Storms May Come

[Eah Kell]

After the meticulously-organized nature of her leaving Dorin, Eah was a little alarmed at how...not-organized her reception was on Ossus. There was no party of Jedi and attendants waiting in state to meet her at the landing site, as she had imagined over the days of her journey; there was no immediate audience with some grand high master in flowing robes in a cathedral-like hall. In fact, were it not for the young ambassador traveling with her - not primarily for her sake, but simply traveling along on the only ship that would leave Dorin for the next six months - the young Kel Dor would not have known what to do after she disembarked. Aloof and private as he had seemed during the trip, he was at least helpful in escorting Eah through the security checkpoint and helping her obtain transport on a shuttle bound for the Jedi encampment, but beyond that, she was on her own. She wouldn't admit how much that prospect intimidated her. She had chosen to leave home to come here, after all, and she'd known when she did just how alone she would be when she got here; still, she couldn't help but be disappointed that she seemed to be the only person on this world who had anticipated her arrival at all.

The shuttle ride was uneventful, and the few other passengers left her alone. The craft was mostly filled with cargo and the passengers didn't seem to be riding for pleasure. Eah allowed herself to believe they were mostly consumed with their own business, and not immediately suspect them of finding her appearance frightening. She'd been warned that many other races often thought so of her people; at home, surrounded by people she knew and comfortable, familiar things, the thought hadn't bothered her as much as it did now. It was a silly worry, and she let it go with an effort. Of all the things she had to worry about today, being found unbeautiful in her new home was among the least.

At its destination, the shuttle wobbled to an uneven stop and the other passengers vacated the poky little cabin before Eah could get the attention of any of them to ask for directions. Subdued, she stepped out into glaring sunlight and readjusted both the shoulder straps of her pack and her grip on her staff. Once she'd hurried off the landing pad and out of the way of any other incoming craft, she started peering around on tiptoe for anybody who looked both authoritative and approachable enough for her to press for information.

[Kazahan]

"So, Kaz," Kazahan said, enjoying the feel of his new Jedi robes — really nothing much more than a pair of khaki trousers and a loose brown robe; the tunics were a bit too restrictive and uncomfortable for his tastes — for the first time. "Let us see what we may find today!"

The Trianii padawan was on the lookout for parts to his lightsaber, which was turning out to be a much more difficult endeavour than he'd ever dreamed it would be. The little repair droid was perched on his shoulders once more, this time one foot on each shoulder and both little droid hands clutching the fur on his head. At times it would pinch, but the droid was surprisingly quick to note when those times occurred and was adapting accordingly. Why they were searching for lightsaber parts in this part of the Jedi encampment may have explained why they were having no luck so far in locating anything useful.

Kazahan had tried to explain that taking apart the training lightsabers and putting them back together was the fastest way to educate him on the parts, but after the first two debacles where he'd been unable to reassemble the weapon and had even somehow misplaced the parts, the Masters in charge of the Jedi weapons were unfortunately strict in their command to keep him from trying again. So Kazahan was trying to use the Force to locate the needed parts, but all it had done was lead him to the shuttle landing area. If that was where he was lead, however, that was where he would look. And so here he was, his eyes half closed and mind trained solely on following the true instincts that showed him the way the Force wanted him to go.

He opened his eyes and saw a robed creature with a most curious apparatus over its mouth and eyes. The Force seemed to be insistent on it, so Kazahan strode forward and bowed.

"Welcome," he said. "Kazahan is this one's name. Perhaps this one can help you? Are you good at working with mechanical parts to lightsaber? How are you today?"

[Eah Kell]

Eah would've been hard-pressed to say whether she was more relieved or startled when she was addressed so...enthusiastically. She tightened her fingers around her staff and bowed in return, the movement a little stiff with the air of something more practiced than natural. She quickly had to decide which part of that introduction to address first, and decided to go a bit backwards. "Hello!" she replied, in her softly husking, artificially-amplified voice. "I am...well, I suppose. Although I apologize, I don't know anything about lightsabers at all. I know a little about mechanical things, though? I'm truly sorry I can't help more, but perhaps you could help me? My name is Eah Kell, and I'm. I've just arrived. To join the Jedi. And I'm not sure where to go."

