Gareth's House [open]

Gareth Gruven · February 11, 2004, 05:41 PM

OOC: The house is located in the center of the island, yet near the north.

Also the Residence of: Paul Tyndal, and Solaris Silverarrow

IC: Deep within the forest of Arios, a bit to the north but closer to the middle section of the island, Gareth had inherited his home from his grandfather’s land deed. Never remembering to have ever met his parents, he had spent most of his life farming his grandparent’s lands. While he and his grandfather farmed outside, his grandmother would stay inside, baking bread or perhaps knitting a new sweater before the harsh breezy winds of winter rolled in. His grandfather, Borothorn, had been taught in the arts of Arcane and was an adept Druid. Gareth had watched him in growing curiosity as he would be able to conjure water out of nowhere. It was when he had decided to leave the remainder of his family and set out on his own that he realized the potential he could possess in becoming a Druid himself. Fiercely determined, he set out to the one place he knew would lead him to his dreams, Arios.

It took him a while to locate the correct house – tree to be more exact–, but in the end he was able to find it. A tall oak tree, though cut at teh very top, stood surrounded by other trees, all of almost the same height, but his standing slightly above the rest. Flying gracefully up to the top of an Oak tree, he realized that the top part of the tree had been neatly sawed off, leaving a flat land of wood over the trunk. Dissapointed, and believing he had found the wrong house, Gareth turned to leave. But something out of the corner of his eye caught his attention and he excitedly hovered down to see what it was. A trapdoor!

His excitement rising, he could not help but wonder if this was the entrance to his house, and, to his delight, he found out he was right! Opening the latch, which was thankfully unlocked, the platinum haired fae lowered himself down into a dusty room, closing the trapdoor behind him. He was greeted by dust, and darkness, except for a tiny sliver of light that was shining on the opposite side of the room. It was the light from outside, coming through a window, though covered by dark scarlet curtains. Gliding over to the curtains, he pushed them aside, greeted by the sun's radiant rays of light, and spun on his heel to look at the room.

It was a living space, he could tell that easily. Underneath the door was a candle stand that had been nailed onto the wall, a un-lit candle resting peacefully there. Underneath the trapdoor, but on either side were two dusty couches made of a green fabric of some sorts. In between the two couches lay a rug, not a fine exotic rug, just a plain simple rug that blended with the wooden floors. Towards the left of the couches was a place for a fire, intended to be used for safe cooking. Towards the right there was a rather large hole in the floor, right below the window. The room was the highest out of the three, having been made near the top of the tree. Outside the window, Gareth could see the treetops of the sea of trees.

Wondering what the hole was for, Gareth fluttered towards it, before hovering down to inspect. Leading up to his expectations, he found another room. This was was smaller, and not as big, and had a small door towards the left of it, where the trap door would have been had he been a floor higher. The door lead staight into the outside, though could be locked only from the inside, and with the proper key, which Gareth found underneath the pot of a green leafy plant. The room had no windows, having been carved into the very center of the oak's trunk, but was filled with candle stands and candles resting upon them. Hovering down until his boots reached the floor, Gareth admired the small comfy, plush chair that had been snugged away in the right corner of the room, opposite of the door. A bookcase had been placed near the chair, probably for reading any sort of material. A small chest for filling clothes was on the opposite side of the room, along with a shelf that had been carved into the wall. There was also another door near the chair that led to the toiletries.

At the very top of the tree, nearby the trapdoor, was a small bell that hung off of a limb. Attached to the bell was a gigantic, enormously long rope that led all the way to the foot of the tree. This was used for ringing, at least for those who were not Faeries or Sprites. The visitor would only have to ring the bell to catch Gareth's attention, and the Sprite would zoom down the dizzying drop to greet his guest. There, they could talk in the shade of a few limbs, where some wooden chairs fit for taller guests rested on the grass and a small poorly crafted table.

However, there was another thing that might catch the visitor's eye. To the right of the tree and pavilion, there stood a small one-room house, clearly built in a shabby but acceptable way. There were some gaps in the wooden frame that had been filled with mud, and an open space that was supposedly a doorway, but it worked. Two men named Paul Tyndal and Solaris Silverarrow lived there. Inside there were two chairs, a table, and plenty of candle holders that projected from the wooden walls. On the roof of this building there was a tent that had been nailed down. It was accessable through a wooden ladder that led to the roof. In the tent, the three friends stored all their storage items they needed.

