• PM To Join • [Cally's] Got Bugs? (Faith)

[Niv]

50th Ymiden, 717 Arc

Curiosity may have killed the cat but it didn’t seem to stop Niv from wondering into just about any place that caught her interest. How else was she supposed to learn about how the people of this city did things. She could simply ask people but that wasn’t nearly as fun as experiencing it first hand.

On this trial, Niv found herself in a strange but oddly comforting place. People were sitting at tables covered in fine blankets and cushioned chairs as they happily conversed with each other. Occasionally Niv would spot someone bringing food to their mouths with some kind of shiny tool. It wasn’t too unlike the Scholars Nook but with no books to be seen and far more eating.

“Oh sorry there little guy..ah I mean lady.” The waiter apologized as he nearly stepped on the Tunawa below him. Niv looked up to see a long haired boy place something on a nearby table and exchange a few pleasantries before returning to Niv.

“This might not be the best place for you little lady.” He crouched down near Niv and gave her a gentle smile. “Do you want me to get you a table?”

“You give away deh tables here?” Niv raised her eyebrow as she looked up at the man who could probably pass as a women if not for his broad shoulders.

“Oh you’re a funny one” He chuckled warmly. “I mean do you want me to find you a place to sit so I can serve you food, thats sort of what we do here.”

Niv nodded shyly and let the man escort her to a free table near a window. Before he could offer Niv was already climbing the wooden leg of the table, using the decretive ridges for leverage. The waiter provided the final boost Niv needed but she did most of the work herself.

“Well my name is Paul and I’ll be your waiter for this evening.” Paul bowed respectively and pointed to the booklet laying just in front of the tunawa. “We have a menu that your free to look at but I’m going to ask and see if we have any special options for tunawa. I think you might be the first one to arrive here. “ He looked up to the left with a quizzical look as he tried to remember if this statement was actually accurate.

“hrm..” Niv’s eyes narrowed in focus at the large text before her, but she didn’t see anything that caught her fancy. “Do you have bugs here?”

“Bugs?” Paul leaned in closer to make sure he had heard correctly.

“yes..dem things dat scurry about.” The tunawa used her little hands to mimic the actions of a cockroach or other pesky insect that scurried along floors.

“we actually try to avoid those but I’ll ask for you…just a moment” Paul walked back to the kitchens leaving Niv to sit and wait.

The couple at the table across form Niv gave her rude looks, likely because of the one green fine sticking out from the cloth she had wrapped around her head. Niv stuck her bright green tongue out at them and pulled another vine free in defiance.



Art credit to koyamori

[Faith Augustin]

"Errr, Faith?" Paul came in to the kitchen where Faith was tasting some mushrooms which she had cooked in a garlic cream, trying to work out if she had put the right amount of chestnut in there or whether she should leave it out. Her ability to taste, to imagine tasting something and to see if it was better or worse with the addition of a tiny pinch was growing each trial. In many ways Faith believed it was what separated her from the chef she was and what she aspired to.

"Yes, what is it?" Faith asked with a smile as she decided on a minute change which, to her mind, might make the difference.

"There's a tunawa here, and they're wondering if we serve bugs," Paul said and he wondered, just briefly, if this was going to be one of those times where his employer had a chuckle and didn't get all wound up about meeting everyone's needs. Just one look at her face was enough. Nope. Nope that was not what was happening here, he thought with a fond smile to the young woman. Maybe, he considered, if he cared so much about something at her age, he'd have been happier and more successful now. Then again, he countered to himself, maybe he'd have an ulcer, too. No, Paul was quite content where he was.

"Bugs! Oh, it hadn't occurred to me! Of course! Faith looked horrified. "Tunawa and, I believe, Sev'ryn eat them. They're very nutritious, you know." Paul looked at her and raised an eyebrow.

"I'll take your word for it," he replied and Faith chuckled

"They don't taste bad."

"I don't care how they taste. They're bugs. I'm not finding out."