[Kazahan]

"Oh!" Kazahan said, the little pit droid raising one hand in the air. "May you see many moonsets Eah Kell. And this is fortuitous! This one knows where take you. Follow me!"

He gestured grandly and started to walk.

"By the way, this one must ask: are you a cat?"

[Eah Kell]

Eah had been so overwhelmed at first she hadn't even noticed the large felinoid wasn't wearing an eccentric hat, but rather a small droid, atop his head. It surprised her now, and she wasn't sure whether she should wave back. "Th-thank you," she said instead, deciding for general politeness all around. She fell in step beside Kazahan, cutting looks sideways at him and his small passenger. She was beginning to relax a bit as she realized just how friendly and helpful this stranger would be, and she was grateful he had happened upon her. "And the same to you. Many moonsets, that is. I am...not a cat, no," she said, hating to once again have to disappoint him, when he was being so accommodating, and hoping he would not change his mind about helping her when he'd learned she was not, in fact, a cat. "I am a Kel Dor. I come from the planet Dorin."

[Kazahan]

"Oh! Kel Dor. Forgive this one if offense was given." Kazahan bowed, and the little pit droid aped the gesture from atop his head. Their walk had taken them some distance from the shuttle landing area, and now they were in Sanctuary proper which was bustling and seemed more crowded than it actually was, given the amount of construction and supplies needed for it in this part of the settlement.

"So you wish to be Jedi, yes? This one is glad for it. Would you tell this one why if Kazahan may ask?"

[Eah Kell]

Eah was perfectly fluent in Basic, but even so Kazahan's speech took a little getting used to. The moment it took her to understand him gave her enough time to formulate the answer she wanted, at least. "No offense taken," she assured him, wanting him to be sure of her and mostly just glad he was taking the news so well. "And you may ask anything you like, I don't mind. Yes, I would like to...well, if not become a Jedi, then train with them at least, and learn everything they have to teach. Their understanding of the Force is much greater than that of the order I trained with on Dorin, the Baran Do. I learned much from them, but I can learn more from the Jedi." She quickly sidestepped a much larger man who came through the crowd into her space unexpectedly, nearly tripping right into Kazahan. "Oh! Um. Anyway. I have...I also thought that it might be useful to the Kel Dor, having someone training with the Jedi on Ossus. It's been a long time since there was much contact between the Baran Do and the Jedi." She cocked her head at Kazahan, her tusks curving in somewhat, a curious expression. "You are a Jedi Knight," she supposed from his clothing and from how well he knew the compound and from his stated need for lightsaber parts. "What is it like here? Is the training very difficult?"

[Kazahan]

"Aha!" Kazahan said, well pleased by her supposition, though his facial expression didn't give much away, as his facial structure was not built for expressions like most humanoids. His voice was perfectly readable and his ears had pointed up, and the tip of his tail waved slowly back and forth. On Trian, he would be considered very expressive. "But this one is not a Jedi Knight yet. Trianii is yet a learner, an apprentice. The Jedi call students like this one 'padawan', but that title sounds funny to Kazahan's ears. Does it not to you also?"

But then he realized she had asked him a question, and he entered his 'thinking pose': his left hand had gone up to scratch his chin, and his right arm was crossed over his chest. It seemed foolhardy to seem so absent minded in the midst of this activity, but somehow he managed to keep from tripping up — despite being in thought, he hadn't stopped walking.

"It depends on the learner," Kazahan answered after a moment in that pose. "This one can learn how to control his own body and bolster physical abilities easily. But when focus is required outside of his own body —"

Here his statement was finished when he walked straight into a durasteel beam being carted, conveniently, at head height for him on the shoulders of two droids. He hissed and covered his nose, though he was more embarrassed than anything else.

