Eternity RPC Board
09-14-2016, 12:00 AM
Nevina contained a snort at the mention of magic being heretical; such a silly Sidgardian mentality, to carefully scruitinize the sciences and deem certain practices as an evil taboo based upon the degree to which they challenge the Order's position of power. Not insulting, no, as she fully understood that someone like Elke, having grown in a place that was ruled by such norms, would grow to mirror those sorts of ideas if that was all she was taught, but the idea of restricting certain knowledge in some vain attempt to control the progress of science and protect the monopoly of power in the disparate realms felt silly to the elf. A silly norm endemic to the Order, a cancer unleashed upon the world at large as they spread themselves to new lands bullied anyone who did not think exactly as themselves.
But that was neither here nor there, and Nevina reined in her wandering thoughts to the present question at hand.
"Absolutely not."
Nevina's matter-of-fact reply swiftly followed Elke's stammered request while holding her gold-rimmed cup before her lips. She didn't need time to consider what was asked of her, the reply coming almost on instinct. What reason did she have to accept asside from a desire to be a little more personable, or perhaps let the poor girl down east and not be so rough with her feelings? Hah! Nevina didn't know this person, and felt no obligation or impulse to fulfill any wish anyone with half a mind dared to present before her. Rightfully so! She might add; she had her own mission and plans to attend, and who's to say she could afford to be derailed into spending the time or inclination to tutor some barely-learned updstart mageling?
Was Elke even that, though? The girl had explained a little of her origin and long trek to Nevina - her childhood in the wilderness of Sidgard, an education in alchemy from her parents, her proper schooling with one of a pletora of so-called "colleges," spending weeks on end in an exhaustive search across vast expanses of dangerous terrain in some childish pursuit of exaggerated half-truth wrapped in a shell of myth and legend - but had been particularly sparse in the telling of anything that did not pertain to how "fantastically cool" she thought this person she'd never met might be. Nevina wasn't a stranger to this kind of story; often the curious son of a farmer or a merchant's daughter occasionally attempted to leave their sad, boring, mundane lives and begged to travel with their newfound idols to learn of the ways of the Cult, full of wonderment and adoration for the attested "miracles" performed by a member they saw in passing or heard about from acquaintance. Nearly all such people were denied and sent back to their lives and loved ones, their impulsive decisions often seen for what they are: a fad, a whim prone to the distracting and debilitating effects of homesickness, as the life of the Cult begins to eat at their attachments to past friends and family.
Here, however, was not someone hoping to find a new life or escaping a dull existence or seeking some silly manner of vain glory. Well, actually, it was quite clear from every indication Elke gave that she most certainly was seeking the whole "excitement and adventure" thing, but beneath that, in the twinkle of Elke's eye one might catch a glimpse of a heartfelt inquisitiveness, a desire to learn new and interesting things.
Nevina sighed into her cup after finishing the last sips of her tea, and gazed down into the vessel's twiggy, rust-colored remains as she pulled it away from her lips. She could already see the disbelieving twinges of disappointment manifesting on the edges of the girl's expression, a delayed-shock that all the long days of traveling and the enthusiastic buttering of the elf as her blind idol could possibly be met with such swift and cool denial. For her part, Nevina did not wish to sound callous, but only a select few responses could deny Elke her request...yet none occured until after the words were already spoken, and she once again lamented her lack of social means.
The elf softly set her cup upon the heavy oaken table and reached for the small kettle Forlag had brought moments earlier. She kept her eyes on her task as she continued. "I am sorry, you seem very nice, but you had a family. And friends, if I do remember? Go back to them, please. Have you thought about what they must be feeling, with you away for so long? Have you even sent them word?"
Nevina paused for a moment, placing the pot back upon the table, and placing the warm cup back into her hands; she glanced across the table, before looking back into the murky waters she clutched close to her chest. "My tasks, my travels, everything I know could place you in danger, not only now but when you return. Even speaking with me, should the...'wrong' people be near, could cause you inconvenience. Maybe harm. I couldn't do that to you, to your family and friends. You may not see it now, blinded by admiration for something oyu barely understand, but such things are the most important in your life; go back to them. Continue your studies at your college, and forget this foolish request. For their sake."
"I, for one, think it's a fantastic learning opportunity for the both of you," came a raspy, dry, crackly voice from behind her, and wheeler her head around to spot Forlag as he waddled between ailes of chairs carrying yet another platter, this time with a wide-ranging array of various small confections, a mess of matted gray hairs upon piles of deeply-pressed and pitted wrinkles barely visible above the gilded acorn-laced oakenwork. Reaching their seats, the little man slid the platter upon the table - an assortment of powdered, glazed, roasted, toasted confections of varying nuts, flours, flowers, fruits, and candies assailing the eyes and appetities on a myriad of pastels - and literally hopped into a nearby chair, a small "oof" puffing out of his stout form as he landed rump-first upon the cushion; with a wrinkle and shake of his nose, his selected chair quietly edged forward, the kettle pouring a cup of the brew and floating serenely towards him while he reached for a tiny round of a cookie.
Nevina, for her part, rolled her eyes with an audible huff of breath through her nose, as much at the eccentric wizard's display as at his words. Of course the lecherous old coot would fancy Elke staying. "I am neither a teacher, nor am I a daycare. I have jobs to perform."
"You can be the student then, and learn to be the teacher. It's all the same," Forlag responded, courtesy of a mouthful of cookie, a grin, and a raised bushy eyebrow.
