"Challenge to Propriety"

Log Date:
	8/11/00

Log Cast:
	Tyler, Faanshi

Log Intro:
	Full of stress and repressed angst as her life often is, the young
shudra healer Faanshi considers it an easy week if she has but one thing over
which she must worry in any given week. This past week has not qualified,
unfortunately, as easy. It is not enough that the Varati ritual of Invoking
the Flame was violated by unknown Sylvans whose chosen method of disruption
was to spray a hallucinogenic powder upon the participants -- and that she,
Faanshi, has been commanded to aid the Kaimakam of the Agni-Haidar in 
finding the miscreants, lest innocent Sylvans be harmed in the backlash of
Varati wrath. Nor is it enough that the entire Varati race has been shaken
by the rumors of the death of the God-King and the possible impending fall
of Masada to the rebel Clans who have chosen to challenge the authority of
the Amir-al.
	With these two great shadows over her gentle heart, one might think
that Faanshi has more than enough to worry about -- and indeed, she has
been struggling to convince herself of this these past few days as she makes
arrangements to journey to the territory of the Ettowealona tribe of
Sylvans, with her teacher FallingStar. She has not, however, been successful.
Though she dares admit it to no one, her having to refuse an offer from
the Ushasti to join their ranks -- an offer that seemed to her like a 
boon from the Lady of the Dawn Herself -- has struck a great blow to her
heart. And with each passing day she has grown more and more anxious for the 
long-missing Lyre, not knowing whether he is alive or dead.
	And as if all of these things were not enough, a new face has been
showing up in Faanshi's vicinity as of late... an outspoken, rakishly charming 
young Mongrel who for no reason the halfbreed girl can fathom has appeared
to develop an inordinate interest in what she hides beneath her veil. In
the midst of all _else_ that's been troubling her as of late, Faanshi has no
idea what has possessed this man... or why she appears to be developing a
habit of crossing his path, in the oddest of places....

*===========================< In Character Time >===========================*
             Time of day:  Late Morning
          Date on Aether:  Tuesday, December 3, 3906.
           Year on Earth:  1506 A.D. 
       Phase of the Moon:  First Quarter
                  Season:  Winter
                 Weather:  Partly Cloudy
             Temperature:  Chilly
*==========================================================================*

Old City Garden - Haven
     A strange thing, to some, to see such a thick, unbridled mass of forest 
  within the city walls. Even during the brightest days, it is shady here; 
  looming tree branches above filter out the sunlight, casting shadows that 
  might be relieving during a warm summer day, or alternatively fearsome by 
  night. The heart of the garden is most often alive with the chirps and 
  chitters of the wildlife that makes its home here.
     Still, some civilization prevails, if only tentatively. A wide, roughly 
  cobbled road stretches east to west, suitable for the usual traffic of a 
  city street, if a bit precariously. Benches line the various man-made paths, 
  reminding the visitor that this is indeed intended to be a respite from the 
  bustle of the town, and is not merely some uncontrolled mass of trees within 
  Haven.
Contents:
Tyler
Kosha
Obvious exits:
Streets <E,NE,SW>  Garden Archway <W>

Beams of gold struggle their way past the clouds above, then through the 
  once-lush canopy of naked, winter's branches of the garden's taller trees. 
  The effect on the ground is a shady one, dark and chill, with scattered 
  patches of sunlight touching the soil in places. On one of the benches that 
  lines the main, cobbled path is what appears to be a sleeping mongrel, 
  lemon-hued hair tousled chaotically on the bench beneath his head. He lies 
  on his back, his slow, measured breaths forming frosty puffs in the air each 
  time, which in turn casually disippate into the winter morning above. If one 
  were to near close enough, the sound of steady, reliable snoring could 
  definitely be heard.

Somewhere off in the distance -- though not too far of a distance -- a dog 
  might be heard to bark. Twice. And immediately afterwards comes the 
  scrabbling of big canine paws upon the path, as Kosha comes tearing out the 
  underbrush in hot pursuit of a frantic and extremely startled rabbit. Lepine 
  breakfast, on the run! Such is the goal of this large hungry dog, and as the 
  rabbit goes scurrying under Tyler's bench, Kosha gathers his big feet under 
  him and springs into the air to go _over_ the bench... and over the sleeping 
  Mongrel, as well.

The mongrel stirs somewhat as the barks of Kosha pierce the dreaming fog of 
  his unconscious mind. But the sound does not entirely wake him. Animals have 
  been calling out gleefully all morning--he's gotten somewhat used to all the 
  annoying sounds of a waking forest. Instead, he reaches for the blanket that 
  isn't there, clawing down at himself, searching, and eventually giving up 
  just as the *whoosh* of flying hound causes blurry blue eyes to crack, just 
  slightly, staring up through the garden directly above him. What the hell 
  was /that/? By now Kosha has already completed his leap, assumably well on 
  his way to hunt down the bolting rabbit. Tyler mumbles incoherently, and the 
  weight of his lids drag them down over his eyes again.