"Dis one has much more trubble," he finished. Slowly, he pulled his hands away from his nose and wrinkled it, wiggled it, and checked his whiskers. "It is very painful to see one's failings, sometimes, in full effect."

[Eah Kell]

Eah startled badly at the dull-sounding gonnnnnnggggg of a felinoid cranium impacting full-force into unforgiving metal; she hadn't been looking at poor Kazahan at that moment, too focused on not running into anyone else, herself, and so she hadn't been able to warn him. She hissed a surprised sound, untranslatable into Basic, and quickly darted around front of Kazahan to get a good look at him, steady him if need be. He seemed...remarkably unscathed, for having taken a metal beam to the face. Hadn't even broken his flow of thought.

This was...representative of what remained of the venerated Jedi Order? Eah couldn't help but despair in her heart; she was concerned for her guide, of course, but...perhaps also a bit concerned for herself, and the situation she'd come into.

"Are you all right?" she asked him, unsure. "Do you...need medical attention?"

[Kazahan]

"No no no," Kazahan said, though his voice was a bit more nasally toned than before. "This one is fine. Just fine."

A trickle of blood exited his left nostril.

[Eah Kell]

Eah's head ridges swelled in alarm. "Oh!" she said, really panicked now. "You're bleeding! What should I...I don't have any medical supplies. I...oh, here!" she said, struck by her own forgetfulness, and brought her scarf out from under the collar of her coat, held it up toward his face, though she was careful not to touch. For all she knew, his nose...snout...muzzle? Was broken, and she didn't want to hurt him. "Here, stop the bleeding at least..."

[Kazahan]

"Hah! This one will not be undone by such little things," Kazahan said puffing out his chest slightly to show that he was fine. However, the movement caused his nose to come into contact with Eah's finger. With a screech and a five foot hop backwards, Kazahan's hands once more went to his face.

"Okay. Perhaps that beam was harder than the ones Kazahan has run into in the past."

[Eah Kell]

Eah wilted a little, her hand clutching the bundled scarf dropping helplessly by her side. She looked around for a moment, unsure, feeling more than a little lost; Kazahan was obviously hurt, and obviously more than a little addled...although truthfully, he may have been that before ever smacking into the beam. She didn't know what to do to help him, except see if he could remember the way to the nearest clinic or medical droid. Or first aid kit, even.

Slotting back in alongside Kazahan again, and sidling a bit closer now, Eah tentatively picked up his large, heavy paw and placed it on her shoulder. "Where should we take you to have you seen about? Perhaps you should not let go, and I won't let you run into any more beams." She frowned at him quite seriously, then, though she doubted he'd really know it for what it was. "You. Have done this...often?"

[Zem Vymes]

Ten minutes earlier

Zem's morning rituals had evolved on Ossus. His caf was stronger when he wasn't forced to scrounge for anything resembling the real thing. Further, he could attend to the pursuit of more gentlemanly affairs. That meant each morning at 0730, he could have a proper shave. While he'd certainly been fine with attending to the matter himself before, there was a joy in allowing a proper barber a medium in which to work. Enter Korbol, the Toydarian. A rotund wisened old being with an always expertly-trimmed snowy beard, he inspected Zem as the Jedi Master eased into his chair.

"Gooda morning to Master Jedi."

Zem gave the Toydarian a genial nod as he worked open the neckline of his tunic.

"A sunny one at that, Korbol."

From the barber's open-air kiosk, Zem could spend a half hour in his relaxing grooming ritual while still being afforded a commanding view of the camp as the day's activities began. The civil engineers were already at work, and a few of the Jedi were tending to finding their breakfast. Korbol began by fluttering close, pressing a steaming hot towel around Zem's face and neck.

