys" and the "special" key was, she would gladly explain it to him. She was satisfied with her answer and left it at that, wondering what Protege would say to something so rare and symbolic as that. Evee was curious if he had felt so stonrgly about someone before and if he could relate to such a situation. But that question would be for another time they met.

Strolling in this dark forest, she never would've thought she'd be standing here talking about a guy to another guy. She pondered on this as she awaited Protege's reply. She trusted him enough to share her troubles and feelings with him. Why? She probably wouldn't have the answer to that untill five or maybe ten years later.

[Protégé]

Protégé sat back and waited patiently for Evee's response. She was obviously going through an emotional battle with herself to decide what she should do, and obviously was willing for any advice that could be given as long as she trusted the paerson. However, his words woudl have the opposite effect. They would make the battle about more, and they would make it seem a more isolated battle against herself. It was as he said, real wisdom does not make your decision for you, it makes sure you make the decision. Why could knowledge be a blessing and a curse?

Listening to her response, Protégé did not reply at first, wrapping his mind around her metaphor. However, it did not make sense to him at first, so began to think of it in other ways. Speaking his mind, he said, "It sounds to me as if your heart is more of two connected rooms, each on having one door to the outside and one door connecting them. Now, both doors are locked, and you can only get in with a key. Room #1 has less personal and private stuff in it, and is more open; it can be opened by more people. However, you can not get into the other room through the connecting door because the door can only be pushed into Room 1, it can't be pulled out to Room 1. Room #2, however, contains all the stuff not in Room 1. Also, you can get into Room 1 from Room 2. However, only one person is allowed the key to Room 2." Sighing and slouching down a bit, Protégé said, "I may have butchered and changed the meaning of your metaphor, so if I have, please explain."

Once again closing his eyes, Protégé allowed his mind to sink into that thoughtful state. His mind was no processing a lot of information, so he allowed it to think, without having to worry about physical distractions for awhile. Letting his mind mull over the thoughts he had, Protégé waited patiently for her reply. Until he heard her speak again, he was effectively shut out from the world.

[Evee~Natalia]

Evee knew he probably would misunderstand so, she didn't mind explaining. " What I meant by my metaphors is that, my heart is inside a steel treasure chest that only one person has the right key to, the 'special' key that will give them access to my unconditional love. Maril is the man who holds that key right now but, I fear that he might have lost it....In turn losing his access to my heart which holds my love for him. Does that make sense?" She asked hoping he did.

She wasn't certain if it would take weeks, months, or even years for Maril to return but she wasn't going to put her whole life on hold for him. Evee lifted her back away from the tree then walked to the side of it, facing away from Protege. She didn't kno if his mind was at a blank or frequently thinking about things but she was glad that he talked to her.

Since Maril had left, her emotions became vegetables and her soul was bitter and angry at his disappearance. Not knowing what to do, she sought advice and any suggestions that she thought was usefull. But she'd only talk about this with those she felt she trusted. Only knowing Protege for merely hours now, she felt she could trust him. It was the kind, caring aura about him...

[Protégé]

OOC: I should have made my new years resolution to post more often.

IC:
Never one to jump to conclusions, Protégé thought about what she had said for awhile. Some part of what she said wasn't fitting in, it wasn't coming together. It was as if a person was trying to plant a tree without digging a hole. After a few moments of thought, it came to him. "Are you sure that he has the special key? For if it was unconditional love, time would not matter. Time and distance are conditions, so if he is away for a long time, if the love was unconditional, it would not have bothered you. So, maybe you mislabled your keys, and all he had was a regular key."

Using his spear as a 3rd leg, Protégé pushed himself up. He knew that he might be saying a lot, or he might be causing trouble. He might be diving into something he might want to avoid. However, it was in his nature to speak his mind and to do his best to help people. As much as he tried, he could not predict where his words would take him now. He had never met Maril, so he couldn't make any guesses about the man. Protégé would have to do what he normally did: wait for something to happen, and do his best to prepare. For now, he would have to follow one of his philosophies: Do what you gotta do.

[Evee~Natalia]

OOC: LOL

IC:

" I see what you are saying. But I really believe that he has the special key." She said looking over at him. " I love Maril unconditionally and nothing will ever change that, and no one will change that. I know that Maril feels the same way." She said with a hopefull spirit in her voice. She knew that it might be months or even years later before Maril was to come back to her. But she was never going to leave him unless those were his wishes.

Evee let a soft smile creep upon her lips and then she let her eyes wander. "...He has the special key, I gave it to him personally the first day we kissed..." She said almost blushing at the thought of the memory. Suddenly Evee realized what she had just blirted out and giggled a bit." Sorry, I didn't mean to share all that. It's just one of my favorite memories is all." She said smiling at Protege who she was sure had got a little uncomfortable with the mentioning of her loving moments.

Still she thought about where he had gone and how long he would be where he is. No matter what happens, her heart would always be his. Always.