Faith grinned at Paul and shook her head. "You know, you should be more adventurous." That said, she made her way into the restaurant and there, she spied her friend. "Niv!", Paul looked somewhat amazed when he realised that the boss knew this small twig. Go figure, he thought to himself, Faith was one of the weirdest people he'd ever met.

"Niv, I am so sorry," Faith said, moving over to sit opposite her friend. "This is my restaurant, and I have not considered that I need to serve a tunawa menu. Which, I obviously do. I will put that right, I promise you." Faith looked at her friend and raised an eyebrow, somewhat hopefully. "Maybe with your help?"

[Niv]

“This is yours?” Niv looked around the massive location in wide eyed astonishment. Tunawa hadn’t expected in her wildest dreams that she would stumble into an entire structure that was owned by one of her friends. “You built all dis yourself?”

“Oh don’t worry I remember you saying you didn’t like deh bugs but I pride myself on being deh expert bug finder so I will help you!” Niv beat her chest in determination before jumping off the edge of the table. She was about to run out the door hoping that Faith was right behind her but then she realized something.

“if you deh chief of this place can you just leave? I don’t want to take their wise leader away.” Niv looked up with a face of concern, the tunawa didn’t want to offend anyone by suggesting something against their culture. Back in Desnind, There was the six great Kufuato elders but each tree had at least two leaders so there was always one present. However it was considered very rude to even suggest that they could simply leave at the drop of an acorn, there was rules and they must be followed.

After receiving a verdict, Niv headed towards the abandoned house just up the street. The front garden was overgrown with all sorts of weeds and wines growing along the crumbling walls on each side. The vegetation was so overgrown you could hardly see the erie looking house looping behind it all and casting a large perpetual shadow. There was even a few large mossy rocks in the garden that might have been decretive at one point but just added to the clutter. Most people stayed clear of the old forgotten house mostly because of haunting stories of malevolent wisps and spirits people told each other in hushed whispers. Niv hadn’t encountered any of that, not so much as a peep, What she had encountered was a nearly endless supply of creepy crawlies oozing out of nearly every corner.

“This is my restaurant!” Niv proclaimed.



Art credit to koyamori

[Faith Augustin]

Faith smiled and shook her head, "No, I didn't build it. I bought it. Paid for someone else to build it, I suppose." Niv remembered that Faith didn't like to eat bugs and that pleased her more than she could easily explain. Somewhere along the way, Faith considered, Niv had become their friend. In the Ice Caves, Padraig had been relieved that the tunawa was there.

So, when Niv jumped down and moved, Faith moved with her, but Niv stopped suddenly and turned to speak. Niv's words were delightful to Paul, the waiter who was moving with them to ask Faith how long she should be. "A wise leader? Oh and she's benevolent too. We all have to worship her before we... stopping now, boss." Faith's look could wither a plant at twenty paces as she looked at Paul.

"You leaving for a while boss?" Paul asked with a smile.

"Yes, Paul. The kitchen is fine without me for a break or two, everything is ready to go. I'm not expecting him but if Padraig comes in, would you tell him that Niv and I have gone bug hunting?" Faith asked, politely.

"Won't he just assume?"

Faith didn't bother to answer Paul's question, she just left with Niv. "Niv, I'm not sure what the most appropriate thing is. I'm very happy to walk together, or you are very welcome to ride on my shoulder if you wish. I am equally happy for either," it was important, she considered, that Niv didn't feel any pressure from her. One way or another, Faith was happy to be with the tunawa.

Whichever Niv chose, they made their way to where Niv led and Faith was surprised, it had to be said. "Oh, it's beautiful here! Faith considered and then Niv said what she did and Faith looked at her with amazement. A range of thoughts flitted through Faith's head at that point and she considered carefully. "Niv. I wonder if you would advise me on something?" She made sure that she was eye level with the tunawa.