"Yes, yes. Quite sunny very-a nice. Korbol, he thinks-a the fishing will be very good, very good."

The Toydarian was a self-professed avid angler, although the tales of his exploits varied with the state of his mood. On a good day, he would tell you he caught a fish so big as to stretch credulity for a man of his size to land. Still, tall tales or no, the stories were always good ones. The steaming towels did their work in little time, and Korbol expertly removed them, now having his canvas primed to apply freshly-mixed hot lather with a wampa bristle brush. The barber's hand was the epitome of fastidious movement, quickly setting lather to skin in a way that neither skimped nor overly lavished. It took only a minute for Zem's face to be ready for Korbol's razor, which the old man lovingly stropped, pausing only to adjust the tiny round spectacles on his robust trunk.

"I tie-a many fly last evening, Master Jedi. The feathers, they very good you should-a see. When you-a come fish?"

Korbol's razor sang against Zem's jawline, and the Jedi timed his responses with that intimate edge close to mind, ensuring he spoke between passes.

"Well it won't be today, I'm sad to say. Business calls me to something of an official sort."

Korbol's razor disappeared within a towel cinched to his belt, drawn clean and gleaming once more.

"Al-a-ways the bus-i-ness, Master Jedi. Korbol used to-a be busy man too. Fish wait, my friend. Fish they-a always wait."

The sound of a shuttle passing overhead cast a shadow over the barber and his customer. Zem moved to crane his head, paused immediately in the act by Korbol's careful off hand keeping the Jedi's head steady. Still, the Toydarian turned to view the overpass himself.

"That's the Kel Dor shuttle..."

Punctuality was a virtue, but there was something of too much of a good thing for even that. Zem gruffed as the barber took another pass, carefully pulling his communicator from his belt.

"Sol, this is Zem. I think our special guest has decided to rise with the nunas."

[Rev Solomon]

Solomon had been walking along the ridge a kilometer or so west of the colony, enjoying the cool morning air and the dew that glittered on ever rock and blade of grass like Adegan crystals, with his dogeared copy of the Book of the Faith in hand as he read and prayed through one of his favorite psalms. He cherished the time spent with God in his creation, now more than ever after spending a year roaming the sterile corridors of the Whaladon, and he hated to cut it short for something so mundane as a scheduling mix-up. But if a Pharisee could rescue his nerf from a ditch on the Sabbath, he could ask God's pardon to go welcome a new initiate to the Jedi enclave, particularly one carrying such a precious gift.

The Jedi preacher met Zem on the road to the spaceport and easily matched the Jedi master's quickened pace with his long stride. Solomon was hardly dressed for a ceremony - in his long nerfskin coat and broad-brimmed hat he looked more like a Dantari rancher than a member of the Jedi Council, and an ill-fated one at that with his right sleeve dangling loose and empty.

"Do you suppose Dorin is on some kind of daylight savings?" he ventured. And then he saw, a little further down the road, what looked like an adolescent Kel Dor female leading a certain Trianii ranger by the paw. "Oh dear."

[Zem Vymes]

He'd barely had enough time for Korbol to attend to his business, and certainly not enough time for the after-treatment. Zem was still fussing with a handkerchief, tending to the last tacky traces of lather as he hurried along the way with his fellow Council member.

"Not the sort of welcoming committee I had in mind."

Kazahan was many things. Eager. Full of life. Expressive. Seasoned diplomat was not one of these things.

[Kazahan]

Kazahan had tilted his head up to keep the blood from flowing out, but all that had done was allow it to pool in his nostril to the point where he'd sneeze to clear the passage and a fine red mist would shoot up into the air.

"This one is fine," he continued to insist. "Kazahan does not hurt himself often. Or regularly. Or, well... this one is used to pain. It is noth - eeengk!"

He sneezed again and shook his head slightly, only for his eyes to focus and see one familiar and one very familiar figure walking towards them side by side.