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Gareth sat comfortably in the plush chair and smiled. This was his home, his very own place to live. But what puzzled him most was the fact that there was no bed. He had remembered something about his Grandfather saying how there was no sleep in Arios, but what could that mean? His thoughts roamed towards when he flew over to reach the island. He remembered being tired on the flight over, but couldn't think of a time or place in which he might be tired now that he was here. 'Strange..strange indeed, I must ask a Druid or other Fae...' he thought to himself, and his features suddeny became stern and concentrated, much unlike the usual cheerful face he had had on earlier. 'I have yet to become a Druid, but first I must see about food, perhaps some new clothes, and a knapsack and job...' the small winged creature thought to himself. Standing up, he stretched both his arms and his wings alike, and flew up to the living room, staring boredly out the window while he watched the sun slowly sink beneath the horizon of trees.

Paul Tyndal · February 12, 2004, 07:24 PM

It was a beautiful day, even as Ariosian days went. The sky was clear of all but the rare wisp of passing cloud, and the beauty seemed to reflect in every aspect of the small island. The forest was teeming with large and small creature alike, mammal and insect, and all creatures seemed to have called a cease-fire to the dog-eat-dog world that they all lived in all the other days.

But not this day, because there was something special about this day.

Paul was taking a casual walk through the woods, not an uncommon activity for him, being a ranger. He marveled at the animals, who seemed to be oblivious to him, even when he got close enough to touch them. Because he was not yet a good enough ranger for the animals to accept him as one of them, he was not used to such disregard by his lesser friends. Strolling on a meandering path that was not marked in any way, not even in Paul's mind, he suddenly came upon a most peculiar sight.

Hanging in front of Paul was a bell-pull.

Astonished, his curiousity got the better of him, and he tugged lightly on the rope. A chime could be heard from inside, and Paul stood there, waiting for whomever might decide to greet him from this most interesting and out-of-the-way house.

Gareth Gruven · February 12, 2004, 07:34 PM

Gareth Gruven had been exploring the woods and collecting mushrooms and berries, placing each of them carefully in a small sack. His grandparents had taught him of the local roots and berries that were safetly edible, and he found that most of them were common and could be found nearly anywhere, as long as they were in a proper forest. He was nearly sure the Druids looked after the place.

As he happened to have come upon a small cluster of mushrooms very close to his house, he fluttered down to pick them. One by one, they were palced tenderly into the bag, and examined to discover their species, determining whether they were safe or poisonous. However, on this particular day, Gareth would be having a rather un-expected guest. As he finished picking the mushrooms, and counted how many he had in his sack coupled with berries, he heard a chime. Shrugging it off, his green almond-like eyes continued to search for berries, until a thought bounced into his mind. 'The only house near here is mine...' he mused silently, and he quickly spun around in mid-air towards the direction of his house and rocketed off towards it.

Coming out of a group of trees, he found himself face-to-face to the back of a Half-Elf. Smiling, glad to see that the elf was not fully human, yet not fully elf either, he grinned and spoke in a cheerful voice, "Ah..I'm sorry, I didn't know I had a visitor. Is there anything I can help you with? I'm Gareth Gruven, training Ranger and Druid!"

Paul Tyndal · February 12, 2004, 07:45 PM

"The name is Paul Tyndal," the half-elf replied, "and I too am training to be a ranger." Paul had not expected a meeting with one of the smaller folks, or Fae as they were called, but his cool demeaner was not visibly shaken at being confronted with so odd a being. "I did not come here on purpose, I was just passing through the forest, as is my habit to do. Being a ranger, I enjoy the forest. Though, I suppose, I would enjoy the forest even if I wasn't a ranger.. so many sights and sounds, something new around every corner.." Paul seemed to drift off, as if his soul had left his body and was taking a trip of it's own through am imaginary world of it's choosing.

He stayed in this comatose state for several minutes, but he suddenly snapped back into reality. Looking confused, he began to ask, "Where am I?" but he stopped when his mind caught up with his physical reality. He then continued in an unruffled voice, responding to the question the sprite had put to him several minutes before. "There is nothing I need, I stumbled upon your house totally by accident. Do you have a purpose of having a house so far from civility?"

