Calm Waters [C]

[attr="class","sun"]A Foreign Sun *

I never thought I'd see

To be honest, a feathered figure skidding across the surface of the lake in an uncoordinated tumble was not what Fiamma expected to see when she turned her gaze out over the water. It was rather outside of what could be called 'the norm', actually. ...huh.

The fire magi's head tilted off on an angle as she watched the scene unfold (caught somewhere between intrigue and vague puzzlement) but the person she could now distinguish as a rather slim girl seemed to make it to dry land in one piece. The little display of frustration that followed was enough for Fiamma's bristling alarm to go slack all at once. Yeah, no— no threat detected. The new arrival was very obviously a magi and (though Fiamma always did like to exercise some healthy caution) her instincts weren't exactly screaming at her to remain on alert. More than anything she was just wondering what that whole mishap had been about.

❝It's fine.❞ She hadn't actually been able to make out the words the other girl had spoken, however she could wager a good guess as to what they'd been. The response was accompanied by Fiamma actually finishing her stalled cast, sending the line flying out smoothly over the water to land with a plunk, and she settled her grip on the fishing rod before glancing back towards her new conversation partner. A hand on the rod was really all that's needed to monitor it, so there was brain power left to spare. ❝Are you just learning to fly or—?❞

[attr="class","sun"]A Foreign Sun *

I never thought I'd see

❝You did go crashing into the water, but I just assumed that was because you were still learning to fly. Seemed like the most likely reason.❞ She turned her head to side eye the other magi through a few stray strands of crimson that fell across her eyes, just in time to catch the little display of flight she was being presented with. Amusement flashed clearly across Fiamma's expression in a bright spark and she even breathed out a wisp of laughter. Yes the feathered girl was definitely capable of using those wings. So then why had—?

...ah. Now that made a bit more sense. ❝Fishing.❞ Fiamma echoed, tone neutral save for a faint ring of that same amusement, turning another few cranks on the reel of her pole. If the hawks were out and about trying to snatch things out of the water then that was a good sign (as far as actually catching something was concerned) but so far her slow drawing in of the line hadn't attracted even a nibble. It didn't really bother her, though. A beautiful day to sit and enjoy and now some conversation, also she could always toss the net out a few times if nothing decided to bite which, incidentally, happened pretty often. This sort of routine was really the one time Fiamma could be described as anything close to patient.

She usually wasn't the conversational type towards strangers, either, but this girl— Cadence —seemed nice enough... if a little air headed. Haha. It would be a lie to say that her friendly demeanor and embarrassment didn't put Fiamma more at ease with each passing moment and, frankly, magi would always get the best first response from her since there was less risk they'd try to kill her out of prejudice. That tidbit always helped friendships go along a lot smoother, not that the fire magi had much experience. That would be a side effect of living out in the forest all alone.

❝I'm Fiamma. Did you come to the lake specifically to try aerial fishing, or was that more of a spur of the moment thing?❞

[attr="class","sun"]A Foreign Sun *

I never thought I'd see

Pretty? Now that was a new one, well— new to hear from anyone who wasn't her parents; something she hadn't heard in a few years now. ❝M'hmmm.❞ The temptation to make some snide, teasing comment on how the attempt hadn't looked very close to success from her point of view was potent, bringing the words to sit on the tip of Fiamma's tongue before ultimately getting no further. She just cracked another wordless smile rather than let anything slip free. There was something about Cadence's personality that made the fire magi feel that snarking her would feel like kicking a puppy.

Resisting the urge was a betrayal of her character in some ways, but Fiamma slipped back into one of her more common traits within the next few moments— silence. She was a quiet audience throughout Cadence's explanation (only nodding occasionally to make it obvious that she was still listening) and continued to intermittently draw the fishing line in closer and closer to the bank. Eventually the crank of the reel just picked up to a consistent clatter as she sought to fully pull it in, snatch the end of the line out of the air to inspect the bait (untouched), and draw the pole back for another cast. Off the hook went flying back over the water, winking in the sun, and hit the surface relatively far off into deeper water. Another soft 'plunk'ing sound.