"Oh dear," he said, a red tinted snot bubble expanding from his nose as he exhaled. He swiped his arm across his nose quickly. He hated appearing like this in front of Master Solomon; what if he began to think that all the mean things said about Kazahan were true? At least he was respected enough to have those comments silenced in his immediate presence, but Solomon was wise, and Kazahan had no trouble admitting he admired the man greatly. "This one does not look presentable at all."

He looked down at the sleeve of his new robe and grimaced at the line of dark colour that was staining the brown fabric.

"Eh," he said, as two parties drew closer together. "Hello, mast - ernghk!"

He lowered his arm just so as to hide the blood newly staining the robe.

[Eah Kell]

Eah still had a hand hovering near Kazahan's elbow, watching him warily (when she could bear to look; she wasn't used to seeing so much viscous, poisonous-colored blood, much like human blood, and it made her instinctively want to recoil every time). He wasn't weaving or staggering, but he was doing an alarming amount of sneezing, loud and wet every time. Eah felt simultaneously exasperated and guilty. If it weren't for her, Kazahan probably wouldn't be in this predicament; then again, maybe just by walking across the compound this morning he'd been doomed to run into a structural beam and injure himself. She wasn't sure which of those options would be worse.

Suddenly Kazahan was distracted by something down the road. When Eah looked, she saw two human males approaching, not merely walking in their direction but coming straight toward them. Kazahan knew them, it seemed, so Eah checked one last time that her companion was not in any immediate danger of tripping or falling over, then lowered her hand and straightened again. She tried not to feel nervous, but that was a bit of a lost cause; she shifted her weight back and forth, folded and unfolded her fingers on her staff.

"Hello," she echoed, her tusks trembling finely, giving away her anxiety. She looked to Kazahan to introduce her to these men.

[Rev Solomon]

Solomon's hopes for a ceremonious and dignified welcoming committee withered at the sight of Kazahan's freely bleeding nose, which had already stained his freshly fitted robes in large, streaking blotches. A part of him wondered if he might not wait to address it before they had formally greeted Ms. Kell. He'd confess and ask God's forgiveness for it later. He had an inkling the Trianii was trying to tough it out for appearance's sake, even if it meant sacrificing his own appearance.

"Kazahan, what on earth did you do to your nose?" he said in dismay. "You'd best go get that looked at, or it may never be the right shape again."

[Zem Vymes]

Well this was damned bloody awkward, now wasn't it?

Zem stood two paces apart from Solomon as he attended to the needs of his Padawan. A nod to each to make sure that Kazahan wasn't brained, and Zem turned his attention to the Kel Dor visitor. He bowed, a salutation that had become a seeming anachronism in the nascent Jedi Order of present. Yet he understood the nature of the woman who now visited them, and her arrival heralded something of old days.

"Welcome to Ossus, Miss Kell."

As Zem rose from his salutation, he wondered if Kazahan's injury was the result of such deference. Ah, the special dread of first impressions.

"We've been expecting you. I'm Master Vymes."

Zem gestured to his attending colleague.

"This is Master Solomon."

Narrowly averting a grimace, he nodded to the Trianii.

"And I see you have been acquainted with his student Kazahan."

[Eah Kell]

Jedi Masters. Eah stifled a relieved sigh. So they did exist, then, and if they weren't exactly bearded and monklike, and if the setting wasn't exactly a grand, serene hall, at least they were tall and spoke with authority and hadn't forgotten about her, after all. She visibly relaxed, and bowed back to them, the traditional Jedi way of greeting that she had practiced over and over before leaving home. It felt old-fashioned and important, which was fitting, she'd always thought.

"Yes," she said, raising her voice a bit so she - hopefully - didn't sound so young. "He has been very kind to help me find my way around, though we were...unlucky along the way. He says he is not badly hurt but..."

[Kazahan]

"This one is fine, Master Solomon," Kazahan said. "Kazahan simply was not looking and walked into a beam. Again."

