[ open ] If you want to understand today...

[afflatusexarch]

Who: G'raha Tia + You
Status: Open
Where: Various
What: MANTA quests
Warnings: TBD



💎 Waterlogged Writings

[ If there is one thing that G'raha Tia is... Unsettled by when it comes to being a Corsair it is the fact that there is a lack of preservation. The importance of that is where he feels like he aligns more with the Paladins. Thus, when they are looking for people to restore books and the like? Naturally he is going to offer his skills. ]

It has been... Some time since I've been able to work in this capacity.

[ He has gentle and steady hands as he works to try pages and then work to restore bindings and covers. It is the sort of thing that a historian such as himself can commit to. ]

Though I do question some of the, ah, content.

💎 Potion Permit

I feel as though these are ingredients for a hex rather than some sort of healing potion. Though I cannot find fault in the creativeness of what is required.

[ Honestly, he is more about trying to understand how to brew the potion itself from ingredients such as these. G'raha chuckles as he looks to whomever might be taking up the task with him. ]

Now do you believe that a "ghost pepper" means a pepper or the ghost of the pepper? Either way, off we go! This is quite the expansive list and we mustn't waste time.

[ Pick your ingredient: Ghost Pepper, Jellyfish Milk, Starfish Shards, or Compass Dust! ]

💎 Infinity Fabrics

[ The scarf that G'raha has worn today had actually been purchased from here. And the seamstress seems particularly friendly with G'raha - going so far as to ask him how an "injury most previous" has healed. Apparently there is a story there for anyone who wishes to know! But he spends his time reassuring her until she pulls and tugs him along saying that he absolutely must try her line of new dresses! ]

I-I suppose... I might be agreeable, but -!

[ No buts! This simply isn't allowed. She might be enlisting whomever is nearby to assist in picking out the best thing that will match G'raha! Maybe this one? Perhaps one of these instead. Red and black seem to be in G'raha's preferred colors! Either way, help the seamstress pick something out to complete G'raha's attire and then get fitted yourself! ]

💎 Wildcard

[ This is your free space area. Don't like any of the prompts above but want to thread with G'raha? Hit me with anything. Additional ones I am interested in are: Hexing Crystalss, Frost-Kissed Blossoms, and Bounties. If you want to plot something out, reach out to me at verthunder on both Discord and Plurk. ]

Comments

Infinity Fabrics

[empyrean_mirror]

Oh, that purple one does suit you, I think.

[Kaveh cannot save raha, because Kaveh is currently dressed like a fiery fairy. She even provided him with a wig, since his hair hasn't fully grown back in yet.

He's remarkably calm about this.]

[afflatusexarch]

[ His expression is clearly screaming for help Kaveh. Assistance are looking for different things to weave into G'raha's hair. ]

Wh...Why the purple one?

[empyrean_mirror]

Mm, well, you seem to like darker colors, and the shade of purple is a nice complement to your hair and eye color. In addition, there's an elegance to the body line that will show off your figure without showing off too much skin, which I'd hope would make this feel a little less uncomfortable to you.

Now, I'm sure you'd prefer pants, but we work with the options we're provided, no?

[He might have given the Seamstress a look. She just grinned at him, entirely unrepentant.]

[afflatusexarch]

[ Don't say it all like that! It makes G'raha's cheeks darken and he flusters a little. ]

'Tis not pants that are a concern. I've worn robes before so I -

[ Yes the seamstress is unrepentant. Entirely so. In fact she is nodding. Saying that since it isn't an issue of comfort, he simply must go!

And giving Kaveh the dress and stating that the blonde must assist! ]

[empyrean_mirror]

[Kaveh sighs and smiles, a bit apologetically, and takes the selected dress from the seamstress to brandish it at Raha.]

I don't think there's any way out of this, my friend.

