So. Elial is a kotrim. And I’ve been thinking about kotrim eye colors. I think it’ll be sexually dimorphic, with one sex having shades of yellow (ranging from gold to a light yellow), and the other has shades of purple (ranging from indigo to lavender).
So, I was struck by a thought. Intersex Elial. And I responded, “Intersex Elial?” And the thought struck me again, this time with a left hook. I’d been considering an intersex character for a while, and this could be a neat way to do it.
So let’s say male kotrims have yellow eyes and female kotrims have purple eyes. Well, Elial has yellow (specifically golden) eyes. So, she’s intersex. Of course, a human (or any other soul-bearing species) wouldn’t really be able to tell. So what? It’s just her eye color. But it’s a big deal to kotrims. Which explains why she hangs around so few kotrims and so many humans.
I don’t know. I think it’d be neat. Still just an idea right now though.
Has Elial ever stolen from any of the others? What did they do?
I was curious after finding out how Elial and Nauth met...
Oh yeah, this question!
In the past? It’s complicated. She didn’t steal from anyone, per se. That’s not to say she stole for anyone though. More like she stole to them. But it was a while ago, she hardly even remembers.
During the story? Yeah. They chased after her, of course.
Guess what? I wrote. 310 words. That's a 160 more than I had to write for repeating note milestone! And it adds up to a total of 11,838 words.
And guess what? You're gonna get to read all of them. That's below the cut, if you're interested!
What I Wrote Today:
Finally, it was second long-shadows, on the first day of the weekend. He sat at a table in the Fox and Rabbit, stretching his arms. His shift ended early, as it did every year on the day before Wyrd’s Watch.
Lynn approached, carrying two small mugs in her hands, and took the seat across from him. He thanked her as she handed him one. “Is Ven not joining us?” she asked.
Nauth shook his head as he took a sip of the wine. It wasn’t the best wine, no, but it was certainly better than ale. “He’s already left.”
“Left? For what?”
“The lost sons thing,” Nauth told her, waving his hand. Everyone knew this.
Apparently, that didn’t include Lynn. She nodded along expectantly.
He sighed. “For Wyrd’s Watch.” She nodded again. More, then.
“Every family sends out a son to the oasis north of the city. They get there around noon, have their own festivities, and leave for the city. They usually get back early the next morning.”
Lynn thought for a moment. “Huh.” Her scrunched eyebrows told Nauth she still didn’t get it. “So... So, what does everyone else do?”
Nauth took another sip of the wine. He always tried his best to be patient, but... Well, he shouldn’t have assumed anything. “Tomorrow night, every house will have dinner, there’ll be dancing, and then the oldest woman in the family will realize the son is ‘missing’ and keep vigil at the North Gate until he returns. Then there’s more feasting, more dancing, all throughout the day.”
She stared at him, squinting. “Okay.” She looked into her mug, as if there were answers in there. “Why?”
“‘Why?’” he repeated. “What do you mean, why?”
“I mean, what’s the meaning of it?” She took a very dainty sip from her mug. “Usually, holidays like this have some sort of story behind them.”
He shrugged. “I’m no historian,” he said. “If you wanna know so bad, you can ask Ven.”
“Ven isn’t here,” she replied, smirking.
He grinned snidely. “Well, that’s just too bad, isn’t it?” They both laughed. Lynn had a good sense of ir-Vandeth humor.
This was originally indented, like my usual "favorite thing I wrote today"s. But it was hard to read. Also, if you count it, it's more than 310 words. That's because I also grabbed a little bit from before what I wrote.
I am so excited to share this with y’all. This is the opening scene of the novel I’m working on, which at the moment doesn’t have a proper title. I don’t really have much to say about it, so I’ll just get right to it.
Edit: Added a cut. This post is only for the dedicated
There was barely time to react.
Stepping through the door, Nauth caught something in the corner of his eye. Something glinting in the dark. Instincts kicking in, he jumped back, but it wasn’t enough. A dagger blade cut through tunic and shirt, met skin, stung his arm. The attacker took another stab and swung, forcing a retreat.
Nauth grabbed a stool, flinging it at the black figure with the dagger. He ran out the back door, not waiting to see if it connected.
Hopping over the parapet of the small courtyard, he looked to his left and right. The sun had set and the streets were lit by soft lantern light. The streets were empty. The streets were quiet.
A clatter. A glance. The attacker in the doorway.
Nauth turned left and bolted down the street. A second set of footfalls was coming closer.
Sprinting through the gate, guards shouted at the both of them. Nauth ignored it. Turn down this street, and that one, weaving his way west. In the Market District, he could get lost in the crowd.
The streets were stained in rainbow hues by the light filtered through multicolor canvas canopies. However thin, the crowd would be enough. Turning a corner, he looked back.
The figure in black was gone.
Nauth stopped running. Panting, he looked around. His arm stung. His lungs burned. He scanned the crowd. No figure in black.
Finally, a moment to rest. He inspected the cut through the hole in his clothes. Only surface-level. It would heal. He looked down one street, and shook his head. Turning down another, he walked. Quickly. Leaving the Market District, making his way east. He couldn’t be sure he was safe.
On the way, he took stock of what he had. His cloak. A water bag. A satchel, and a couple belt pouches. A coin purse, light. His sandals. It would have to do.
At the stables, he picked out a brown gelding, sleek and quick, saddled it, and mounted. The horse obliged. Nauth did his best not to look nervous guiding it through the streets.
At the north gate, white-cloaked men and women made vigil, ringing soft bells at regular intervals. They gave Nauth warm smiles before shifting to an expression of concern. He repaid their smiles with a grimace. He didn’t want to flee on such a night, but he had no choice. He urged the horse on, into the dark.
What had happened? How had it happened? Nauth shook his head, trying to make sense of it. The past week had been so normal. Why now? And why at all?
Thanks for tagging me @thebookishkiwi! This looks fun :3
Rules: Share photos of your OC’s favorite color, season, shoe choice, weapon, food and drink, clothing style, mode of transportation, animal, pastime, and breakfast, and if they’re an introvert/ambivalent/extrovert. BONUS: Add some music/songs that fit their aesthetic (the songs don’t have to be their favorite songs, just fit their vibe!)
As per a poll I did, I’ll be doing Sils!
Color: Her favorite color is a deep emerald green.
Season: She likes winter the most. It’s calm and quiet, which suits her best.
Shoe choice: Something stout and sturdy, or resilient. Practical.
Weapon: Sils is a child. She thinks willing (i.e. magic) is the best weapon.
Food and drink: She quite likes strawberry tarts. And her favorite drink is a calm tea, not weak but not overpowering, with just a little bit of honey.
Clothing style: Something modest, probably in fine wool.
Mode of transportation: Horseback. It’s simple and efficient.
Animal: She especially likes ermines. She had one, at one point.
Pastime: She enjoys a bit of embroidery when she doesn’t have anything else to set her mind to.
Breakfast: She doesn't usually have breakfast. But when she does, she probably eats bread, or something.
Introvert/ambivert/extrovert: She's an ambivert.
Music/songs that fit the vibe:
No context for this. >:3
As for who to tag… I don’t actually know my writer moots. Whoops. Open tags, I guess! And if you’re a moot of mine who sees this and you’re a writer, please let me know if you want me to tag you in stuff like this :3