[Rev Solomon]

Solomon lifted his eyebrows at Kazahan's protest, but he merely pulled a large handkerchief from a coat pocket and handed it to his stricken padawan.

"You'll have to pardon us for not being there when your transport landed," the Jedi preacher said. "Our schedules must have gotten crossed. But I know I speak for the whole Council when I say we are sincerely honored that you have chosen to complete your training with the Jedi Order."

He turned and gestured with his left arm back down the road toward the Sanctuary colony, and the four of them fell into an easy walking pace. "I hope your journey from Dorin was comfortable?"

[Eah Kell]

"Yes, perfectly comfortable," Eah replied, lengthening her strides a little to keep up with the much taller men. "I'd never traveled off-world, so I wasn't sure what to expect. It was less dramatic than I'd imagined it, somehow. I regret the mixup in communication about when my ship was landing, Masters, but I'm very pleased to be here. Thank you for coming to meet me. Well, us," she said, waving the head of her staff at Kazahan to include him. "Sanctuary seems very busy and hectic. I understand there's still a good deal of it under construction?"

[Zem Vymes]

"A great deal." Zem conceded as they walked, nodding in agreement.

"There hasn't been a Jedi presence on Ossus for thousands of years. Growing pains are to be expected. I'm constantly impressed at the acceleration of our growth, to be honest."

Vymes glanced at the Kel Dor. He'd only known a handful in his travels, and had fought alongside Master Plo during some of the Outer Rim campaigns. She wore the environmental fittings that her people were known for, but everything from her gait of step to her vocal inflection indicated she was her own person.

"We're greatly pleased to find a student of the Baran Do seeking our teachings once again. Our relationship with your monastic order is one we have historically respected."

[Eah Kell]

Eah's tusks spread subtly wider in a smile. "It's one the Baran Do are eager to rekindle," she told them, and though she kept her voice measured, she was audibly pleased. "And which I myself am grateful I can take part in. I have heard many amazing things about the Jedi command of the Force, and about your abilities as negotiators. I'm glad of the opportunity to study here." She was nervous, too, and worried, and hopeful...she was many things, and trying to suppress most of them at once, a skill her tutors had tried and only marginally succeeded in drilling into her. "I brought with me some items for your library here," she added, tapping the strap of the metal pack on her back, "as a gift from the Baran Do to the Jedi."

[Rev Solomon]

"The wisdom of your people will be a treasured addition to our archives," Solomon replied. "I look forward to reading it."

The path crested a small hill and then sloped gently downward into the colony itself, which was bright with activity even in these early morning hours. From their vantage they could see workers and droids bustling around the garages and machine shops to the West, Suriyesh's three huge LB loaders carrying massive girders to the construction site in the North, padawans mingling with Alliance botanists in the hydroponic gardens to the East, and several classes of initiates taking advantage of the warm, sunny weather to hold lectures in the open air, or drill elementary lightsaber velocities on the parade grounds. The buildings were a mix of temporary and permanent structures, mostly modular constructions with little art or ornamentation; even the council chambers were made of poured duracrete, except for the brass-plated dome which gleamed almost like a third sun.

"It's still very different from the old Order," Solomon explained as they drew nearer. "The initiates outnumber the knights two to one, so teaching occupies a large portion of our duties. We teach classes for padawans and initiates alike, in history, science, culture, languages, lightsaber combat, and others, so that those who have taken padawan learners of their own can focus on advanced techniques or special areas of need. You'll be given your own schedule of classes, both to learn, and to help teach those younger and less experienced than yourself. I have no doubt you'll excel in both capacities."

He gestured to a pair of L-shaped buildings across the parade grounds. "Those are our primary living quarters. A few rooms on the ground floor are equipped for controlled atmospheres. We'll be able to approximate the conditions on Dorin for you there."

