When Alleria met Dauri:Chapter One- The Meeting

It was strange being off the isle. This new world was different, to say the least. Everything seemed so dirty, so disorganized compared to the clean curves of her floating home, or so Alleria saw it. Never before had people been so very rude to her. She had known nearly everyone on the isle, now she was on her own. For over a month now she hadn’t eaten, her mother’s cooking lasted only a short while. Wishing now that she had thought to bring more. When one is to wander forever, they should bring a substantial food supply.
She had traveled all day, alone, speaking only to the wind. The sun drifted, lazy, behind the hills and a cottage appeared on the crest of the next hill, smoke billowing from the clay chimney. She smiled, hoping they were friendly and would give her food or some comfort of sorts. A nice strong mead would be fine. Willing herself up the hill, Alleria barely made it to the top. As she approached the home she saw that a figure sat on the porch. In the rocking chair sat a male. He was carving to perfection the handle of a long steel dagger. The mahogany wood laid dark and dusty in his strong bronzed hand. Feeling her eyes digging into him, the guy looked up. Alleria judged him to be only a couple centuries older than herself.
“Can I help you?” he asked a little aggravated.
“Excuse me sir, but…” her voice cracked a little, “but, I need a place to stay tonight. I am a weary traveler, in need of food and warmth. I have nothing to offer, save my gratitude.”
Alleria lowered her eyes respectfully. The man on the porch stood and looked down at her. Both stood silently for a moment.
“Come in,” he said gruffly.
Inside the home was dark, lit only by lanterns placed strategically in the highest point of each corner, and as modest as plane as the log outside had been. No furniture to speak of only a table, some chairs, and a pile of blankets in a corner that she guessed served as a bed. In one darkened corner was a wood burning stove with some kind of stew simmering on the top.
“Where are you traveling from elven mistress?”
“Far away, no one has yet to believe my story so I shall not tell it again,” she looked at the man. Her eyes widened as she realized his ears were rounded and he was not quite as all as she.
“I will believe you. Please do tell I get so little company here. A good story would serve me well.”
The man poked at the fire in the stove and listened intently as Alleria recounted her memory of her last days on her floating home, Kioso. She grimaced as she repeated her mother’s last words to her. Tears ran freely, streaking her face. The human handed her a mug, filled to the top with ale.
“To family, or the lack there of,” he raised his glass and Alleria did as well, not quite sure what he meant by that.
Neither of them spoke as they drained the glasses. Alleria was finished first and set hers down and stared into the flames. Her face dried now she looked back. The human was looking at her.
“I am alone as well,” he stated simply, that and no more. So Alleria pried deeper.
“Why are you alone?”
“I just am,” he said sternly, drinking deeply from his newly filled mug. “I just am,” he repeated. Then he stood and looked down at Alleria.
“How long do you plan on staying?”
“I’m not sure, I’m not going any place in particular.”
“No destination?” he sniffed, “Some journey.”
The man turned and surveyed his home, turning slowly from one dusty corner to the furthest.
“You may stay as long as you’d like. I don’t leave too often, but I like to sit on my porch, so that’s what I do all day. Just leave the glasses on the table. We have to wash them in the pump out back, I’ll do that later. For now you can use two of my blankets. Tomorrow I will wash some others and you can use hem for he remainder of your stay here.” Alleria nodded.
“Thank you,” she said.
“My name is Dauri, by the way.”
Alleria nodded once more, Dauri gathered two large blankets off the floor. They looked brown and dirty, but hey felt as though their were feathers inside. A nice surprise in this world of brown, so different from the world she left behind.
Dauri rose up from the position in which he perched on the dirt floor, and checked the stew. It was obviously done, because he wrapped his hands in towels and lifted the pot to place it onto the table. He retrieved two bowls from a pantry and set them on a table, and spoons from the hooks on the side of the stove. He dipped out a large sum of food from the pot into each bowl, and handed one to Alleria. She smelled it, gathering a gargantuan spoon full and shoveling it into her mouth, it was hot and burned her mouth so she spit it back out. But she was hungry so she didn’t wait to shovel a burning mound of meat into her mouth again, and she swallowed without chewing. She at two more bowls in practically the same way, and was horribly stuffed and bloated, by the time she finished.
The sun was barely dropping beyond the horizon when she fell into a fitful sleep. Some thing was after her. She ran through a thick forest, tripping over sticks, with leaves crunching under her feet. The beast that chased her was growing closer. She could feel the immense power radiating from it… him.
Alleria jolted upright. She was suddenly dizzy and she found herself covered in steaming puke. Chunks of meat and potato scattered down her front. Heaving she expelled more of the thick fluid. Dauri awoke and rushed over, he grabbed a bottle from a shelf in the pantry. He handed it to her, “Drink this,” he said, “it will stop the puking.”
“Go sit at the table, while I clean up this mess,” he instructed.
She stood and barely wobbled to the table. Sitting in a chair she rested her head on the table, the wood was cool on her sweating face. She tried to use her shirt to wipe the vomit off her face, but only succeeded in transferring more vomit onto her cheeks.
Dauri stepped outside with the bundle of blankets, and returned a minute later without them. Turning to Alleria he grimaced at the vomit down her front and on her face.
“Alleria, you must change your cloths…” he insisted.
“I can’t,” came the weak reply.
“But you must,” he said grabbing the bag that she had carried.
“All I have are my robes, my traveling cloths and this.” she said.
Again, Dauri went to his pantry and this time he turned back clutching a green shirt and brown trousers in his hand.
“Here,” he said, “wear these. I’ll step out for a moment.”
He stopped, noticing that Alleria was unconscious. His facial features softened for the first time in years. He shook his head. The story she told him had reached his ears before, as had her name, Alleria the Storyteller. She did tell him an unbelievably crazy tale. She seemed a little eccentric to say the least. Alleria snorted in her sleep and jerked, nearly toppling off her chair. Dauri shook his head and rolled his eyes. He decided that it would be best to remove the puke stained sleeping shirt from her, FOR HEALTH REASONS OF COURSE!!
Slowly he pulled her arms through the oversized tunic she wore. Carefully slipping over it over her head, Dauri realized that she wore nothing over the top half of her body and only a small pair of knickers her bottom. The girls waist was so thin her ribs shown through, and he realized why she had gotten sick. It had been month or so since she’d eaten, and a thick hearty meal such as the stew was the last thing that she needed. He felt pity for her. He may not have much, but he had enough to live.
Sliding the shirt he held over her head, he noticed that it reached her knees and that there was no need for the breaches after all. He lifted her up off of the chair, on arm supporting her head, the other under her knees. He laid her on the two blankets left in his corner He covered her sleeping body with the top blanket and sat back down at the table.