Gareth Gruven · February 12, 2004, 07:55 PM

"It is a pleasure to meet you Paul Tyndal," the Sprite spoke in his usual sing-song voice. He did nto expect to meet another man with so much in common, yet he almost never doubted his thoughts or feelings when he first saw the Half-elf. Elves were always known for their love of life, why should this man be any different? "Well, you have already answered your question in words having been spoken from your own mouth Paul. I live here because I am trying to connect with nature, once I am a Druid, it will be best for me to stay away from the city life. However, I can answer your other question myself. You are almost in the direct center of the island, though slightly to the north. South of here lies the cities and docks, you might have noticed if you paid attention to the suns whenever you came across a clearing, yet I must forgive you due to the lack of them..." he spoke in a jokeful manner.

Regaining his sincerity, he smiled and took out the small sack filled with mushrooms and such. "Please, stay for dinner, I'm in the middle of cooking it," he spoke truelly, for the water had been boiling up in the tree. "Mushroom stew, a few wild strawberries, and some bread....it'll just be a minute or so," he spoke in a friendly tone, and waited to see if the half-elf agreed to stay for supper. If so, the Sprite would hurriedly shoot up into the air near the top of the tree, cook the dinner, and come hovering down again with the proper silver ware and the bread and strawberries, before leaving again for the stew. Once he returned, he bore two steaming fresh bowls of the stew, one slightly larger than the other. The stew was good, it was a recipe that had been perfected over thousands of eras through his lineage.

Over dinner, (he purely would not take "no" for an answer), Gareth would pop the question, "So...where are you from? Tell me a bit about yourself..."

Paul Tyndal · February 12, 2004, 08:12 PM

Paul did not even consider saying no to the gracious creature's request, so he took his seat at his new friend's table. Smelling the air, Paul could quickly tell, as could anyone with their faculty of smell still working, that Gareth was a superb cook. Maybe because Paul had been living off of a simple diet of roots and berries, he could not wait to get some of the stew that he was being served. After eating his fill, his tablemate popped his question, and because of the delicious meal layed out before him, Paul was more than happy to answer.

He replied, between bites, that he did not know the name of the place where he was born. He did, however, remember what it was like. He told Gareth that it was heavily wooded, even though much of the area was used as farm land. He was born to a farmer and his wife, both simple people, or so he had thought for much of his life. However, when he came of age, and worked in the fields alongside his father, he found out that both of his parents had an interesting and strange past.

Apparently, they had met while traveling throughout the world, both of them, though not famous, known among many of the higher adventuring circles. His father told him, "I didn't believe in love at first sight, or even love, at that time. However, my boy, after I saw your mother, I knew that I was in for it!" He always said this with a chuckle and a pause, remembering the old days. He continued on about how Paul's mother and he had settled down in their later years, after their wanderlust was used up, and bought this farm.

His father was also a lover of the outdoors, Paul continued, and I most likely inherited my love from him. He would always take me on treks throughout the forest and surrounding areas, and he would teach me interesting facts about the outdoors. Even though I never saw him pick up a weapon to fight any living creature that didn't attack him first, I heard that he was a magnificent marksman, and not bad with a bladed weapon either.

However, like all good things, his parents had died of natural causes, and he was left an orphan. Selling the farm for a small sum, he set out to fufill the dream that had been implanted in him ever since his father had first taken him out to explore the forests - to become a ranger, and a marksman. He had, at that time, figured that the city would be the best place to find training, so he had set out for the grandest city of all, Alleria Prime.

When he reached Prime, his spirits were high and he had bought a small home. However, he soon discovered that the city was not all that poor country folk make it out to be. Paul was soon scrambling for a living, and his search for training had no end in sight.

However, by some interesting circumstances (read: Intro Post) he had managed to book a passage on a ship to Arios, with the promise of fufillment just on the horizon.

"And so I am here," Paul concluded, taking a deep breathe. He was not used to telling such long stories, and it had left him quite winded and thirsty. Taking a long draught from his cup, he faces the sprite and asked, "And you? What is your story?"

Gareth Gruven · February 12, 2004, 08:28 PM

"It must have been a beautiful place," Gareth concluded happily as the stranger, now coming closer and closer to being a friend, finished speaking. He had eaten silently during Paul's tale, listening attentively with full eye contact, though occasionally glancing around at the sound of a bird whistle or the crack of a twig. But now, a question had been returned to him, practically the same one, and the Sprite raised his eyebrows in suprise, but lowered them reesentfully. He never did like to speak of his grandparent's, now that he had left them. It made him homesick.

