Written Wonderland

Jaz smiled and nodded, and seemed content to sip her tea in silence for a time. Ren was grateful that she didn't seem scared--he'd had a flare of worry about that, in acknowledging the fun he'd had. But, he had no intentions of misusing the power her had over her--that would make him no better than the people he himself had fled--and perhaps Jaz could feel the truth of that. He hoped so.

Ren sipped his own tea in silence, watching Jaz as she cast her gaze to the window--toward her tent--and Ren frowned a little. It did feel almost cruel to send her out into the cold, even with sufficient blankets. She turned her gaze back to him, a subtle but unmistakable yearning in her warm face. Ren grew a little stiff, the thought rising that she might try to seduce him just for a warm bed. He'd rather she just ask him outright not to make her sleep in the cold.

She lowered her gaze back down to her mug where her fingers fiddled with one another, and he relaxed a little; at least, they still had some time before they had to figure all that out. Indeed, Jaz went ahead and asked a separate question.

"Did you say there were other people who lived out here who might... know about... other beings who might have come out from this part of the forest?"

"Yeah," Ren nodded, shifting a little to a more comfortable position in his stool. "There are a few people I know of who live a ways away from the village like me, and they've been here longer. There's a woman named Baer I thought we might go visit tomorrow. She is kind and pleasant company, and knows a lot about this land."

And, Ren thought with a small, crooked smile, she leaves her door unlocked.

"Yeah," Ren said, readjusting on his stool. "There are a few people I know of who live a ways away from the village like me, and they've been here longer. There's a woman named Baer I thought we might go visit tomorrow. She is kind and pleasant company, and knows a lot about this land."

Ren then offered an absent, somewhat wistful grin, and Jaz wondered how well Baer and Ren knew each other. The curiosity made a lazy sensation of excitement roll around in her belly.

She nodded, grateful that they had a plan and a clear path forward. Getting more information about what sorts of beings had come before her might help her determine the frequency with which the fae gate opened here. Maybe. It was still a long shot. And even if she did find out, she wasn't ready to go back. Not by the standards of her sorala. She was meant to live among the people she found, seek adventures and curiosities, and bring back stories to the clan when she was finished. If she went back now, she would have very little to offer them.

Still, it would be of great comfort to know how to get home, or at least, know someone she could ask about it.

"That sounds perfect," Jaz said honestly, taking a small sip of her tea. She was trying to make it last at this point, soaking up as much of the warmth as she could. Errantly, she looked at Ren's hand, the pull from his command still fresh in her mind. But, of course, there was nothing special about his hand--just the imminent possibility that he could command her whenever he wanted. She did not yet have any reason to be afraid of Ren, and she hoped she would never find one.

"That sounds perfect," Jaz replied after nodding. It was good that they agreed on a plan for tomorrow, but awkwardness fell as they both sipped their tea. Ren's eyes trailed over to the stove and back to Jaz, hospitality tugging at him.

"I know there's not a ton of floor space," Ren said a bit awkwardly, "But... it'll certainly be warmer in here, than in your tent, if... if you'd like to sleep in here tonight."

The truly chivalrous thing might have been to offer to sleep on the floor himself at that point so that Jaz could have the bed, but he doubted his nervous system would allow him to get any sleep. He'd probably struggle to get much anyway--maybe even regardless of where Jaz slept--but at least in his bed he'd have his back to the wall, which was something.

Jaz was content to let a silence fall between the two of them. Otherwise, she might ask him more questions, and she didn't want him to feel pestered or interrogated. They had had a good day, despite the circumstances, and she wanted to keep it that way. That and, granted, she was getting tired. She had had quite the journey.

"I know there's not a ton of floor space," Ren started, pulling Jaz's attention from where she had been staring into her mug, "But... it'll certainly be warmer in here, than in your tent, if... if you'd like to sleep in here tonight."

