Gray Nightingale (Aiya) (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
experiencepoints) wrote2014-12-01 06:14 pm
experiencepoints) wrote2014-12-01 06:14 pm
(no subject)
Signeu: Araj's worries
This memory has Aiya, Yura, and Araj delving into a dungeon- some ancient ruins, still patrolled with giant lizards and powerful rock golems. Glowing crystals float about the area, and the gray walls are overgrown with vines, lending it a very otherworldly appearance.
As they delve through the dungeon, they fall into their usual pattern. Yura is the one who decides what they do- Whenever there's a fork in the path, she chooses the direction, or whenever there's groups of monsters, she decides on if they attack or sneak past. When they reach a puzzle, a lock mechanism or the like, Aiya is the one who solves the puzzle. Araj is the one who does it all, filling monsters full of arrows, flipping the switches as necessary, and detecting hidden mobs, passages, and items for them.
After a bit, however, Aiya notices Araj is beginning to lag behind them. She calls for them to stop, but Araj shakes her head. She's okay, she insists, she can keep going. Aiya and Yura look to each other, but continue on.
After the next group of monsters go down, however, Araj is breathing hard and having trouble keeping up. Aiya has to think-- Araj clearly didn't want attention called to this, but she wasn't in any condition to keep going like that. She can't figure out a way to take care of Araj while still not upsetting her, but as she's agonizing over it, Yura speaks up.
"Hey, I'm hungry. Let's stop for a bit!" She suggested cheerfully. "Aiya, you brought us food, right?"
Aiya blinks in surprise, but catches on quickly. "After that much begging, of course I did." She says lightly, teasing.
"Rude, I didn't beg! Besides, it's a compliment, your cooking is that good!" She pouts.
"I believe your exact words were 'I'm begging you'." Aiya teases, sorting through her inventory as Yura sets up a picnic blanket, which Aiya then sets wards over to keep monsters away.
"Ooh, two-hour wards, you brought the good stuff!" Yura looks over her shoulder at them.
"Well, with how much you begged for me to make us all food, I had a feeling it would turn into a picnic." It was a white lie, but Araj was already not saying anything. If Aiya had said it was just what she had on her and she was just as surprised, Araj would assume it was because of her.
"Speaking of..." Yura flicks her tail in anticipation.
"Yes, yes..." Aiya sighs. "Spicy vegetable stir-fry for Araj, and cod chowder with lots of bacon for Yura." She pulls out each dish as it's mentioned, handing it to their recipients, before sitting down to join them, taking out her own- a strong beef stew.
The atmosphere turned completely into a picnic's as they talk. But, Aiya notices, Araj still isn't saying much, even by her standards. Aiya tries to engage her a few times, but Araj seems preoccupied. Finally, she just has to ask.
"Araj, is something wrong?" She tries to keep her voice light, but the concern is evident regardless. "You're not eating much."
"Ah..." Araj fidgets a bit as Aiya worries. She thought that was Araj's favorite, so something had to be up. Finally, she puts her fork down and looks away. "... Sorry. I made you two stop for me."
"Of course not, silly." Yura nudges her shoulder. "I told you, I was hungry."
"You stopped for this because I was tired, didn't you?" Araj finally looks up at them. "I'm holding you back, aren't I?"
Aiya and Yura share a glance again, of worry and confusion. "Of course not." Aiya says gently. "It's the opposite. You're doing a lot for us."
"But I'm not doing enough." Araj hangs her head. "I'm not as smart as Aiya or as skilled as Yura. I'm the lowest level of us all, and I can't make plans or solve puzzles or decide our actions..."
"Araj..." Aiya says her name softly. She had no idea Araj had been feeling that way.
"Could it be you haven't realized it yourself?" Yura seems surprised.
"What do you mean?" She asks, looking up.
"You're doing the most out of all of us, aren't you?" Aiya points out quietly. "You find all of the hidden traps, you do more damage than even I do, and you maintain it better. You're the one who puts our plans into action- Us being here is only possible because of you."
"That's right!" Yura chimes in. "Geez, Aiya took all the good lines, but it's true! You're like the center of our team!"
"You really think so...?" Araj asks hesitantly.
"Of course." Aiya smiles encouragingly. "If you don't believe us, why don't you watch the damage when what get to the boss? That should prove it."
They finish eating, and recharged, they continue further in. After their heart-to-heart, Araj is in much better form, and in the boss fight (a giant rock-eating troll), she carries the day, keeping the monster's attention while constantly staying out of its range. Aiya is hard-pressed to keep up even without doing anything but damage.
When the troll falls and dissolves, the girls finally relax again, and Araj looks more cheerful than ever. Even better, the treasure chest from the boss’s room turns out to have an incredibly powerful longbow in it, which they give to Araj without hesitation.
As they return to their homes and go their separate ways after this adventure, Aiya has mixed feelings. She remembers Araj’s smiling face at the end, how happy she was after they had talked to each other, and how much she had been doing for the party, and she stops to think to herself. Is she doing as much for the party as she should? Araj out-damages her, and Yura decides their actions… She solves puzzles, but what about in battle?
She tries to push this from her mind, but the fear of inadequacy has already taken hold, worrying her for the rest of the night.
Effects: So that's what being on that end of things feels like.
Notes: For the new snakes who haven't seen them yet: Yura is a Beast Tribe girl, which means she has cat ears and a tail, and Araj is an elf. There's also the vague undercurrent of a crush on Yura but nothing is ever really made of it in this memory and she doesn't seem aware of it.