"I'd like to be able to offer a tunawa Sev'ryn-appropriate diet," and who knew who else might fancy fried bug, the young woman thought with an inward grimace. "I'd like to guarantee a supply of fresh bugs. A bug farm, I suppose. What would be the best thing to do? I could buy this place and hire someone to farm it, or.. " She gestured around.

"What would your advice be?" As always, Faith had an earnest expression as she considered the business which meant so very much to her.

[Niv]

“Oh” Niv responded with a with a curved brow of curiosity as faith explained that someone else had built her restaurant for her. Niv imagined that Faith would have to do a pretty spectacular favour to get such a large structure made. Knowing Faith, Niv’s mind crafted the image of a massive pile of pasties that reached the tip of the highest tree. Sweet smelling steam wafted off the culinary mountain but the Tunawa could taste the refreshing ice cream hidden inside the warm outer shell. Niv couldn’t help but lick her lips at the delicious thought, the only thing that would be better if each of them also contained a few ants swimming in the ice cream.

“Nice meeting you Paul!” Niv waved back at Paul before she left but quickly ran back through the crack in the door to add. “ If Faith’s Special Flower comes tell him ..Old chemists never die, dey just stop reacting.” Niv smiled at the man and promptly ran after faith as she giggled lightly at her little joke. The Waiter was left stunned for a moment but then chuckled “special flower?” under his breath as he went back to work.

“If you’re not bothered I am glad to ride on your shoulder.” Niv smiled up at his friend and then allowed Faith to lift her on to their offered shoulder. Niv liked to be independent but she also didn’t want to keep Faith from her duty as chief for too long.

“Oh I’m glad you like it!” Niv practically gushed with pride at the compliment Faith paid to the usually unappreciated sanctuary.

“Oh of course.” Niv said without a second thought to Faith’s request, and proceeded to listen carefully to the following proposition.

The Tunawa bit her lip and scratched her chin as she thought over the implications of what might happen if this place was turned into a “bug farm” as faith called it. On one hand, the thrill of eating bugs for Niv was the hunt and she was sure other people felt the same way. While on the other hand, some bugs were very difficult to find but if they could be made readily available for purchase that would be exiting to say the least.

“Yes,” Niv finally replied. “I think a farm would be deh best plan and no one even lives here so you won’t have to offer dem Pastries to get dere house.” The tunawa nodded her head with a smile knowing this would probably be a relief to hear.

“Maybe I could act as deh taste tester….” Niv added with a mischievous grin. “..to know deh dah best.”



Art credit to koyamori

[Faith Augustin]

Faith looked at Niv and groaned at the chemist joke. Her grin was quick to light her face, though, as she shook her head. "My special flower?" Faith asked, quirking an eyebrow and a hint of mischief in her expression. "I love that name. If Padraig were a flower," she asked, helping Niv onto her shoulder and smiling at the tunawa as they made their way. "What flower do you think he'd be?" There was no doubting it, Faith thought, Niv would have a flower that was uniquely Padraig and she was delighted at the thought.

"Then, it's settled. I'll go to the Town Hall tomorrow and see about buying this place. And yes, please, if you would consider being a taste tester, I'd be delighted." She smiled at her friend and then realised that there was something that she hadn't said, which she really should have. "Niv. I am so glad that you are our friend. I know that Padraig was very glad that you were there on Ishallr with him. And I'm delighted that you're going to have a special place in our wedding." Padraig had asked Niv to be his 'best maid' whatever that meant, but it was all just strange traditions for Faith.

"I'm going to be making my dress. I wonder, would you like me to make an outfit for you?" Faith asked, although she was quick to add, "If you do not, I will not be offended but if you do, it would be my pleasure. I have made clothes for a tunawa before." Ambrosia, a tunawa she had met in Rharne whilst pregnant. Ambrosia had taught Faith to read music and to sing nursery rhymes and had needed to have all the clothes weighted because Ambrosia had something of a tendency to fly off in a gust of wind.