Jaz raised her eyebrows, surprised. Why all the trouble of getting a tent if he was just going to let her stay in here anyway? But maybe she had earned something from him. Maybe they really had cultivated enough trust. And, perhaps the tent would come in handy later, whenever Jaz felt like she needed to venture on.

"I'd appreciate that," she said somewhat cautiously. "Thank you." She did look forward to piling up blankets in front of the stove and soaking in its warmth--she was a creature of the flame, after all.

Jaz sipped a larger portion of her tea, her heart happy. She had done well on this first day in a new realm, she thought. Afterward, she yawned and nodded, letting another silence pass. She didn't want to look too eager or as though she had been waiting for Ren to offer.

"I should go bring some things in, then," she decided finally, standing up after a moment. Jaz opened the door, quickly closing it behind herself to keep the warmth inside. She stood on Ren's doorstep, gazing up at an unfamiliar moon in a deeply black sky full of stars. She gasped--probably audible even from inside the cabin--at the sight of them all. it was so rarely clear enough in the goddess' realm to see any more than the moons.

A breeze rushed across the meadow soon after, however, reminding her of her purpose and making her grateful for Ren's offer. She gathered her blankets and pack from the tent, took one last look at the menagerie of stars above her, and opened the door to the cabin again. Jaz laughed at herself, marveling at how differently she was trying to open the door this time compared to when she first arrived.

Once inside, she closed the door and, after a moment of thought, slid the deadbolt as well, looking to Ren for something like approval.

"You all have so many stars!" she said, her eyes nearly alight with the dazzle of them herself.

Jaz raised her eyebrows in surprise. "I'd appreciate that, thank you." Her tone was cautious, which in some ways Ren appreciated, though he hoped she knew the offer was in earnest. She sipped more of her tea, and Ren sipped more of his, though he was beginning to feel antsy. Tired, perhaps. Almost on cue, Jaz yawned. Ren offered her a crooked smile, and indulged in an impulse to mirror the motion. That physiological fluke transcended species, he supposed.

"I should go bring some things in, then," Jaz said finally, and stood. Ren began to stand as well, but Jaz was out the door quickly, closing it behind her. He heard a gasp through the door, and pulled back the curtain to peer out the window, where he saw Jaz standing on the doorstep, gaze turned up toward the stars. He smiled and shook his head, and then went and crouched by the stove, setting another log into the fire. It only the occurred to him with a frown that he'd want to change before bed--surely Jaz would, as well?

Jaz returned with blankets and pack in arm, managing to negotiate it all through the door before she locked the deadbolt behind her, tossing her gaze to Ren with an amusing sort of pride.

"You all have so many stars!" she exclaimed then, and the delighted sparkle in her eyes brought a good-natured smile to Ren's face as he stood.

"Yeah. Sometime I'll teach you some constellations, if you're interested." Then, he eyed the blankets in Jaz's arms. "For now, shall we get these laid out?" He walked over to her, half to get himself out of the way, half to offer his own hands for assistance.

((OOC: lmao @ the realization that Ren and Jaz gonna eventually make us figure out star lore in this world wheee. At least they gave us a heads-up lol))

"Yeah. Sometime I'll teach you some constellations, if you're interested," Ren said, and Jaz nodded her excitement. She opened her mouth, wanting to ask if they could go back out now, but she genuinely was tired.

"For now, shall we get these laid out?" Ren asked, walking over to her. In response, she handed him a few of the blankets, and she got to work folding the thickest of them lengthwise and setting it directly in front of the stove, though she was careful not to touch let the blanket touch the hot metal. Jaz might not burn, but the blankets would, she figured.

"Is the sky usually that clear?" Jaz asked, nervous that this might be a rare occasion on which to see all the stars like that.

They worked together well to get the blankets laid out--Ren was grateful Jaz seemed to already understand safety concerns near the stove. As they finished up, she asked, "Is the sky usually that clear?"