Waterlogged Writings

[indispensable]

[Alhaitham has never really cared about the factions that form part of this world, much less what they do. Sure, he knows their existence from an organizational perspective, but frankly both sides are so bad at times they might as well not exist at all. Certainly, when it comes down to it Alhaitham can't say that he feels them in his day to day life here; all that really matters in the end is that he's where he can be the closest to Kaveh, without any obstacles in the way. Everything else is secondary to that fact.

So he doesn't really think twice about the fact that G'raha is here, especially since he's aware of the other's scholarly inclinations. Conversation, however, is another thing entirely—though he does actually pause in his own work about the remark on content.]

What? Never encountered something like this before?

[Not that its common for Alhaitham either, per se, and he's not going to claim any of these books as something incredibly important and life changing—but a lot books are simply there to capture and record knowledge and experience to be passed down, and this is no different.]

[afflatusexarch]

[ He leans back a little. G'raha links his fingers above his head and stretches. A few things pop and crack and his ears wiggle. His tail curls just so. ]

On the contrary. I am used to this sort of work, though restoring anything from a dead civilization with more advanced technologies is a different affair than this.

[ Especially since they are not "books" in the traditional sense. ]

I meant more so that these seem to be fairly common reading materials. Then again, shopping lists and ledgers are what seem to withstand the test of time more often than not.

[indispensable]

[Well that first sentiment is something that Alhaitham can get behind to some extent. The technology from Dehret's civilization is undeniably leagues ahead of what Sumeru has in the present, though he can't say that the idea of restoring them is something that's common in any way. The Scarlet King's civilization fell from grace for a reason, after all, and the Akademiya has made their stance clear on the matter—and the proof of it is something which Alhaitham has come to learn for himself, at least to a degree.

But with all that being said this isn't a topic that's best dwelled upon, so Alhaitham easily moves on from it, turning his attention to what G'raha says next and responding to that instead.]

The affairs of a citizen's daily life oftentimes reveal far more than what a formal record of history depicts. [He says easily, eyes already going back to the book which he is working on salvaging.] Not to say that one is better than the other, but information given on micro level tends to illuminate certain aspects that the macro level does not address in any fashion.

[Such observations aren't new at all, of course, but it doesn't hurt to bring it up at this time as a reminder.]

[afflatusexarch]

[ G'raha himself is using a bit of magic to dry the pages. Mostly air. At the very least he seems to know what he's doing, using his magicks in such a way. ]

True. I'd dare not argue that. Though I suspect that some of this literature doesn't depict much more than fantasy or the creative portion of the writer's mind.

[ A chuckle. He doesn't really mind. But, again, he had thought with the Paladins requesting assistance, it would be far more academic or historic records. ]

Though there are times where discoveries on a macro level would be infinitely more helpful when needing to complete a task.

waterlogged writings

[activatingcombatmode]

[This is paladin work but here G'raha is being a giant nerd and helping Zack with restoring these books. He should be thankful, since Zack's dumb hands and attention span is pretty terribly suited for this kind of thing. G'raha on the other hand... Seems right in his element.]

It's times like these I wonder why you're not a paladin, at all.

[Meanwhile, Zack is struggling with trying to gently pry the delicate and wet pages apart. He manages to rip yet another page.]

Damn it...

[afflatusexarch]

[ Ears perk right up at the sound of a page ripping. Raha reaches over and places a hand on top of Zack's. ]

Zack, my light and my love, how about you assist me in a different way? Sort and stack the books by amount of damage they have taken?

[ Might be easier for Zack rather than something... Delicate. ]

As for being Paladin or Corsair, I would think my desire for adventure and penchant for risk taking overrode any other facets of my personality.

[activatingcombatmode]

[Zack perks up with a smile. He might be just a little bit glad and relieved to get out of the page-turning task! Yeah!]

You don't need to gussy me up. I'll absolutely do that instead.

[He laughs. He carefully surrenders that particular book over to G'raha and wanders over to the stack of waterlogged books instead.]

I don't doubt that it's your reckless ways that got you saddled up with the corsairs. But you're still always in here trying to help with all of these paladin passion projects, anyway.