"Kosha...!" This sound is decidedly softer, but it registers in the tapestry 
  of sounds in the garden nevertheless. "Kosha, do not get too far -- Kosha!" 
  It's futile, really, to try to rein in a hungry dog on the hunt, but Faanshi 
  tries to do it anyway even as she comes running along the path as best she 
  can, looking this way and that for some sign of her big canine. She spots 
  Kosha first -- or, rather, his hindquarters, just as he chases his potential 
  breakfast into another bush, provoking a shrill noise of terror out of the 
  cornered creature. And only after she's flinched from the sound does the 
  maiden spot the Mongrel drowsing upon the bench, which makes her skid to a 
  halt.

A groan of /severe/ irritation rumbles around in Tyler's throat. "I'm trying 
  to /sleep/!" He unleashes this highly audible yell into the air, finally set 
  off into verbal retaliation by the shrill cry of the rabbit. The mongrel 
  stirs restlessly now, rolling over onto his side and then to his stomach, 
  eyes squeezed shut. He's in that state where sleep has been too disturbed to 
  be easily found again, but he's unwilling to give up so easily. Muscular 
  arms hang loosely off opposite sides of the bench as his cheek presses to 
  the cool surface of the wood. Now, if only everyone will just be quiet a 
  moment ...

Sleep? There? On a _bench_? This is enough to give Faanshi pause, especially 
  when the groggy armored man sleepily bellows his aggravation. "I-I am sorry, 
  Imphadi!" she cries tinily, too startled to speak softly -- and at any rate, 
  the dog's creating quite a racket in the bush now as he and the rabbit nip 
  and bite at one another. Little twigs and wilted leaves go flying with every 
  snap Kosha makes with his jaws and every lunge he makes with his formidable 
  furry body. Never normally one to go near her hound when he's cornered 
  himself a meal -- the violence of it troubles her healer's senses, even 
  though it is but animals feeling the pain of Kosha's teeth -- the maiden is 
  a bit more unnerved by the prospect of Tyler's anger, and thus she opts to 
  try to swing around the bench as quietly as possible.

Tyler bolts up as more noise disturbs him despite his plea, large hands 
  gripping the edges of the bench. But the rapid movement summarily tumbles 
  the young man right off the little wooden structure, landing him with a 
  crash of armor and muscles in the soft earth below. He's never going back to 
  sleep now. "I just want to sleep--is that so much to ask?" he whines softly 
  to himself, one hand reaching up to clamp purposefully on the bench as he 
  goes on to haul himself to his feet, eyes half-lidded and yellow hair in 
  complete disarray. He rubs at his sleep-sticky eyes with the palms of his 
  hands, looking very much the big, grumpy morning-mongrel.

Faanshi whirls about at the crash of chain mail, biting her lip beneath the 
  veil that covers her face. Between the apparently irritated man she and her 
  hound have disturbed, and the vigorous noise Kosha is making with catching 
  his breakfast, the maiden is broadcasting a demeanor not at all unlike that 
  of the cornered rabbit. Unlike the cornered rabbit, who lets out a squeal of 
  agony when Kosha finally strikes a killing blow, Faanshi is primarily 
  silent. Once the rabbit is slain, however, the shudra girl blurts 
  apologetically, "I am sorry, Imphadi...!"

"Oh." Rather surprised to see the half-breed, Tyler blinks his eyes at her. 
  "It's you again, sweetheart." He reaches up in a futile attempt to lay his 
  shaggy hair down in some semblance of order, but the hair, bright yellow as 
  it's caught beneath rays of sunlight, will not take to it, springing back in 
  the wild directions that it seems to prefer. With an easy bound, he hops up 
  onto the bench and then to the ground on the other side. "Couldn't wait to 
  see me again, huh?" he asks with a winning smile, walking casually toward 
  the shudra.

Oh dear. The Mongrel man -- what is his name? Faanshi realizes she does not 
  know it, or if she has heard someone say it to him, it has left her memory 
  -- is much more alarming now that he is awake, and the maiden's gaze hastily 
  rivets itself in the direction of the bushes. From that greenery, Kosha 
  emerges triumphant, the winter-plush rabbit caught in his teeth, and he 
  throws himself down to happily tear into his prize. She can't quite look at 
  that, though, and so Faanshi winds up having to simply gaze at the ground as 
  she blurts out, "I-I did not know you were here, Imphadi... sleeping..." In 
  the park. However strange that might be.

"Uh-huh." Sounding distinctly unconvinced, he moves nearer as if to force 
  himself into her lowered field of vision. "I'm surprised you didn't try to 
  sneak up on me," he admits with a smile that will not fade, his voice 
  sounding rough and smokey with having just awoken. "Maybe gimme a little 
  kiss while I was asleep?" He doesn't doubt that she'll be stammering now. 
  Closer the mongrel moves into her precious proximity, unthreatening but bold.