[Eah Kell]

Taking in the settlement proper for the first time, Eah finally felt real joy well up in her, real excitement, finally overtaking her misgivings from earlier. It was - as she had been told on Dorin, as she had seen a holo of - rough and still very much a work in progress. The world around their busy little hub here was wild and still largely untamed and in many ways unfriendly to their survival. Living here had not been easy for the Jedi so far, and would not be easy for some time still. But the luminous burnished dome glowing like the face of some beneficent god in the midst of all the bustle settled Eah in her heart that there was something holy still about this place. She smiled, a real, intense smile, her tusks angling widely and the ridges of her face deepening with the force of it. "It is very good," she said, not quite using the right translation of her thoughts in her momentary reverie; blinking herself out of it, she turned to look up at Master Solomon again. "That is, this is a good place, and I am very honored to be here. I am...I'm very excited," she admitted, hoping it wasn't too shameful a thing to say. She may as well be honest with people who would have some stake in her future, right from the very beginning. "There are more people here than I expected! So many to learn from." She hoped, deeply hoped, she could be of use to the Jedi here, and to her own people; she had no idea, yet, what usefulness was going to eventually look like here, but she was eager to find out. "Do you both have padawans of your own that you--

"Wait...will it be quite safe to recreate Dorin's atmosphere inside your living quarters?" she asked as the thought suddenly struck her in an uncomfortable way. "If anyone else were to come in, accidentally or otherwise, it could hurt them."

[Kazahan]

"Oh! So that is the reason you wear such an interesting mask!" Kazahan said, holding the handkerchief Solomon had presented him to his nose. His head was slightly raised to keep from getting too much blood on it. "This one thought it was simply your style."

[Zem Vymes]

Zem almost laughed at Kazahan's innocent observation, instead he reigned in his mirth for a simple smile.

"We will...be thorough in informing the classes of your unique needs, Miss Kell. Our foremost responsibility is to ensure these grounds serve Padawans and potentials such as yourself, to afford a fertile environment for learning in safety."

Master Vymes looked long to the mountains in the distance, somewhat more somber.

"The last time our youth could be promised that, I was a younger student than you are. I stake my solemn commitment to the task."

She'd been asking another question before Kazahan's unique observation, and Vymes addressed that.

"Most of our Knights and Masters have taken students. Some have taken several. That is not to say that it's a strictly one-to-one learning environment. Everyone assumes responsibility. As the saying goes, it takes a village."

[Eah Kell]

Eah was shocked at Kazahan's saying so. She gestured to her mask and leaned in towards him a little, so he could see more clearly that it completely covered all her orifices, sealed away her sensitive eyes and permeable tusks, attached to her cranial filter-sacs by permanent implants she'd had attached only two months ago. They still itched a little, in fact, when she thought about them. "Without my mask, Kazahan, I would not last very long here," she told him, voice ticking up in a combination of amusement and incredulity that he did not know this. "And without a mask of your own, you should not visit me in my room here, if it is to be made breathable for me." The thought warmed her, though, made her feel...more secure, somehow. It also made her very happy, knowing that she was welcome, and that a place would be made for her, that would be truly hers. In her head, she could just hear her friend Hoona, back home on Dorin, with her old-fashioned sayings: That puffs me up! My heart's full of warm air! Eah had thought those country sayings silly, but now, in this strange place and the excitement of possibility, she found the memory of them both comforting and very, very true. She felt full to the brim with warm feelings, her optimism having only flagged for a while.

"I'm afraid I do not know this saying, Master Vymes," Eah admitted lightly, absently tapping the end of her staff on the ground in thought. She had no idea what the taking of villages had to do with anything; human witticisms, it seemed, would take quite some more time to decipher than the old folks' slang from Dorin. "But I follow that everyone learns from everyone else. I am eager to learn, and to teach. I did some teaching of very young students, in the sagekeep, but I'm afraid I was not very good at it, except perhaps in teaching them self-defense."