[afflatusexarch]

[ Before Zack can get too far, G'raha grabs a wrist. Pulls the man down to give him a peck on the cheek. ]

I would never do such a thing. Whenever this tongue of mine slips out words of affection, they truly come from the heart. Always.

[ He gives the other a wry smile before going back to the books. G'raha sets a wind spell to work, drying out pages. Otherwise, he has a pen and ink attempting to fix any faded ink. ]

In truth, I wish there was almost a third armada, but that might be too much to keep track of for everyone. I value the practice of preservation and helping others. Though that cannot always be done by following traditional methods or without breaking rules.

Infinity Fabrics

[brokenlight]

I think the purple one looks good on you.

[Hi there.

Ventus has never seen this cat person before, but he somehow got roped into helping out so he's. Here. Albeit unwillingly. Ventus just kind of tilts his head to the side as he watches.]

It definitely brings out your eyes with it.

[afflatusexarch]

[ Ears twitch and then perk up at the sound of the young man's voice. G'raha turns a bit darker shade of red and fusses with his bracers. His tail wildly swishes about behind him. Oh yes. So much flustered embarrassment over here. ]

Purple isn't... Usually a color I've ever worn.

[brokenlight]

Really? You look really good in it.

[Ventus can't help but give him a kind smile.]

But if not purple...then why not the black and red one?

[afflatusexarch]

I mean... I am not opposed. Though I am not sure why it must be me. Surely you are capable of wearing something just as much as I?

[ See what he is doing here? ]

Waterlogged Writings

[feralhumanity]

[Nanaki isn't of much use in repairing the waterlogged books himself, he has been going around helping those who can in any way he can; whether that be fetching more waterlogged books, helping to get various tools, even allowing one scholar to use his tail to dry a book. So right now he's opted to work with the scholarly Corsair he's met before while finding relics. Though after bringing some more books over, the scent of wet paper has all but clogged Nanaki's nose. He has to sneeze and shake out his head, his fur and adornments rattling a bit before he turns to G'raha.]

Why? Is there something wrong with what's in the books?

[afflatusexarch]

[ He is... Extremely apologetic. Poor Nanaki's nose. Maybe he can just. You know. Reach out and cast an Esuna. Perhaps that can help with the sneezing issue for a little while. ]

Nay, it isn't that there is an issue with the content. It merely wasn't what I would expect would be in such dire need of restoration.

[feralhumanity]

[It's not G'raha's fault! It's just, these books really make his nose itch! But the Esuna is welcomed, and he lets out an easy breath once it's cast.]

Really? What kind of books are they? The way the other scholars were talking, it sounded like they were important.

[afflatusexarch]

[ Hmmm. Honestly, if the books are so rare, why are there countless editions of the same titles being passed along? Unless someone had been collecting them? ]

Some of the titles are biographical in nature, but without appropriate context how are we do know that it is not some work of fiction? They would need to be cross referenced with historical texts to be credible.

Potion Permit

[emet_sulk]

[ Here he is again, dragged along as a helper in this quest. In fairness, Emet-Selch had some small interest in the results: a healing potion is always useful. ]

What in Zodiark's name is jellyfish milk? What are jellyfish? Gelatinous sea creatures?

[ Squint. ]

...Surely they don't mean an aurelia?

[afflatusexarch]

Jellyfish and aurelia are similar, though I don't think the jellyfish has the intellect of an aurelia.

[ Some of the ingredients are... Definitely out there. How does one - ]

Perhaps they produce a substance yet unknown?

[emet_sulk]

Clearly not unknown to everyone if this is listed as an ingredient.

[ He jabs a finger at the paper. ]

They also do not specify if 'compass dust' refers to dust accumulated within a compass - impossible if it is made properly - or the dust remains of crushing one. What sort of fool wrote this?

[afflatusexarch]

I would assume that the "fool" is the potion master herself. If you would like, you can always go and question her personally about her meaning.

[ Somehow he doesn't think that will settle well with anyone. The woman might refuse to have any dealings with the both of them. ]

We could find both and have her decide which one it is.