The whole endeavor had caused Fiamma's attention to start to wander from the girl who was now wading in the shallows but the splash of Cadence's foot stomping into the water— not to mention her shout —was enough to remedy that in a snap. The fire magi sat up enough to be able to peek over at the other girl's feet but, alas, it seemed that it was another bust. You had to commend her determination. Hopefully she just never found herself in a life or death situation that depended on fishing skills. ❝I wouldn't know. It's probably just practice... or being an actual bird in the first place.❞

Not having wings herself, it wasn't like Fiamma had much of a perspective. There were times she had heard of fire magi using their magic to propel themselves along, even fly, but for Fiamma in particular she was still a bit far off from that. Maybe some day. That could be a nice dream to chase— the freedom of flying.

❝Haha, no not really. Maybe if I was using my net on the bank I would yell at you for it,❞ she patted the pile of woven rope by her side in indication. ❝but not with the pole. Truthfully I don't catch a whole lot this way if the fish just don't feel like biting. ...I live up in the Arecia Woods, so I have a few ways to get food.❞

[attr="class","sun"]A Foreign Sun *

I never thought I'd see

❝Maybe. Bigger fish would definitely give you more to sink your claws into. And I know that catching something like minnows is a godawful task even if you're using your hands.❞ Slippery bastards, it was endlessly frustrating to know that they made the best bait but were so hard to catch. She'd had to find a fine mesh material just to be able to start netting them and save herself the headache of trying to grab them out of the shallows. Never again.

❝I do.❞ It wasn't difficult to catch the melancholy note to Cadence's tone and Fiamma could wager a good guess as to the cause. Every magi had their own personal history, of course— their own circumstances that had unfolded in wake of the mass outbreak, changing their lives for better or worse —but there were certain things that had left scars on all of their kind. Things that couldn't simply be forgotten.

Fiamma followed a similar line of thinking to the other girl, though, and chose not to poke at the gloomy little blip to her tone. Instead the fire magi just reached into her pocket to dig out the ragged piece of flint that rested there (always on hand in case she needed to summon flame) and began to idly toy with it, tracing the grooves in its dark surface and rolling it along her palm, in between lazy glances back towards the fishing pole she still held in one hand. It'd been a while since she last practiced with her magic; a brief mental note was scribbled down to remedy that. ❝I've never really liked the cities, even without the... unfriendly people who live there considered,❞ Oh that was putting it nicely. Fiamma was tempted to use far more coarse language to describe them. ❝so I'm a lot happier in the Outlands. It's peaceful and I'm used to it.❞

❝...I've been living up here for eight years now. Five of them alone.❞

Now she was the one carrying a solemn note like leaden weights in her words. Haa, well, everyone had their darker memories to cart around and these were hers. Fiamma seemed unfazed beyond that one exception, however, and she was even sporting a mild smile when cobalt eyes roved back over to Cadence. ❝The flameberries are worth missing, I'll tell you that. But I can't say that I know about a peach grove growing around up here. ...huh. I've never had a peach, actually.❞

[attr="class","sun"]A Foreign Sun *

I never thought I'd see

❝Irritating beyond belief? Oh, it was.❞ The interruption didn't stop her from casually finishing the rest of the statement with her own thoughts. Grabbing at minnows was honestly something Fiamma never wanted to be stuck doing again. It was sweet relief to finally discover a better method, and usually she was very patient with all the tasks she needed to go about for just... surviving. Laying down traps, purifying water, gathering from the forest; all of these things could get to be very time consuming but Fiamma was accustomed to doing it all for the fact that it had to be done if she wanted to, you know, go on living. Independently, at least. It had never been a problem for her with the knowledge her parents had bestowed upon the young magi (as well as a hell of a lot of practice until she figured it all out) and, even with her short temper, it was rare to find a day-to-day task that Fiamma straight up hated having to do.

Damn minnows. She would choose trips into the heart of Felici to be stared at like a circus attraction by every passing human over having to catch them by hand again.

Reminiscing over her trials with the little fish had Fiamma's lips twisting into a bitter grimace, but that gave way relatively quickly for another soft flash of amusement at what Cadence was up to. The fire magi peered surreptitiously over the rock to get a better look at the other girl's attempt to play nice with the tiny bastards until the topic of conversation was shifting. Curiosity lit indigo eyes in a bright glimmer as Fiamma flit her gaze over the dangling key and she was, thankfully, treated to an explanation of its purpose a moment later. ❝You play them now?❞ Music— now that was something she heard very little of out in the forest. She could be corny and consider 'the birdsong and sounds of the river a beautiful tune in its own right' but come on, nature's chattering didn't really compare to an instrument's sound.

