• Memory • Pelagic Playground III

[Pyrre Ej'qy]

81 Ymiden 713

continued from here and here

Once the giggle fit that had previously seized the two siblings had passed, GalePyrre's birthname reached above himself - and back to the rock that held their haul of foraged shellfish - to gnab a limpet and used a spent shell to pry the meat free, ignoring Quay’s judgemental look and blow of lips at his way of doing things.

“U’frek give me patience, you are so hopeless,” She teased, giving his head a playful shove before making a move to seize his jaw.

He tried to elbow her hand away with a strained laugh, leaning away from her.

“What’ll you ever do without me, hm? Hmmmmm?”

A silly shoving match ensued before, finally, Gale swung his torso in an exaggerated fashion back in her direction, knocking shoulders with her. But instead of bouncing off, he held firm against her and wrapped his arms around her own toned limb, holding tight before lowering his chin to her shoulder, peering up at her with an annoying grin.

"You can't get rid of me.. I'm like a barnacle." He explained, voice intentionally irritating as he hugged her arm a bit tighter for effect, “always attached.” It was a light way to sidestep the difficult topic of her imminent departure but they had been dancing around it now that they were older and increasingly more aware of their futures.

“Ug,” she replied in mock disgust, making an intentionally feeble attempt to extract her arm while leaning her head away.

His voice was his own again, if not a little softer, as he traded the stranglehold he had on her arm for a more relaxed linking of arms while he reclined comfortably against her frame, “I’ll find you, eventually.”

Quay, to her credit, kept the tone light despite her words as she, too, relaxed and leant her cheek against his head while gazing out across the glittering surface of the bay, “But if I am gone? Sailing all around the Orm’del Sea… How do you propose you’ll find me, then?” Her brows rose as her attention shifted back to him.

Gale made a thoughtful frown and quipped matter-of-factly, “Barnacles like things that move around a lot.”

He felt her laugh before he heard it, her body jolting with it despite it only being a huff that turned into a sigh.

“You’re such an idiot,” she remarked with a lazy grin as she gently unlinked their arms so she could wrap her long tanned limb over his shoulder.

Gale took the opportunity to shift his position, twisting his back more towards her so he could settle back against her chest, his head coming to rest under her chin as her arm hung comfortably across his own chest.

His fingers moved up her arm absently, simply enjoying the moment and the connection. It was rare they got to share small moments like this these days now that they were of an age where they were expected to carry out more responsibilities and Gale was happy to savour it. Perhaps it was callow of them - of him - to believe they could be reunited one day but Gale didn’t want to think about life without her. Even the thought of leaving the crew and ship - his family and home - behind when it was his turn to take his leave was almost too much to consider. He wondered, curiously, how she felt about it all and his brows perked as he glanced skyward - whether to her or the blue above.

He felt her tip her head, heard the soft jingle of shells and beads and bells woven into strands of her wavey, wind-blown hair and felt a bit of it fall over his shoulder, yet she remained unusually silent. It made their earlier conversation sit heavy within him, and he began to really contemplate ways to answer her question - ways to find her once it was his chance to follow in her footsteps and leave.

[Pyrre Ej'qy]

a note on links

Please note, some Blackbrine lore is mentioned (and linked) throughout this post. Neither Gale (Pyrre) nor his older sister, Quay, know of Blackbrine or that some of the ways they were raised were in keeping with Blackbrine culture and teachings (with some small changes to fit his clan's lifestyle). They're under the impression that everything they have experienced up until this point is purely Biqaj and have never had any reason to think otherwise. If you're interested, I vaguely alluded to why this blended way of life came to be in his history! Thanks for giving this a read xx

“We could use the stars to set a meeting place?” His youthful optimism rolled off him in waves.

He felt her chest rise and fall as she considered this.

“Maybe go off Rivor, the north starLast paragraph mentions Rivor, Vihara and Sigon?” Surely, with U’frek’s guiding hand and Xiur’s stars, the pair could find a way to reunite. He imagined himself, following the stars like his ancestors until they lined up just so and -

“Rivor?” Her question smashed his daydream like a leviathan.

Confused at her confusion, he scrambled into an upright position and faced her, wondering how on U’frek’s blue seas she managed to forget about the blue north star.

“Rivor,” he repeated with considerably less confidence. “Like Wyck taught us?” Surely their father passed his worldly knowledge of Xiur’s gifts on to her as the rough seadog had to himself. Then, he continued, words dropping out in a self-conscious rush, feeling compelled to make it all make sense, “The blue night star that stays still while Vihara-”

“Wait - You mean Sigon, the south star?” she interjected, a bit of bite to her words.