Awakening to sunlight streaming in on her face, Alleria’s throat was dry and her stomach in pain. Still, she stood, ready to move her cramping legs. Hunched over the table top, and drooling, was Dauri, his dark hair a large fluff ball sitting on the top of his head, his blue eyes closed, and his beard even more ragged than the day before.
Grateful, Alleria purposed n her mind that she would do everything she could to help him and show her gratitude. Standing, she found that she was still dizzy. She grasped her forehead and closed her eyes, bracing herself on the wall, but she was determined, so she took a step and headed over to exit out of the back door. Upon opening the back door, she realized how warm and beautiful the air was. It was thick and sweet with animal noise. The light shined through he trees with a slight greenish tint. Something caught her eyes, just above the trees, it seemed there was a roof.
Alleria’s interest was peaked and all chores forgotten, she started in the direction of the building. In the trees it was a bit darker, and cooler than Dauri’s back yard. About three hundred yards into the woods Alleria found herself facing a wall. It was brick and mortar and seemed very tall, at least two stories.  She edged along the wall, sliding around a corner she found a door with beautiful stained glass windows. Alleria ran her hand along the smooth surface. Only the stone porch and walk way were not over run by trees and weeds. The home looked empty, abandoned even.
Twisting the knob and putting pressure on the glass, she easily moved the door on it’s brass hinges. Inside the first room were wooden floors, once glossy, but now covered in dust. There was furniture scattered about with white covers over the top. Under a large white sheet was a very large couch. It was deep green and velvet with wood that matched the panels on the floor. The room itself was huge with large windows that allowed sun light to flow in, and glass doors with golden knobs at the far end under a double stair case that wrapped around each side of the room and met on a large landing with two doors at each end. To the left and the right, before the staircase began, were two doors. Alleria advanced to the left and through the door, which opened to reveal a kitchen, the smell of spices still lingering on the white walls.
She followed some stairs at the right up onto the second floor where a long hallway stretched out before her. It was lit at the end by a large round window, where strained sunlight streamed in. To the left there were two doors and to the right there were
three, the last one being the one which reconnected with the main room. Behind the two doors on the left, and one on the right, were finely decorated bedrooms. Alleria’s favorite was one with a four poster bed. It seemed to have been a woman’s room. There was a dresser with a mirror and small bench. On top of it was a fine toothed hair brush. Seeing herself in the mirror, Alleria shivered at her reflection. She was dirty and her long blonde hair matted. Upon further inspection she realized that she wore a green shirt that reached her knees and that she still smelled slightly of puke. She decided that when she arrived again at Dauri’s she would wash herself thoroughly for a least ten minutes.
Wandering further she found that the middle room on the right was a grand bath. It had a large round bathtub which was so deep that Alleria could nearly swim in it. A commode sat on the opposite wall to the right of a white porcelain sink. The tub itself was made entirely out of gray marble. The knobs on the spout were so beautiful that Alleria had to touch. They were so shiny that she could see herself in them. She reached out and turned one, fully intent on stealing the golden orb. As the knob turned water spurted out, brown at first, but after a moment it was clear. Delighted, Alleria looked around.  On the edges of the tub were more faucets. She turned one knob and clean smelling bubbles poured out. The tub was full fairly quickly and soon Alleria was stripping off her oversized shirt and her undergarment.
Slipping thoughtlessly into the water Alleria turned more knobs that produced more smelly bubbles. Soon the room was filled with the scents of the soaps. She stopped the flow of bubbles and laid back. First, she washed out her hair and in between her toes came next. She found a small cloth lying in a stack on the window sill near the lft side of the tub. Soon she was clean, so she leaned and relaxed in the steamy liquid. For a while she played in the bubbles. Blowing them like kisses from her hand, making a beard and bushy eyebrows, but you can only make so many troll hair styles before you get bored. And she did get bored. She closed her eyes and determined to fully enjoy the warm water.


When Alleria met Dauri:Chapter Two