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Dependent RP Blog for Tataru Taru of FFXIV! Associated with @witchofthescions and @sageofthescions

[bookkeeperofthescions]

((Well come and well met! It's IBB here with another RP blog, this time for Tataru Taru of Final Fantasy XIV! She's associated with the Warriors of Light at @witchofthescions and @sageofthescions! This is a sideblog, so all follows back will come from @murasakiibb.

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[bookkeeperofthescions]

Well, it's good to know Ernastral's made it to the other side safely! This… pixie is certainly an interesting little fellow, though.

[witchofthescions]

I hope they aren't causing you too much trouble over there!

[bookkeeperofthescions]

Oh no, they've mostly been poking at various things and asking "what's this?" "What's that?"

They did get a bit too close to the sharp end of Svaran's scythe for comfort, though. He had to shoo them away before they started poking at it.

[bookkeeperofthescions]

Well, it's good to know Ernastral's made it to the other side safely! This… pixie is certainly an interesting little fellow, though.

[bookkeeperofthescions]

We found the beacon, and it seems to have whisked Ernastral off to… wherever it's meant to take her. I just hope she'll be alright. And that she'll be able to help our friends get back home safe and sound.

[bookkeeperofthescions]

Apologies for not checking in on here for a while. And by a while I mean... oh dear, the better part of a year? I've been busy helping with the excavation, but there's been some progress on that front! We might have found a passageway that will bring us closer to the Crystal Tower and, hopefully, that beacon we've been looking for.

[bookkeeperofthescions]

On the one hand, Estinien recognized that abandoning Hirskfedar like this was in rather poor taste. On the other hand, he wanted no part of whatever scheme the two Lalafellan maidens pursuing him had in store for them, and knew that Hirskfedar would be all too willing to simply go along with it despite Estinien's objections.

So he had taken to the rooftops of Kugane, intending to evade the trio all night if he had to until he could board a ship and slip away from the city. Evading the two land-bound maidens was easy enough, but the fellow dragoon would be more of a challenge and he knew it. The only advantage Estinien had was the fact that he had a few more years' worth of experience than the younger Roegadyn, and so knew he could take risks that the ever cautious Hirskfedar would be loath to take. On the other hand, loath as Estinien was to admit it, Hirskfedar had always been slightly more skilled despite his advanced experience.

Either way, all Estinien had to do was find paths that Hirskfedar would be less willing to risk, either due to his higher weight as a muscular Roegadyn, or simply through taking larger leaps than the man was willing to chance. As long as Estinien stayed out of Hirskfedar's range, Hirskfedar wouldn't be able to jump on and pin him to the ground—like the first time they'd met after the Nidhogg debacle.

Estinien paused on the roof of Kugane Castle, momentarily satisfied that he'd successfully given his pursuers the slip. He absentmindedly retrieved his serving of surume—sun-dried squid—from his pocket, raising it to his mouth... and found himself staring as the two Lalafells emerged from a nearby walkway. He cursed under his breath. How in the seven hells had they managed to catch up to him again already?

As he witnessed Hirskfedar leaping across the rooftops towards him, it dawned on Estinien that the two maidens might have a damn good reason for enlisting their aid. But that thought quickly faded; whether it was the wine he'd consumed earlier or simply his own stubborn nature, their dogged pursuit simply made him more determined to evade them.

And so, as he watched Hirskfedar hesitate, sizing up the considerable gap between his current position and the rooftop upon which Estinien was currently situated, he stepped off the rooftop and dropped down to the ground to continue his escape.

The grey of dawn slowly overtook the sky as Estinien sized up his next jump. A boat, the Kuroboro Maru, sat in port, waiting to depart. The jump wasn't too far; Estinien would have no trouble making it. The problem was, it was also an easy jump for Hirskfedar, too. And the man was swiftly gaining on Estinien. He had a choice to make: risk the jump, or find another ship that was further away and closer to departure.

Estinien decided to risk it.

He promptly regretted this decision the moment he felt Hirskfedar's heavy form slam into his side.

For a mercy, the Roegadyn ensured he would be the one to hit the ground first, as he'd be much better able to weather the weight of Estinien's much slimmer form landing on him than the other way round. But he still wound up rolling over and pinning Estinien to the ground regardless, much to his chagrin.

"Finally caught ya!" Hirskfedar announced between panting breaths. The both of them had been bouncing all over the city practically all night, and Estinien would be lying if he claimed the exertion hadn't taken a toll on him at all.

"There you are!" came the cheery voice that had been pursuing him all night. Estinien groaned, pressing his face against the ground. "Anyone would think you were trying to avoid us!"

