Nope's Peak [Day 4 Date] Reyson

[pecker]

[Being matched with Reyson was completely unsurprising, after the flustered mess they got into before sorting out the lap petting. Those damn chinchillas really were watching them all like hawks... she can't deny that she's more comfortable being around someone that's at least as avian as they are human. Ryouka was never in her life asked to backstab a bird. Saying that's a reason they can be friends would likely be going too far, but it's not like everyone has to be a foe either. So all in all, she's fairly happy, especially seeing the efforts Reyson's gone to to eliminate the prison atmosphere. A sheet drawn over the bars, a rug along the floor, and even a tablecloth for the small table... it still feels more like a stage set than an actual room, but in at least one sense that's fitting for her too. And for Reyson, who's going to ... sing? She didn't actually ask him what music meant. She will look past him curiously for any kind of instrument, as she's delivered on her end of bringing a snack. Differentiating herself from Ruler, she wound up baking some fruit and nut cookies.... and also some sliced apples, just in case that didn't go over well. She'd learned recently that food was actually a riskier gamble than expected.]

Not bad. I-I like what you've done with the place...!

[Comes out a little awkwardly, since it's not like this is actually Reyson's house. The tray she was carrying these on is set down on the table as she timidly approaches. She's also changed into one of her sets of spare clothes - the outfit she wore is a dark fuchsia dress suit that's quite similar to one she would wear in the past. It's nothing too fancy, decidedly more modest than her warrior outfit. Too bad if he misses her abs.]

Comments

[aria_ardeinae]

Barely of age, to a heron. We make up for our lack of strength with another form of vitality. If you wish to do the mathematics, we age at about - hm, what was it? One year would equal five of yours?

[pecker]

[does math then!!]

....Oh! So we're roughly the same age! Depending... on when you left. Pretty recently, is it?

[aria_ardeinae]

It feels like a lifetime ago - but it's only been twenty-five years.

[ Eating a second cookie at this point, they're good. ]

[pecker]

That's going to take some getting used to, ehehe.

[She'll take an apple slice since he likes the cookies well enough. Better not to let these go to waste, and she's content letting Reyson eat as many of the cookies as he wants... he is the one who gave her food advice after all. She will beat him at his own game!!]

So, did you pick up the harp after you left too?

[aria_ardeinae]

No, I learned how to play at a young age - but I only started collecting other instruments after I left.

[ Pours out some water from the pitcher on the table onto a napkin and sets about wiping his fingers. He takes harp cleanliness seriously, after all. ]

One of the pirates brought me a simple harp back from a raid, since I missed mine from home, and once word got out that I liked music, that was that.

[pecker]

I guess they would keep bringing you more instruments after that. Once you show a talent, you have no choice but to keep mastering it...

[Munching the apple slice delicately, she states that like it's a simple fact of life.]

[aria_ardeinae]

Herons are known for their songs. To have me silent must have been terribly unnerving.

[ That's a grim way of putting it, but he supposes it's accurate. Once you know you have talent, why wouldn't you refine it? ]

You have talents of your own?

[pecker]

Ah. [Yeah, she can see how he got that. She puts on a nervous smile.]

I do, but... y-you might think it's kind of weird...

[aria_ardeinae]

I'm odd myself, by most standards here.

[ If she really doesn't want to talk about it, he won't interrogate her, but... all this talk about him, shouldn't it go both ways? ]

[pecker]

[True, she figured out pretty quickly that Reyson is not the type who just wants to talk about himself and look at a beautiful woman.]

Well... w-we're friends, right? So maybe it's fine if you really wanna know.

[She folds her hands on the table.]

I have an... ability more than a talent, really, called Eye of the Cormorant. I-It lets me see through the eyes of birds... Because of that, I guess you could say that my talent is being a spy.

[And there's a wry smile as she says that.]

Now you know why I was looking for some on the first day...

[aria_ardeinae]

Ah, that's handy! [ Regular birds aren't the same as, you know, people who are birds. It hasn't even occurred to him that he might count. And he's happy to have been called a friend, so. ] I imagine smaller, less obvious birds would be a match for even the crows.

[pecker]

[Well, you never know what could be offensive to an unknown culture, but seeing his delighted reaction she imagines it was comparable to telling a regular human you control monkeys. Anyway, she still has no idea if her power would work through him. She can't even make the chick do anything yet.]