“Sigon?” It was his turn to look clueless.

“Yeah, Sigon, the red south star. It’s always in the sky.” Her words continued to have bite, “and Vihara is the wandering white star.”

Gale made a face at this.

Quay’s mood had soured rapidly and Gale could physically feel her irritation.

“Okay,” he offered, trying to keep things calm and neutral as his mind worked on an explanation, “so there are three stars?”

“Of course the Captain wouldn’t teach me them all,” she began muttering bitterly to herself, her attention shifting inward and eyes on their family's brig that was anchored just outside the bay.

Gale quickly jumped in, hoping to turn the conversation around, “Maybe he did it intentionally?"

Then, in that rapid-fire, speaking-before-really-thinking way he had spoken in earlier, "Th-Three stars, three children," he pointed to his index and then middle finger as she rattled on, only pausing before he pointed to his ring finger in something of a eureka moment, eyes lighting up as he looked at her and exclaimed, "Three combinations!” As much as this sudden connection made sense to him, his delivery wasn’t too confident.

However, the long pause that followed gave him hope she was considering it.

“You think he intentionally left out one star with each of us-”

Gale began to nod.

“-Instead of intentionally only leaving one star out for the two of us but teaching Peak all three?” Her jealousy tinged her words.

Gale sighed and shut his eyes.

“Maybe ask Peak what ones he-”

She scoffed derisively.

Gale redirected once more, “Maybe it’s a puzzle!” His words raced out before his brain could really give the ideas much thought, “Maybe he knew we would covet this information and guard it like treasure and not share it amongst ourselves!” And then, voice hitching as he really got ahead of himself, excitement bubbling up, “Maybe there’s treasure there and he doesn’t want us finding it!!”

Quay eyed him strangely for a long while, the colours of her eyes constantly shifting like an octopus changing its skin, her emotions in a flux. He felt pinned there under her scrutinising stare and wisely held his tongue. If anyone of the three were like their mercurial father, it was Quay, and he wasn’t about to test her moods.

Finally, after what felt like breaks, she added with sly satisfaction, “Maybe there is treasure there.”

Gale let go of a breath he hadn’t realised he was holding and gave a cautious grin.

They continued to conspire about what their father had been hiding from them and that easy comfort that had existed before slowly returned to embrace them. They resumed their places next to one another, crossed legs touching, and Gale attempted to draw the stars in the wet sand next to him, then a big curved thing that he explained was an island.

“It has to be what’s there. An island with buried treasure,” he insisted.

Quay looked skeptical for a moment and then splashed water at his infantile scratchings. “Sure but… when was the last time you saw the Captain go ashore?” She questioned, poking a huge hole in his theory.

He deflated instantly.

“I don’t think there’s an island,” she reasoned, “but I think there’s something there.” Then, for Gale’s benefit, “Probably treasure.” Her smile was cat-like.

“So, what?” he questioned, trying to think of a way to hide treasure that would keep it in one place that wasn’t a chest in the ground, “You think he has treasure out there… just floating?” He was incredulous.

“Maybe?” She shrugged, equally uncertain yet had enough bravado that it really didn’t matter. “Maybe when you find me, I’ll have the answer,” she grinned, big and toothy.

He huffed.

She laughed and drew him in, smothering him in a hug.

[Jackalope]

]

General comments

I would like to ask in the future that you *not* ‘err on the side of caution’ by requesting extra knowledges. Going forward, just request exactly what you’re looking for, no more, no less. If there’s a problem with it, you can work it out with the reviewer. I have no problem with the Navigation knowledge. Although it’s theoretical (Gale and Quay don’t show that they can actually *find* anything using the stars) it’s still a relevant knowledge. So I awarded it and cut out the last Socilaization knowledge.

That aside, I liked this memory thread, along with its predecessor. Gale and Quay’s interactions are so warm and touching. It’s bittersweet when Gale and Quay both realize that they’re both growing up and will be parting ways soon.

I also appreciate how they both promptly distract themselves from planning how to find one another again to thinking about where the Captain may have hidden pirate treasure, and how they childishly decided that the Captain’s haphazard sharing of Blackbrine sea lore with them concealed some grand nefarious scheme.

Enjoy your rewards!

Pyrre Ej'qy

• XP: 10
• Knowledges:
  • Socialization: Affection and humor can lighten a heavy topic
  • Socialization: Using witty rhetoric and logic to persuade
  • Logistics: Coming up with a plan
  • Navigation: Using the movement and position of known celestial bodies to locate an area
  • Investigation: Elaborate on what you know when seeking clarification
  • Investigation: Making sense of the information you have