Estinien shot the two his best glower from his inglorious position. As the two Lalafell drew closer, however, Krile, the one in the distinctive yellow robes, fell to one knee, clutching her head in a gesture Estinien had come to know well. Tataru knelt beside her stricken companion with noticeable alarm.

"A-Are you alright?" she asked. Estinien felt a twinge of guilt; after all, he had been leading them on a merry chase all night, and even he was feeling the strain of it. He could only imagine how much worse it must have been for the two maidens.

He attempted to shove himself to his feet, and was only mildly surprised when Hirskfedar obliged his silent request to move. Had he not been so focused on Krile, however, he might have noticed the raised eyebrow on his companion's face as he regarded his fellow Echo-wielder.

Krile's shoulders shook with barely-stifled laughter as Estinien moved to offer her a hand up. "Oh, Estinien... Never would I have imagined..." She chanced a look at him, but the sight of his face simply caused her to laugh harder.

"What's this, now? Did you see something from his past?" Tataru asked with clear interest. Estinien felt a chill worse than a cold winter's night in Coerthas go down his spine, despite the warmth of the approaching day.

"Yeah, what all did you see?" Hirskfedar chimed in. Which, for a brief moment, struck Estinien as odd; after all, he too possessed the Echo, and as Estinien recalled, more often than not if one user is struck with a vision, all others in the area tend to be struck as well.

Krile shot her fellow Echo-wielder a sly grin. "Oh come now! I am not so heartless as to reveal what I saw. Not here and now, at any rate."

Hirskfedar let out an amused snort, a smirk tugging at his lips. He shook his head and rolled his eyes. "Whatever you say, hon."

"But enough about that," Krile continued sweetly. "We were hoping to speak with you—the both of you—if you have a moment?"

Estinien's shoulders slumped as he let out a resigned sigh. The chase was well and truly over.

Later that morning, the two former Azure Dragoons found themselves on a merchant vessel bound for Radz-at-Han, on their way to the Garlean Empire. They'd been charged with finding and, if possible, destroying an alchemical weapon by the name of Black Rose. The Garleans would inevitably bring this weapon to bear against their enemies, Ishgard and the Farreach among them. As much as he took umbrage with the way he had been recruited, he was not so heartless as to stand idly by while his comrades were threatened—nor could Hirskfedar stand by when his family's safety was at risk.

Something still bothered him, of course. As he took out some freshly seared surume, a parting gift from their dragon companion Orn Khai, he chanced a glance in Hirskfedar's direction.

"So, Hirskfedar," he said, "you wouldn't happen to have any idea what that Baldesion woman saw, would you?"

Hirskfedar glanced back at him, before his gaze returned to the Ruby Sea before them. He hummed, considering his next words carefully.

"Well... y'remember that mission we went on with Svaran a while back?" he began. No doubt the viera was on his mind due to him coming up in their conversation with Tataru and Krile. Estinien had asked why Svaran wasn't in consideration for the task, and all three had noted that despite his skills, there were two issues: one, Svaran wasn't allowed in Thavnair, and two, his personal history with the Empire precluded him from wanting to spend much time near their warmachina.

"I do," Estinien said. He took a bite of his squid, chewing slowly as to savor the morsel. There was no telling how long it would be before he had another chance to have some again, after all.

"Remember when he went chargin' ahead and got hit with that vision? Only for me to get hit practically the moment I reached him?"

Estinien nodded, mouth too full to give a verbal answer.

"So there's somethin' of a range to these visions. If one person with the Echo gets hit, everyone standin' close by gets hit, too."

"Your point?" Estinien said, swallowing the mouthful.

"Well, think about where we were in relation to you," Hirskfedar said. "She was, what, a couple fulms away? While I was on top of ya."

"So you'd have been hit first," Estinien concluded.

"And I saw nothin'."

Estinien paused mid-bite, then slowly turned to face Hirskfedar. "What?"

"I saw nothin'."

Estinien fell silent, pondering the implications. Hirskfedar looked away from him, suppressing a smirk as he rocked on his heels.

"She was pullin' your leg, 'Stini."

Just out of earshot, the laughter of two scheming Lalafells rang out across the port as Krile revealed the same thing to her accomplice Tataru. Estinien's long string of Ishgardian curses and Hirskfedar's raucous laughter wafted back to meet it at the edge of the port as Estinien cursed the clever Lalafell's deception.

[witchofthescions]

Oh, today's "throw short people day" huh?

[bookkeeperofthescions]

Don't even think about it!

[hulizi]

She watches them both go at the asked task, nodding in approval and in sympathy to Ernastral, she does feel a bit bad but she'd rather maintain proper etiquette to everyone. If she would ask Gladiia to remove her boots, no one was an exception. But still, her bow of acknowledgement to both is offered with a smile, "there is al-lit-er-ation, yes."