"I don't mean to be pushy. Only if you'd like." Faith hated the idea of being forceful or pushy with anyone, so she wanted Niv to be sure that it was very much only if Niv wanted her to make an outfit for her.

[Niv]

Niv glanced up at her groaning friend with a pinched brow, but the corners of her mouth inched upwards when she saw faith smiling back at her.

“Did you like my joke?” Niv asked hesitantly. She felt silly asking but Humans were so confusing with their gestures, how else was she supposed to know.

“hrrm I don’t know about deh flower meaning but I think it would have to be a wise one.” Niv scratched her chin and bit her lip in concentration. “A rare flower with a strong stem and Lots of fine white petals with bright purple spots…and butterflies would love it but not deh bees.” Niv shuddered a bit at the thought of the little buzzing demons, there was no way they would want anything to do with Padraig’s flower.

——-

Niv clapped her hands together in three consecutive bursts while donning a wide grin. “Can’t wait teh eat your bugs!” Niv proclaimed happily.

“He helped me more than I helped him.” Niv smiled back as she remembered being carried in his hood for a large portion of the Expedition. If it wasn’t for him she would likely be a tiny Nivsicle trapped in a snow drift. Niv may have been an asset in a few instances but she felt Padraig was overall more essential.

“I’m honoured that I get teh be apart of your bonding ritual.” Niv nodded solemnly. Weddings were not something Tunawa or even many Sev’ryn generally did, they simply shared gifts and their time. Nothing more, Nothing less. However, Niv always respected rituals and traditions when she could, even when they weren’t her own. She could rememberer the many times she would leave a red seed at the entrance of her friends tree before entering or when she would offer a kind word to someone on the trial of their Yada Daiv. It showed other people that you cared and it was interesting to learn of the different patterns people followed.

“Oh a Dress!” Niv perked up like an eager weasel. “I’d love a dress!” If Faith made dresses even half as good as she cooked, Niv could expect a quality garment.

“Are we supposed to wear dresses to dis wedding? what else happens?” Niv held her smiling mouth open with her open palms pressed firmly against her chubby cheeks.

“There isn’t a sacrifice needed is dere?.” Niv frowned.


Art credit to koyamori

[Faith Augustin]

"Yes, I very much liked your joke. It was very funny," Faith replied with a smile. "It's a bit like tickling. Although it makes you laugh, it makes you groan too. I don't know why, it all happens in my tummy." She looked at Niv and wondered. "Are tunawa ticklish? Can you be tickled?" It was interesting to the young human woman and one of the things that Faith really loved about being free was that it was acceptable and allowed for her to think something and then ask. It was wonderful.

The flower that Niv described for Padraig made Faith smile, the thought behind what their friend said was very appreciated and she nodded. "I think that would be a very good flower for him." To say that Faith appreciated Niv was something of an understatement and, when they talked about the Ice Caves, Faith nodded. "The way he tells it, you were there for each other. That meant a lot to him, to know that there was someone there he could rely on."

The bonding ritual, or wedding, was something which was interesting to Faith and she smiled at Niv. "It's not something I ever thought I'd experience. But..." how to put it in words, she wondered and then she realised that it was quite simple. "I am. It's good."

Niv's reaction to the prospect of a dress delighted Faith and she nodded, "I'll make you a dress. Maybe one that makes you look like a butterfly?" Not a bee, Faith knew. Definitely not a bee. What happened, though? She shrugged slightly. "I've never been to one, so I don't know what happens in other people's, but in ours we'll wear nice outfits and Padraig and I will have one hand each of us, tied together with a cord made from ribbons and ropes. I choose the ribbons, him the ropes and they are symbolic to us. Then, we make promises to each other and give each other a gift. We do those things in front of friends and family so that they know we really mean it and then, we all eat together and dance and have a party."

Then, though, she shook her head. "No, no sacrifice. There used to be a tradition here on Scalvoris to have slaves fight and the more slaves that died, the more luck for the married people, but we wouldn't do that." Faith smiled and shrugged. "Do tunawa have bonding rituals? How does it work in your society?"