"Sometimes it's cloudy," Ren replied with a shrug as he stood and stretched a little at the foot of Jaz's blankets. "But it's often clear. I stargaze in the meadow frequently."

He let a beat of silence stand, awkwardness slowly settling over him again as he assessed Jaz's travel clothes and her pack. Would she have even brought clothes for sleeping in? Was her kind even accustomed to such a thing?

"If you need... I could lend you some fresh clothes to sleep in." Surely that was as polite a way as any to broach the subject.

They made quick work of the blankets, and soon Ren responded. "Sometimes it's cloudy," Ren replied, shrugging and stretching. "But it's often clear. I stargaze in the meadow frequently."

Somehow, Jaz liked imagining that. Ren, all alone, staring up into the vast sky. It was a beautiful, lonely image, but she held it happily in her heart.

She was grateful that she did not need to rush having that experience for herself just yet. It was enough that she knew that an adventure awaited her.

With a prickle on her neck, Jaz realized Ren was surveying her.

"If you need... I could lend you some fresh clothes to sleep in." She blinked at him, grateful but confused. He slept with clothes on? She supposed it made sense, if humans frequently slept alone. It would frequently get cold, she imagined.

Jaz looked down at the stove and the blankets, thinking she would stay plenty warm. But also, the thought of wearing Ren's clothes did appeal to her. She liked the thought of being wrapped up with him, and his clothes would at least be a simulacrum of that. But he had sounded... nervous when he'd offered. Why? What would happen if she refused or slept without any?

She looked down at herself. Her dress and leggings weren't exactly dirty enough to need washing, but they weren't clean enough that she wanted them in the blankets with her. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw the center of her palms had started to lose color again, turning beige. Suddenly, she became embarrassed, holding her arms around herself as though she could hide it.

"I have other clothes. Thank you," she said, briefly looking at Ren. She was, admittedly, grateful to be somewhat self-sufficient in this. She had accepted quite a lot of generosity today, even if she had given Ren one of her stones.

But that had been a gift, Jaz thought.

So is his hospitality, Jaz imagined Monica saying.

Jaz turned away to look into the flames. So red and yellow. Not even fire was the same here, it seemed.

((OOC: She probably also has a visible beige spot on her face, maybe above an eyebrow.))

Jaz looked surprised, and Ren shifted his weight a little uncomfortably. Djinn indeed didn't wear clothes to sleep, he gathered. Jaz looked down at the stove, the blankets, herself, her hands... she grew embarassed suddenly then, crossing her arms over herself as she returned her gaze to Ren. He noticed some beige was starting to slowly blotch down onto her forehead over one eyebrow.

"I have other clothes. Thank you," she said, and Ren nodded, though still looked a bit awkward.

Well, first, there was the matter of getting over to his dresser without stepping all over Jaz's makeshift bed. His eyes traced the paths by way of table or stove, but ultimately he decided it'd all be easier if he just went ahead and took his shoes off and worried less about it regardless. So, he went ahead and sat down where he was by the door and began to unlace his boots.

Jaz turned away from Ren, taking deep breaths. She was going to be fine. Even if she woke up completely beige, she had food, she had a safe place to be, she would be all right.

Slowly, she uncurled her arms from around herself and braved a look over at Ren, who was taking his shoes off near the door. Something about that made her smile slightly, regaining some of her confidence.

She bent down to do the same, stashing her shoes under her pack as far out of the way as she could. Jaz then rummaged through her pack to find another dress. While she was at it, she grabbed another of her wafers from home, just in case she did wake up hungry, setting it beside the stove.

Jaz looked at Ren again then, uncertain if there was etiquette around taking her clothes off she wasn't aware of. It seemed like there must be if Ren had asked about it.

Should she change outside? It didn't seem like he was going to if he was taking his shoes off. Maybe she could change under the blankets, but that would defeat the point of changing in the first place.

She decided to wait and follow Ren's lead.