He'd be right, too. "Th-that... that w-would not be proper, Imphadi," the 
  maiden babbles tinily, clutching the basket she has nestled on one arm and 
  trying to figure out exactly how long it will take Kosha to inhale the flesh 
  from that rabbit he's now vigorously ripping to pieces.

"Don't you ever wanna /not/ be proper, 'Imphadi?'" Evidently, he does not know 
  there is a feminine version of the title. "Huh? It's always 'not proper' 
  this and 'not proper' that--ever wanted to just let loose ... go crazy?" 
  Tyler's fair-colored eyebrows lift curiously as he all but ducks to try to 
  look up into Faanshi's eyes. "Come on," he urges, whispering and grinning, 
  just a couple of feet spaced between their two bodies. "I /know/ you've 
  wanted to before. Bet you're sick of all those rules."

"It is 'Imphada' for women," Faanshi mumbles, taking an uneasy step further 
  towards her feasting hound, "but not for me... I-I am only a shudra." 
  Blushing vehemently now, almost enough that the color creeps up over the top 
  of her dark blue veil, the halfbreed girl adds swiftly, "Rules are... are 
  _important_!"

"Whatever," the mongrel dismisses, bouncing impatiently on the balls of his 
  feet. "'Imphada.' Rules are /not/ important," he barks back energetically, 
  still grinning. "/I/ don't wanna die without ever having broken any of them. 
  Do /you/? Wanna be just like everybody else your whole life? Never let 
  anyone see your face ... have a /dog/ as your best friend?" That last one's 
  supposed to sting a little. "Come on," he all but growls at Faanshi, "forget 
  the rules. Say /whatever/ you want to me. Go on. Want me to go? Leave you 
  alone? /Say/ it." Tyler's rather passionately-spoken words cease here, but 
  that know-it-all grin etched into rugged features remains the same.

"He is a _good_ friend!" Faanshi abruptly cries, aghast, whirling about and 
  looking up involuntarily in a flash of something that might almost be anger. 
  A strike, at last, beneath that seemingly so-docile exterior? "Kosha is my 
  truest friend in the world!"

Tyler doesn't know exactly what he intended to do with his words, but he can 
  tell that the healer really /meant/ what she said. "I know," he murmurs, 
  expression softening considerably as he regards her for a long moment. Then 
  he reaches over to flick at the bottom hem of Faanshi's veil again, casting 
  his vibrant-eyed gaze over at Kosha as he feasts on the rabbit so 
  ravenously. With a sigh and only the slightest hint of a smile now, he says, 
  "Look, I should get going."

There. A fleeting glimpse of troubled green eyes, as Faanshi keeps her gaze up 
  for a few moments longer, trying to fathom the motives of this strange, 
  brash Mongrel man. When no further denigrations of her loyal hound seem 
  forthcoming, the maiden seems to subside -- if, indeed, this gentle creature 
  can be said to have been bristling in the first place. But still, she is 
  skittish, and she shoots up a hand involuntarily in defense of that rich 
  blue silk. "A-as you wish, Imphadi..."

The mongrel stifles a sleepy yawn, turning to gaze back upon Faanshi as she 
  reveals her eyes to him. This causes his smile to define itself just a 
  little bit more, even though they seem troubled. "Sorry, I ... yeah, I'll 
  see you later, maybe?" he murmurs, stumbling slightly over his choice of 
  words.

"I... do not think so, Imphadi, I have to leave Haven... for several days." 
  Faanshi turns away swiftly, her gaze growing more troubled as she does so, 
  and settling once again upon the dog and the remnants of the rabbit through 
  which he delightedly crunches. He has reddened his muzzle now, but is 
  undeterred by this, joyously munching on bones and lepine flesh.

"Oh, okay," he says to the back of Faanshi as she turns so swiftly from him. 
  Tyler scratches briefly at the back of his head before turning away, too, 
  and sauntering along the cobbled path, perhaps journeying to whever it is 
  that he calls home.

The maiden turns her head slightly, listening to the heavy tramp of the young 
  Mongrel's booted feet -- and she tells herself she is relieved at his 
  departure. But it is not a pleasant relief. Not when the prospect of leaving 
  Haven is one under the shadow of carrying out a mission which, if she fails 
  in it, could cause the wrath of the Children of Fire to come heavily down 
  upon the Children of Earth. Not when she cannot fathom for the life of her 
  why this man has decided to take an interest in her... and when she can 
  hardly tell him that such a course is only foolhardy. Those who grow 
  interested in Faanshi do, after all, eventually come to harm...
Like another Mongrel whose face and voice surge to her mind. A Mongrel who may 
  well be dead.
No, it is not really relief Faanshi feels as Tyler opts for now to leave her 
  be... not when all else that troubles her goes unsoothed. But the troubled 
  green eyes that watch the hound and his prey are stoic and resigned. Faanshi 
  may be troubled...
But she has learned to live with it.

[End log.]