[Niv]

“I don’t even know what tickling is but it’s a feeling dat is good, right?” Niv hoped one day she could experience tickling if only to know what what it was like. It was possible Niv might not like this feeling even if Faith seemed certain it was good. Humans seemed to have a hard time agreeing on things, it was all very confusing.

“You know him more den anyone, so I’m glad you agree.” Niv beamed and bobbed her head up and down. “We were definitely looking out for each other and his hood was extra comfy.” The tunawa gave herself a tight hug as she remembered the wooly inner layer that coated Padraigs winter hood.

“I imagine no one knows deh will have special bonding ritual until it happens, finding a special flower is hard I hear.” This was at least what Niv’s parents told her, that she would need to keep looking for her special flower in a field full of thorny bushes. It made Niv wonder if she would ever be able to find her own flower of if it would find her. There were tunawa who never bonded, what a sad fate to be dealt.

“Oh yes yes yes!” Niv chanted loudly with joy “Butterflies are beautiful and deh taste good too!” She could almost imagine swishing around the colourful wings of the fluttering insect and it made her quiver with anticipation.

“Tunawa just take a seed from the mother and a flower from the Father and bury them together, they wait a while and poof baby sprouts.” Niv explained the process using her hands mostly for her own benefit.

The tunawa frowned a bit as she worked out the meaning behind the strangely complicated ceremony faith described. “What does your bonding ceremony do?” She asked hesitantly, not wanting to insult the ritual but still wishing to gain a better understanding.

Art credit to koyamori

[Faith Augustin]

The notion of tickling seemed largely lost on Niv and Faith smiled at her friend as they discussed it. That Padraig's hood was extra comfy caused a smile to light her face; of course, since it was him it would be as far as she was concerned. The finding of him, though, and Niv's description of it as hard gave Faith a moment pause and she answered, then, honestly. "I waited every moment of my life for him. I just didn't know it." How strange that she would admit such to Niv and yet, she found romance and expressing her emotions difficult at other times and even with Padraig. Mostly, with him it was hard because she had no words to explain what she was feeling, but it was not just that. She struggled to express her feelings, maybe she always would. It was alright, though, because he knew

For a moment, Faith looked at Niv and wondered, amazed how anyone could be so unashamed about what they wore, but then she realised that Niv had exactly the right attitude. She was embracing the world and life and maybe, Faith considered, it was Niv's book she should be taking some lessons out of herself.

And then, when Faith had described what a wedding ceremony was like, Niv asked why. What it did. Faith looked at her friend and she chewed her lip for a moment. Then, she answered. "Do you know, Niv, I hadn't really thought about that. I suppose, really, the point of it is." Sitting there, a smile lit Faith's face and she said it completely how she saw it. "I am so happy that I feel like I should spend my trials dancing and singing. We are two people, two individuals but we are one soul. Whatever his soul is made from, mine is made from the same and I want to shout and dance and sing and yell from the top of my voice I feel so much." There was no guile in Faith, no holding back or being concerned with how it sounded. How could she worry about such with this individual?

"We have the wedding so that we can have a moment where we show everyone what we are both feeling. But there is no shout loud enough, no word good enough. So we use symbols like tying our hands together to share what we are both feeling. That we are bound together always, every breath is with and for and in time with the other. Every heartbeat and each lifetime that has been and all those still to come, we are together." She grinned at Niv and shrugged slightly. "What it does is give us a chance to try and show you, the people we love, just what we are feeling, even though it's so big that we can't, we have to try. It gives us a chance to share our happiness with you and to celebrate our love. Because it's beautiful and unconditional and we want to shout it, want to share it with the people who are our people. You. The others there. Our people, celebrating our love."

Faith lowered her head then and felt a blush stain her cheeks. "I don't know what it's supposed to do. But that's what it is for me. It's a chance to celebrate and share our joy with the people we love."