"Well, I guess I can say I grew up similar to you. Heh, probably the reason we both decided to become rangers! I never knew my mother or father, all I know is that they died somewhere, and my older sister went missing. I am told, that my father was a Paladin for the Church, and tehy lived peacefully in Diana, where I was really born. However, something dreadful happened, and they sent me and my sister away immediatly. My sister was sent to my dad's side of the family, me to my mother's. My grandparent's never bothered telling me what happened to them, and I was too afraid to ask. I was raised on a farm like you, and we planted and grew all sorts of vegetables. Occasionally I would ride in with my Grandfather into the city to sell the goods and market them, but other than that I was usually at home or doing my own demises in the forest. He was a Druid y'know, my grandfather, a pretty darn good one too from what I remember. I always enjoyed watching him cast Arcane. But eventually, the day came to when I had to leave, and he gave me the one thing that could make the path of my life matter, a deed to this tree, or house. And so I flew over here, the trip was rather uneventful, I believe I saw a group of dolphins, and the weather was fairly easy, with only a light breeze," he spoke with a faraway look in his eyes as he recalled the events.

When he had finished speaking he glanced around him, noticing the sun set and the time rattling on towards night. "My goodness!" he exclaimed as he immediatly jumped up and crept out of the tree to look at the sky. "We must have been talking for hours! It's already turning to dusk!" he spoke with a bit of regret in his voice, he had been deprived of company for quite a while. Turning back to his guest, he smiled sheepishly and murmured, "I'm sorry I've kept you for so long. In return for your kindness, well, would you like to stay the night? I know you couldn't possibly make it up to the tree, but I could loan you a blanket or two and find you a safe place to put your items. You do know that theres no real need to sleep in Arios, right? Anyways, you have a safe place to stay here for as long as you would like. Perhaps later tonight we could go hunt for game, or search for berries. Maybe even explore the island?" he asked in a happy voice, knowing that the Half-elf had the choice of accepting the suggestion or declining it.

Gareth Gruven · February 13, 2004, 10:14 PM

OOC: This has nothing to correspond to you Paul.

This is just an addition to my home.

IC: Ever since he had begun receiving lessons under Sal from the Archery Range, Gareth had found the need to practice. And, since he was surrounded by trees in a forest, he didn't have to build his own target. Instead, the target was all around him. Each and every tree stood as a potential target, the only thing needing to be added were the rings. And so, Gareth had quickly picked up a handful of small berries, and smeared them onto his neighboring tree and created rings. With that, he swiftly resumed his Archery training, firing to the best of his abilities at the target.

Paul Tyndal · February 14, 2004, 09:33 AM

"I'd like that," Paul replied to the question of partnering up put to him by Gareth. "I'd like that a lot." Paul was already warming to this light-hearted sprite, and he could not see how anyone could resist his happy-go-lucky manner. Besides, his cooking was excellent, and Paul could barely make a competent sandwich.

"I'll need a place to stay, however.." Paul said, thinking outloud. "Maybe we could hollow out a place in your tree? I don't want to have to stay in my tent when it is raining, and when we have a perfect abode right here, not to sound selfish or anything.

Gareth Gruven · February 14, 2004, 12:58 PM

"Hmm...I was thinking of building you a small hovel or something. No offense, but if we hollow out the trunk of the tree too much it'll most likely fall over, leaving not only you but myself also with no home," the Sprite explained cheerfully, hoping Paul would catch on. "However, I suppose we could make your house underground if you would like? Maybe hollow out a little cavern of some sorts, and make some wooden stairs and a trapdoor that leads into it?" Gareth suggested as he ran a slender hand through the silver hair. His dark green almond-like eyes never left Paul's, wondering how the man would take to the suggetion.

"You brood over that...I'm going to go find a tree that'll do and then come back and get you," he spoke in a cheerful voice, while he zoomed off to find a tree. Minutes later, he came hurrying back, searching for Paul here.

Gareth Gruven · February 16, 2004, 08:01 PM

'Please let Solaris be here, please let Solaris be here Carmelya' the small Sprite prayed as he glided back towards his home. It was good to be back in Arios, his body had shifted gladly to the no rest thing and his speed was as fast as ever. He flew over the people in the town and was soon speeding through the forest to his house. "Solaris, Solaris are you there? I have great news!" he yelled out cheerfully as he reached the clearing, which consisted of a large oak tree and a poorly made room. "Come on out Solaris, it's just me!" he said with a grin as he fluttered in the clearing, his new items all about him.