She has to phonetically offer the words to stop her stutter from overtaking it, but to confirm the joyful Tataru's acknowledgement. 'Hi Nata' is not uncommon, but this was a different play. It was nice. "You're welcome, thank you for coming, I- oh?"

The smaller woman sifts through her pocket and brings out a small charm of a trinket bracelet with a white flower upon it. Her tail grips the bracelet like an extended finger, bringing it back with curious eyes- almost transfixed on the item. Ernastral's words are lost as another comes, an earring? A horn ring is more appropriate. Misaki, shifting awake, begins to paw at the bracelet for a moment, babbling incentively.

"Oh these are pretty, you didn't have to.." her words trail off, still lost deep in sight of the items. Perhaps outwardly she would fight it, but the blood in her body is elated at the sight of pretty gold and jewels and metal. Greed is hard to overcome. "This is generous and I wasn't expecting gifts. I will have to repay you in the future. I will mark that down.

Please sit, would you like some tea? I have some brewing, it is a honeydew, or I could get you another, or water? I have bread fresh as well."

[bookkeeperofthescions]

Despite the difficulty for Ernastral, she isn't going to begrudge the laying down of the rules. It's Hinata's home, she gets to dictate what is and isn't acceptable within its walls.

Tataru grins, pleased that her simple handmade trinket has gone over so well. And even more amused that even little Misaki seems to like it. Tataru makes a mental note that Hinata seems to very much like jewelry—future gifts will likely be along similar lines.

"Oh, no, don't worry about repayment! Like I said, this is our thanks for hosting us today."

Tataru curtsies politely at the offer to sit, and gestures for Erna to follow her lead and take a seat. "Tea would be lovely, thank you! Oh, and fresh bread sounds nice, too."

"Nothin' better than a fresh loaf of bread," Erna agrees. "Count me in for a slice a' that!"

[hulizi]

Every manner of transportation she's seen from people vary wildly. These two seemed to just arrive in warp of light and shimmer, others just light. Some simply construct in, while others make room. The enchantments she bestow her lovers simply let them move freely like changing from a room to another.

She envies those simplicities.

Ernastral, tall and boisterous toned down her excitement for a moment around the infant within her arms, prompting Hinata to gift them both a smile. It was her first time meeting Tataru in person, but her own greeting was equally as wonderful. "Hydda," she gave a bow to the two, slipping her hand to the sleeping baby's head as she dipped, "it is nice to. Have you both here. Please, take your shoes off by the door there, and I will get the table set up properly for you both."

Hinata hoped her words didn't portray and negativity, the make such a request as a greeting, but she still preferred rules abided. Despite her voice, gentle and airy, she still stumbled lazily over her speech. "Thank you both for coming. It is nice to see you again, Ernastral, and mydda, Tataru."

[bookkeeperofthescions]

The duo make no indication of being bothered by the request. Of course, they see no reason to be; this is Hinata's place, after all, and she is well within her rights to dictate the rules. Ernastral sets Tataru down on the ground and the two quickly set about removing their shoes as instructed. The task is very easy and quick for Tataru, whose boots are small and simple. Ernastral's thigh highs, however, take her a hot minute to remove. Alas, her choice of footwear has proven to be a mild inconvenience in this particular moment.

"Nice to see ya again, too!" Ernastral says, beaming at Hinata briefly before she finally tugs the first stubborn boot off and sets it next to the door.

Tataru smiles and curtsies politely to Hinata. "Hydda, Hinata! Oh, there's alliteration there..." She giggles a moment at her discovery. "Thank you for having us. Ah, before I forget!"

Tataru rifles through her pockets and produces her charm bracelet, offering it up to her gracious host. It's a very pretty bracelet, even if it's rather simple. It has a few very pretty looking jewels, and its most prominent charm is arranged like a white flower, with a yellow face.

"We brought gifts for you, as thanks for hosting us!"

"Right! Gimme a moment and I'll..." Ernastral trails off as she struggles with her second boot. With a grunt, she pulls it off and sets it aside. She then reaches into her pouch and produces the earring, letting it glint in the light as she offers it up. "Thought you might like somethin' nice for your horns!"

(A careful listen reveals something interesting about Erna's speech; stood next to someone from her own world as she is, it becomes much more apparent that, despite her meaning always being clear to the listener, not every word Erna utters is actually in the same language.)

[hulizi]

She, at the dining table, sets four sets of plates and silverware for the two guests, herself, and even one for Misaki despite knowing they will not need it. Each piece of silverware is properly attired together and lines neatly, making sure they're presentable and neat. Appearances matter to her, to have this set up nicely and displayed in such a way that shows everything is compact and ready to go.