This memory has Aiya, Yura, and Araj delving into a dungeon- some ancient ruins, still patrolled with giant lizards and powerful rock golems. Glowing crystals float about the area, and the gray walls are overgrown with vines, lending it a very otherworldly appearance.
As they delve through the dungeon, they fall into their usual pattern. Yura is the one who decides what they do- Whenever there's a fork in the path, she chooses the direction, or whenever there's groups of monsters, she decides on if they attack or sneak past. When they reach a puzzle, a lock mechanism or the like, Aiya is the one who solves the puzzle. Araj is the one who does it all, filling monsters full of arrows, flipping the switches as necessary, and detecting hidden mobs, passages, and items for them.
After a bit, however, Aiya notices Araj is beginning to lag behind them. She calls for them to stop, but Araj shakes her head. She's okay, she insists, she can keep going. Aiya and Yura look to each other, but continue on.
After the next group of monsters go down, however, Araj is breathing hard and having trouble keeping up. Aiya has to think-- Araj clearly didn't want attention called to this, but she wasn't in any condition to keep going like that. She can't figure out a way to take care of Araj while still not upsetting her, but as she's agonizing over it, Yura speaks up.
"Hey, I'm hungry. Let's stop for a bit!" She suggested cheerfully. "Aiya, you brought us food, right?"
Aiya blinks in surprise, but catches on quickly. "After that much begging, of course I did." She says lightly, teasing.
"Rude, I didn't beg! Besides, it's a compliment, your cooking is that good!" She pouts.
"I believe your exact words were 'I'm begging you'." Aiya teases, sorting through her inventory as Yura sets up a picnic blanket, which Aiya then sets wards over to keep monsters away.
"Ooh, two-hour wards, you brought the good stuff!" Yura looks over her shoulder at them.
"Well, with how much you begged for me to make us all food, I had a feeling it would turn into a picnic." It was a white lie, but Araj was already not saying anything. If Aiya had said it was just what she had on her and she was just as surprised, Araj would assume it was because of her.
"Speaking of..." Yura flicks her tail in anticipation.
"Yes, yes..." Aiya sighs. "Spicy vegetable stir-fry for Araj, and cod chowder with lots of bacon for Yura." She pulls out each dish as it's mentioned, handing it to their recipients, before sitting down to join them, taking out her own- a strong beef stew.
The atmosphere turned completely into a picnic's as they talk. But, Aiya notices, Araj still isn't saying much, even by her standards. Aiya tries to engage her a few times, but Araj seems preoccupied. Finally, she just has to ask.
"Araj, is something wrong?" She tries to keep her voice light, but the concern is evident regardless. "You're not eating much."
"Ah..." Araj fidgets a bit as Aiya worries. She thought that was Araj's favorite, so something had to be up. Finally, she puts her fork down and looks away. "... Sorry. I made you two stop for me."
"Of course not, silly." Yura nudges her shoulder. "I told you, I was hungry."
"You stopped for this because I was tired, didn't you?" Araj finally looks up at them. "I'm holding you back, aren't I?"
Aiya and Yura share a glance again, of worry and confusion. "Of course not." Aiya says gently. "It's the opposite. You're doing a lot for us."
"But I'm not doing enough." Araj hangs her head. "I'm not as smart as Aiya or as skilled as Yura. I'm the lowest level of us all, and I can't make plans or solve puzzles or decide our actions..."
"Araj..." Aiya says her name softly. She had no idea Araj had been feeling that way.
"Could it be you haven't realized it yourself?" Yura seems surprised.
"What do you mean?" She asks, looking up.
"You're doing the most out of all of us, aren't you?" Aiya points out quietly. "You find all of the hidden traps, you do more damage than even I do, and you maintain it better. You're the one who puts our plans into action- Us being here is only possible because of you."
"That's right!" Yura chimes in. "Geez, Aiya took all the good lines, but it's true! You're like the center of our team!"
"You really think so...?" Araj asks hesitantly.
"Of course." Aiya smiles encouragingly. "If you don't believe us, why don't you watch the damage when what get to the boss? That should prove it."
They finish eating, and recharged, they continue further in. After their heart-to-heart, Araj is in much better form, and in the boss fight (a giant rock-eating troll), she carries the day, keeping the monster's attention while constantly staying out of its range. Aiya is hard-pressed to keep up even without doing anything but damage.
When the troll falls and dissolves, the girls finally relax again, and Araj looks more cheerful than ever. Even better, the treasure chest from the boss’s room turns out to have an incredibly powerful longbow in it, which they give to Araj without hesitation.
As they return to their homes and go their separate ways after this adventure, Aiya has mixed feelings. She remembers Araj’s smiling face at the end, how happy she was after they had talked to each other, and how much she had been doing for the party, and she stops to think to herself. Is she doing as much for the party as she should? Araj out-damages her, and Yura decides their actions… She solves puzzles, but what about in battle?
She tries to push this from her mind, but the fear of inadequacy has already taken hold, worrying her for the rest of the night.
Effects: So that's what being on that end of things feels like.
Notes: For the new snakes who haven't seen them yet: Yura is a Beast Tribe girl, which means she has cat ears and a tail, and Araj is an elf. There's also the vague undercurrent of a crush on Yura but nothing is ever really made of it in this memory and she doesn't seem aware of it.