Solaris Silverarrow · February 16, 2004, 08:19 PM

He had just returned from his short trip at the Islands capital. This city didn't have a bank, so he had gone their on the hope that they would have a bank, as most large cities usually did. He had hated the boat rides; however he had needed the money since he had handed over his 400 crowns the Gareth. He of course had been tired on the boat ride here, but now that he was back on the island, he found himself not sleepy anymore. Try as he might, he just couldn't fall asleep no matter how much he tried. "Hmmm, perhaps it is this place, I do feel as if the roof will fall down upon me." He grinned, he had helped to make the tiny shack and as of yet, had not met its other inhabitant. He sighed and had started to take off his armor, and placed on his raggedy shirt that had been given to him so long ago.

He had gone not too far, for he only wanted to practice his Zinn'ka. It had been far too long since he had last used the moves. As he went into the forward stance, he quickly brought his right arm up and out into a strong and fast punch. Another punch...then another and another till his arm was in a flurry of right punches. He soon did the same with the left, and was going through one of these movements when he heard his name being shouted.

He grinned,"You know, if you were to walk once awhile you wouldn't have such a hard time seeing me." Indeed, he was below the sprite, sweat covering his face and drenching his raggedy shirt.

Gareth Gruven · February 16, 2004, 08:30 PM

"Heh, and thank Carmelya I don't walk," the Sprite spoke as he dropped down to Solaris's eye level. "I wouldn't want to be stepped on every ten seconds," he said with a grin and then ran a hand through his hair. He had missed being home, yet he was also glad he had made his trip to Olympia. Cheerfully, Gareth handed back Solaris's four bank notes that were worth a hundred crowns each. "There you go my friend...I've had a change of luck in my life," he said merrily. "I went to Olympia, and cleaned myself up," he added on, trying hard to beat around the bush and grow the suspense.

"You see, when I went to Olympia, it was to get this bow," he said and handed his elven-steel composite short-bow over to Solaris. The bow was extremely light, and had an intriguing design of a radiant sun upon the handle. Clipped on the upper half was a gold cuft that had been clipped on, with the same design as before, but Gareth would not speak of it or his ring.

"Anyways, I got the bow, and ended up getting a new quiver and some more arrows," he spoke truthfully, as he showed off the quiver and arrows, which had the same design. "While the Smith was making them, I decided to try my luck at the casino. Let me tell you friend, never gamble your money for a living, it's wasteful, but it's always fun to try every now and then. You see, I betted all my money, I lost plenty of times, and my pride was too tall to keep me from quitting. By my fate or Carmeyla's blessings...I won the next round, at the high-bet table of blackjack. You see.." he spoke, and paused for a moment. "I won 20,000 crowns. Now, I have half of that stored into the bank for my own personal uses, and I've spent around 6000," he spoke with a grin.

Casually, he carried on telling the Elf of what he spent the items on, the mesh armor, the short sword, the Inn, everything except for the magical items, which he kept secret to himself. He prayed Solaris hadn't noticed the new burst of agility that steadily grew. "What do you think?" he asked at last.

Solaris Silverarrow · February 16, 2004, 08:58 PM

He smiled, indeed the sprite most likely would be stepped on, but it would be funny to see a sprite zooming across the ground. Then he truly was surprised when he was handed the bank vouchers,"What the...?"He was confused, but started to listen to the sprite's story. He grinned at the end and tapped a finger on the sprites head."You are one lucky little thing you know that? First you get me to do your labor then you go off and when big, wish I had your type of luck." He grinned bigger and winked,"So then, what shall you do with all this money my little friend?" Indeed, he didn't even notice the fancy ring or his increased speed, he wasn't being very observant right now it seemed.

Gareth Gruven · February 16, 2004, 09:19 PM

"Heh...I didn't force you to do the labour...you did that out of your own free will, besides you got to live here because of it. I was thinking, whenever your an Apprentice in Song, or however far you're willing to go, maybe I could travel with ya? I've only been within the Eunesian Province, but I thought it might be neat to see Silrosia, or wherever that Elfy place you said you were from," the Sprite grinned.

"Anyways, as far as my luck goes...well, Carmelya will see to that. But yes, I was blessed when I won the twenty thousand...I couldn't believe it myself. Anyways, Solaris I never asked you, but what God do you worship?" he asked in a polite tone.