Yea, a tiny bird like a sparrow is really good for short distance info gathering! Though crows have their own strong points. T-They're smart enough to use tools, so they can sometimes be like my hands as well as my eyes, and there's often a lot of them around if you spot one... I like crows a lot.

[smile smile.]

They do tend to pick on herons though... well, call me if that's a problem.

[aria_ardeinae]

Knowing crows, I imagine they demand payment for their trouble. Even the smaller ones like their snacks and trinkets, and the crow laguz are the worst opportunists I've ever met.

[ He says this with about equal indignation and fondness. ]

...The smaller ones also like having long hair for their nests. They'd come in through the windows and carry off combs. I can't even count the times Naesala had to rescue mine.

[pecker]

Ehehe, you're right. Usually when they're done helping me, they get a nice big meal.

[It's not cookies though... she bites into a particularly crunchy apple slice, giggles in amusement at the comb story.]

Are there Laguz for every kind of bird? Now I'm going to wonder what the rest of mine would be like...

[aria_ardeinae]

I know of only three tribes, but I thought the same of the beasts before the wolves came from across the great desert. [ He snags an apple slice, for variety. ] If you were a bird yourself, what form would you have?

[pecker]

[Niwatori smiles.]

Good question. Do you want a real answer or a dating show answer?

[aria_ardeinae]

If you tell me there's a true answer, I'd prefer that to a pretty falsehood. [ He's enjoying the conversation, he doesn't want it to turn fake. ]

[pecker]

[Pretty is likable. She would have come up with something better if he answered that. But now, she nods.]

Then a chicken. Or... maybe one of the brood parasite species. Either one would reflect my upbringing impeccably. That's really what counts the most here, I think.

[aria_ardeinae]

A... chicken? [ That's not a flattering choice. Neither of them are. It's definitely an interesting choice. He's thinking hard about it. ] Or... ah, like a cuckoo, I'm familiar with those. The difference between a wild bird and a tame one is fairly important, isn't it?

[pecker]

Hmm... well, if we're talking bird people, t-then it'd be weird for any of them to be considered domesticated, huh...?

So we could focus on the cuckoo. Although, I hope that doesn't make me sound crazy! It's just that brood parasites have to trick everyone around them to survive. That's, um, pretty fitting for a spy.

[Worried she'd lose him with that, she puts her hands up suddenly in reassurance.]

B-But it's not like it's such a bad thing either! There was a study in which crows' nests were found to be more successful if they contained a parasite... the cuckoo chick had, um, a secretion that repelled predators. And... I intend to be successful for my adopted family too. Does that make sense?

[aria_ardeinae]

You're awfully forthright, for a spy. I'd never have guessed at your profession - which I suppose speaks well of your ability.

[ Any kingdom needs to have spies to succeed; it's not like she's spying on him, personally. And she seems self-conscious about it, so it's best to put her at ease. ]

This is the first I'm hearing of this cuckoo ability, however - so they possess a hidden sense of duty, despite their reputation...

[ Reyson wipes his fingers off again, just to be sure, and picks up the harp. A cuckoo raised by crows, he's got a song in mind suitable for someone like that. ]

[pecker]

Well... I'm off duty right now, and you're from such a distant place anyway. I just feel like I can easily talk to you. I-I appreciate the compliment...!

[Of course, gaining people's trust is something she's always been equipped to do... it's just a little difference that she doesn't have some kind of sinister goal motivating it. A difference that she still doesn't know what to think about. But she shows interest when he picks up the instrument.]

Oh, did you just think of something to play?

[aria_ardeinae]

Yes - it's a modern piece. My brother composed it, to honor a friend of his.

[ It's a delicate, melancholy tune, written while thinking about someone being slowly bled dry by a duty he hadn't been born into. He doesn't have the backup instruments, so it's not as rich as it could be, but the backbone's played with enough skill and feeling to convey the heart. ]

[pecker]

To honor a friend...

[Like a memorial? she naturally wonders as she repeats him. Niwatori sits attentively, watching his fingers glide across the strings, but also, how he looks as he's wringing out this sorrowful melody. As it fills the room, she finds it a fairly comfortable mood to reside in. It neither wrenches her heart out of its proper place, nor grates on her nerves. Her own face is somewhat blank, like she's emptied herself to take in the visual-audio information. In a less literal sense, perhaps she is still trying to see through his eyes.]