Of course, Nevina was not in the least amused with him, and she set her tea upon the table while gesturing towards Elke with one hand. "Do not use her as one of your lessons, she's a child. Magic is not a toy, it is not a curiosity, it's a tool, Forlag; you and I know it's dangers, but does she? Doubtful, and I will not" - Nevina emphasized, tapping the fingertops of one hand upon the table - "be responsible for the health and wellbeing of a child when it's hard enough to look after one's own."
But that was neither here nor there, and Nevina reined in her wandering thoughts to the present question at hand.
"Absolutely not."
Nevina's matter-of-fact reply swiftly followed Elke's stammered request while holding her gold-rimmed cup before her lips. She didn't need time to consider what was asked of her, the reply coming almost on instinct. What reason did she have to accept asside from a desire to be a little more personable, or perhaps let the poor girl down east and not be so rough with her feelings? Hah! Nevina didn't know this person, and felt no obligation or impulse to fulfill any wish anyone with half a mind dared to present before her. Rightfully so! She might add; she had her own mission and plans to attend, and who's to say she could afford to be derailed into spending the time or inclination to tutor some barely-learned updstart mageling?
Was Elke even that, though? The girl had explained a little of her origin and long trek to Nevina - her childhood in the wilderness of Sidgard, an education in alchemy from her parents, her proper schooling with one of a pletora of so-called "colleges," spending weeks on end in an exhaustive search across vast expanses of dangerous terrain in some childish pursuit of exaggerated half-truth wrapped in a shell of myth and legend - but had been particularly sparse in the telling of anything that did not pertain to how "fantastically cool" she thought this person she'd never met might be. Nevina wasn't a stranger to this kind of story; often the curious son of a farmer or a merchant's daughter occasionally attempted to leave their sad, boring, mundane lives and begged to travel with their newfound idols to learn of the ways of the Cult, full of wonderment and adoration for the attested "miracles" performed by a member they saw in passing or heard about from acquaintance. Nearly all such people were denied and sent back to their lives and loved ones, their impulsive decisions often seen for what they are: a fad, a whim prone to the distracting and debilitating effects of homesickness, as the life of the Cult begins to eat at their attachments to past friends and family.
Here, however, was not someone hoping to find a new life or escaping a dull existence or seeking some silly manner of vain glory. Well, actually, it was quite clear from every indication Elke gave that she most certainly was seeking the whole "excitement and adventure" thing, but beneath that, in the twinkle of Elke's eye one might catch a glimpse of a heartfelt inquisitiveness, a desire to learn new and interesting things.
Nevina sighed into her cup after finishing the last sips of her tea, and gazed down into the vessel's twiggy, rust-colored remains as she pulled it away from her lips. She could already see the disbelieving twinges of disappointment manifesting on the edges of the girl's expression, a delayed-shock that all the long days of traveling and the enthusiastic buttering of the elf as her blind idol could possibly be met with such swift and cool denial. For her part, Nevina did not wish to sound callous, but only a select few responses could deny Elke her request...yet none occured until after the words were already spoken, and she once again lamented her lack of social means.
The elf softly set her cup upon the heavy oaken table and reached for the small kettle Forlag had brought moments earlier. She kept her eyes on her task as she continued. "I am sorry, you seem very nice, but you had a family. And friends, if I do remember? Go back to them, please. Have you thought about what they must be feeling, with you away for so long? Have you even sent them word?"
Nevina paused for a moment, placing the pot back upon the table, and placing the warm cup back into her hands; she glanced across the table, before looking back into the murky waters she clutched close to her chest. "My tasks, my travels, everything I know could place you in danger, not only now but when you return. Even speaking with me, should the...'wrong' people be near, could cause you inconvenience. Maybe harm. I couldn't do that to you, to your family and friends. You may not see it now, blinded by admiration for something oyu barely understand, but such things are the most important in your life; go back to them. Continue your studies at your college, and forget this foolish request. For their sake."
"I, for one, think it's a fantastic learning opportunity for the both of you," came a raspy, dry, crackly voice from behind her, and wheeler her head around to spot Forlag as he waddled between ailes of chairs carrying yet another platter, this time with a wide-ranging array of various small confections, a mess of matted gray hairs upon piles of deeply-pressed and pitted wrinkles barely visible above the gilded acorn-laced oakenwork. Reaching their seats, the little man slid the platter upon the table - an assortment of powdered, glazed, roasted, toasted confections of varying nuts, flours, flowers, fruits, and candies assailing the eyes and appetities on a myriad of pastels - and literally hopped into a nearby chair, a small "oof" puffing out of his stout form as he landed rump-first upon the cushion; with a wrinkle and shake of his nose, his selected chair quietly edged forward, the kettle pouring a cup of the brew and floating serenely towards him while he reached for a tiny round of a cookie.
Nevina, for her part, rolled her eyes with an audible huff of breath through her nose, as much at the eccentric wizard's display as at his words. Of course the lecherous old coot would fancy Elke staying. "I am neither a teacher, nor am I a daycare. I have jobs to perform."
"You can be the student then, and learn to be the teacher. It's all the same," Forlag responded, courtesy of a mouthful of cookie, a grin, and a raised bushy eyebrow.
Of course, Nevina was not in the least amused with him, and she set her tea upon the table while gesturing towards Elke with one hand. "Do not use her as one of your lessons, she's a child. Magic is not a toy, it is not a curiosity, it's a tool, Forlag; you and I know it's dangers, but does she? Doubtful, and I will not" - Nevina emphasized, tapping the fingertops of one hand upon the table - "be responsible for the health and wellbeing of a child when it's hard enough to look after one's own."