It was making her a bit wistful to think of music— of songs sung softly or joyously, in many voices to keep happiness alive when days within the camp walls were particularly gray —and the mention of family... it did hurt a bit. More like an ache, like an old wound deep in her chest. Cadence's unrelenting cheer did help, though, and Fiamma was experienced enough in schooling her features to neutrality that very little of it leaked out. She was just, a little sad is all. Yet ironically she huffed a laugh in response to the question.

❝I'm used to it. After years of living alone I usually end up antsy when there's a lot of people around; being alone is... normal. I manage fine that way, anyway.❞ An evasive answer, surely, but she didn't seem inclined to speak about it any further.

Good thing she wasn't being pressed about it. The resurgence of Cadence's energetic mannerisms was a welcome change (shooing the cobwebs of melancholy away quite nicely) and Fiamma blinked at her contemplatively. ...lead her to them? That would mean showing someone where she lived, for the first time. Was she okay with that? Well, Fiamma actually wasn't feeling any huge urge to recoil for the concept or drive the other magi away in fire. It was just... new. ❝Hmm. I guess, if you were planning to head into the forest anyway. It would eat at me to know that there's a worthwhile part of the forest that I haven't gotten to see yet after being here for this long.❞ Yeah, okay. Fiamma's clawed fingers began to steadily reel the line in for a second time in preparation to call it quits for the day and her eyes wandered, a strange sort of expression sliding into place. A small, thin smile and a furrow between her brows that betrayed the extent to which she was mulling over the concept.

[attr="class","sun"]A Foreign Sun *

I never thought I'd see

So she has wings like a bird and tweets like one too. The sharp, upward arch of Fiamma's eyebrows was enough indication that she was impressed by Cadence's claim of being so well versed in music. It might not have ever been a part of her personal skill set— wringing a nice tune out of instruments like they were made to be in her hands —but the fire magi had always enjoyed listening to those who could when she got the chance. Yes, her wheelhouse was more geared towards wielding claws and flame. The utility didn't exactly match up to fighting strength, either, yet she still admired the people who had taken the time to learn the art. Sometimes things in the forest got a little too quiet.

It only helped that Cadence was so... enthusiastic about it. About everything, really. This wasn't the first time during their chat that Fiamma had found herself wondering where she was getting all that cheer (the girl practically radiated friendliness like sunbeams, for Arithelia's sake) and it was difficult to feel any sort of negativity in the presence of all those good vibes. She also found it hard to get a word in edgewise once Cadence went off on her excited tirade before ultimately just giving up on commenting, since the other magi was already up in the air anyway. She sighed and gave her head an incredulous shake— now how did I get myself into this situation.

Another few moments passed in the time it took Fiamma to fully reel her line in and she promptly swung it in so she could grab at the end again, squinting at the hook which was now depressingly bare of both bait and catch. Not that she'd expected the latter to just suddenly appear there. Maybe something had been nibbling at it when she'd been distracted (as rare of an occurrence that was) which was really the only explanation save for the bait managing to fall off. Unlikely. Well, it's not like Fiamma was particularly disappointed— pole fishing never caught her much on a good day. With that done the fire magi could then go about gathering together the rest of her possessions; tucking the flint safely back into her pocket, folding up the net, and getting the pole set to carry.

She was getting to her feet when Cadence touched back down. ...oh she's just now feeling embarrassed? How cute. ❝Interrupting? Technically you might have, but I'm not pressed for food or anything so there's nothing to worry about. I came down to the lake more just because I wanted to.❞ Very honest, which was the norm from Fiamma. There was no sense in trekking all the way here without bringing fishing supplies along to do something useful with the time, but she wasn't bothered by the thought of bringing nothing back now. Hauling fish was always a chore, not to mention the fact that she'd have to store them, put the equipment away, and wash the fishy stink off her hands. Not a very enticing concept. Also— she was being promised peaches in exchange. Sounded like a win-win. ❝I'm alright to head back.❞

❝My house isn't that far of a walk from here.❞ She flashed another amused quirk of a smile and moved to start walking toward the treeline.