She, in the kitchen, has tea brewing on the stovetop, hoping it will be done shortly. On the counter are a few bread rolls she had decided to make, something to eat while they all chat. On the counter are several different jars of flavored jams, uncertain if any of these exist in their home world. She, from the dining room, came in to grab the said jams and rolls, taking them back to the table.

She, in the living, sat upon her little chair with a sleeping baby against her, simply listening to her in dining room and kitchen carrying on their conversation of expectations of the visit. Already she can feel the fabric of her space tear and contort, she'll have company shortly. It's an act of herself to lift from her position while not waking Misaki, but she manages, standing just outside the range of where her company will arrive.

She in the kitchen dissipates.

She in at the dining table dissipates.

It just just her single that awaits with interest. She doesn't see Ernastral often, and to meet Tataru at all will be a treat. She is grateful for the offered company.

[bookkeeperofthescions]

The two materialize, Tataru silently marveling at the lack of any trace of dizziness that sometimes accompanies longer-distance teleports. The two take a moment to orient themselves, Tataru's gaze instinctively drifting upwards before she remembers her current vantage point. Erna spots Hinata and the sleeping baby first, her usual grin getting a little wider. There they are!

"Howdy, Hinata!" Ernastral announces, her fairly loud voice kept a few degrees softer and quieter so as to be mindful of the sleeping child. Tataru's gaze follows Ernastral's to their host and her child, prompting a big smile on the significantly smaller woman's face.

"Oh, hello, Miss Hinata!" Tataru has a bit better luck than Ernastral when it comes to keeping her voice down. "It's nice to finally meet you. Is that little Misaki you have there?"

[bookkeeperofthescions]

@hulizi

To say Tataru was excited to meet one of these "internet" friends in person for the first time was perhaps a bit of an understatement. Hinata, in particular, was someone Ernastral had spoken highly of even before Tataru had joined the site, and despite only having spoken to her briefly herself, Tataru could see where Ernastral was coming from. And apparently she had a whole realm to herself, that she was willing to invite them to for a simple social call? It was certainly very kind of her.

Tataru made sure she and Erna had everything they needed for this little social visit. Tataru had made a fairly simple charm bracelet as a thank you for the invitation, because it seemed only polite to bring some sort of thank you gift. Ernastral had brought something as well, an "earring" meant to be slipped over a horn, crafted from silver and studded with pretty precious gems. (Hopefully it will fit over Hinata's horns.)

"You did remember to pack your gift for her, right?" Tataru asks, arching an eyebrow at the often-forgetful Roegadyn.

"Yeah, it's right here." Erna crouches down and opens the flap of her gifted pouch, showing Tataru that yes, the earring has been safely tucked away.

"Alright, then let's get going!"

Ernastral secures the pouch with a nod. She scoops Tataru up, eliciting a startled squeak from the much smaller Lalafell. Sure, she trusts her dear friend to be careful with her, but it's not often that anyone has the audacity to pick up a Lalafell.

Tataru has enough dignity not to squirm (too much) as Ernastral casts her cross-universe teleportation spell and teleports them over to Hinata's place to meet up with her.

[becherdireinen]

It’s kinda cool how someone can just pop into your life all of a sudden and become so important to you within such a small amount of time. I think that’s what makes life so interesting though. There’s always a reason to be hopeful for the future because you never know what good things will come your way next.

[witchofthescions]

Gunning for people's kneecaps, maybe.

[bookkeeperofthescions]

>:( !!!

[bookkeeperofthescions]

Rumor has it that Lalafells are gunning for the total subjugation of Eorzea cause too many height crimes by the natives.

Rumor Has It...

Well... I can neither confirm nor deny anything. >:)

[bookkeeperofthescions]

Rumor has it that you were a very big adventurer back in the day and made so much money that you retired and are actually the Scion's super secret weapon if things go horribly wrong.

Rumor Has It...

Gasp! Who leaked my secret identity??? :O

[bookkeeperofthescions]

Rumor has it the Scions is actually a typo and they really meant to say Science, but people were too embarrassed to admit the mistake.

Rumor Has It...

Ha! Well, there certainly are a few "Scions" who would be too proud to admit they've made a mistake... Not without a lot of prodding, anyway.

[bookkeeperofthescions]

Be honest, do you think you'd be able to handle being out in the field full-time?

Be Honest...

Oh gosh, I don't actually know...

I know I'm definitely not cut out for combat. I proved that the last time I tried to help Ernastral and her group with the whole Four Lords stuff. :C And then there's just... the fact that traveling can be really hard on a person. Even if you're just spending a lot of time on a boat or an airship or something, it's exhausting! I can't imagine how much more exhausting it would be traveling all the time.

So no, I don't think I would be able to handle it, frankly!