A Day Off

[Kulau]

Kulau didn't have any messages to deliver, any nobles to meet on this day. On days such as this, he went down to Lake Hylia to keep himself physically and mentally sharp. A few laps around the lake was what he was in the middle of. He leaped out of the water at times, creating a nice splash every time. This was his routine. He always needed to be doing something, even on his days off.

[Tabula Rasa]

x x

Splish splash, glub glub. Lake Hylia was full of denizens of the deep, from the fish to the zora to other little things that didn’t have common names. It was teaming with life, a veritable primordial pool of evolution, from one celled bacteria to the sentient zora. For one with such a diverse background when it came to education, it should be both the best dream and worst nightmare of one like Tabula Rasa. Fortunately enough, however, her attention was drawn from these facts to the spectacle put on by one single zora swimming around the lake and putting on a little show with splashes.

T.R. sat on the branch of a tree, a thick and sturdy tree older than the demons that haunted her. The branch was leaning out over the water so just below her, several feet down, was the shimmering surface of the lake. Her feet dangled and kicked much like a child while her hands gripped the branch for balance, the claws on the ends of her fingers digging in to help her stay up there. Thick and sturdy as it may be, it was still a branch and branches tended to be cylindrical in shape.

Her head tilted to the side, one of the pony-tails falling loosely against her and brushing her cheek. She didn’t pay it any mind. As the zora came around for another lap she giggled audibly and grinned. ”Pretty little fishy swims ‘round and ‘round,” she said with a touch of glee in her voice, kicking her feet with a bit more energy, wondering if the zora would even hear her under the water. Wondering how far the deadly Ouroboros would go if she were to summon it up and throw it down at him. Wondering if it would hurt, or perhaps the scales were too hard for it to pierce after being slowed by the water.

But mostly wondering how warm the water was.

[Kulau]

After a couple more laps around the lake, Kulau decided to take a break. Climbing out of the water, he looked around at the lake. He took a quick look at the girl in the trees, but paid no attention to her. Instead, he started a quick cooldown regimen on land, stretching himself out and slowly loosening his joints, so he would be better prepared for round two. Inside he thought to himself how his technique could be improved. He was already one of the better swimmers even among the warriors of the zora tribe, and among the diplomats he had no equal. But, being his own worst critic, he continued to run through times in his head, taking deep breaths.

[Tabula Rasa]

x x

T.R. humphed. He saw her. She knew he did. She was a beacon of red standing out against a backdrop of green. A burning flame in the brush. Such would draw the eye of any sentient creature. Unless that little fish brain of his wasn’t all there. Maybe sentient was the wrong word for him. That was all zora were, after all, fish, so who was to say they didn’t have fish brains. Parrots, after all, could talk and they only had bird brains. Like the oocca. The thought made T.R. giggle to herself.

Then, with a hop and a skip, she was off her branch and across many others, to the spot where the zora had beached. Was that the right term? The books she had read about zora talked about them like they were people. But in a world like this where everyone looked down upon hybrids like as if they weren’t people, T.R. concluded that some of those books were inaccurate. Instead, zora were fish, and when fish came to the land they beached, didn’t they? Fishy terms were much better for the zora.

She landed gracefully on the ground near the zora, then stretched her slender body, working away the muscle cramps from where she was sitting for so long on that branch. It wasn’t the best of seats. Knuckles cracked and metal clinked as she interlinked her clawed fingers high above her head, body stretched high. Then she let go and brought her arms swinging down to the side, tilting her head and examining the zora again, a look of almost child-like curiosity across her face.

She took a step toward the fish and giggled. ”My, my, such sparkly scales, they are very pretty. But the one who wears them might be considered rude, to not pay his audience even a bow. Or are you one of the many who see us hybrids as less than animals?” she asked, though it was not really directed at the zora per se. It was all intended for him, but the words carried a tone as if they were simply, carelessly spoken, not directed, and if they befell his ears then they did, and if not it didn’t matter.

Such was the manner of Tabula Rasa.

[Kulau]

Kulau wasn't pleased that the girl atop the tree was now coming down and approaching him. He decided that running away would not befit a man of his stature, so he stuck around, and then she spoke. Such a tone felt like nails on a chalkboard to him, so rude and unpolished. But such was the way of the common folk, hybrid and otherwise. He took another deep breath, stood up tall and addressed her.

Normally, when one is addressed with a bow, it means that the one being spoken to is of a stature worthy of such a gesture. If you are a hybrid of some status, perhaps a bow would be in order. Instead, I see a female who is barely worthy of being acknowledged, let alone honored with such a gesture. If your namesake does deem you worthy of a bow, then I suggest you clean yourself up, fix your hair, and put on clothes to match your status. Otherwise, I believe our business has concluded.

He mentally criticized himself for being so xenophobic with her. Now it sounds like he was anti-hybrid, which was not the case. However, what was said was said, so he returned to his routine.

[Tabula Rasa]

x x

She blinked at the speech. And then burst into giggles. She laughed so hard she could barely keep her balance and almost fell over, but opted instead to keel over forward. Her arms wrapped around herself as she giggled down at the ground, then, still hunched over, looked up at him with one of those wide, manic grins that came upon a certain type of folk who knew more, knew enough that they could see how pointless everything else was. A grin that said much, told little and shared absolutely nothing.

”Oh now I see. You play that courtly game. One of those ‘yes ma’am, no ma’am’ types. Haven’t been out in the public all your life, used to looked down on people, used to having those below you, particularly the hybrids you mistreat, scrub the floor in front of you so you don’t get your boots dirty!” she shrieked and giggled again. When she was finished this time she gave him a devious look, then stepped forward. Just one leg. With one hand crossing in front of her and the other sweeping behind her, she dipped into an elaborate bow, dipped lower than most could go, before rising up grinning.

”Poor, ignorant m'lord, forgive me my sins against you, that I didn’t see you were so uneducated that you would expect the world to care. I’ll tell you what, out there if you bow to the wrong sort you’re more liable to get a dagger in your back than a courtly welcome.” She stepped forward again, making a point of getting particularly close to him to watch him fidget. ”But I will tell you something, not as a threat, but as a warning. Whether you’re the princess herself, or a lowly hybrid like me,” she paused, raising her hand in front of her, the clawed gauntlet bursting into flame, ”royalty or commoner, everything burns.”

[Kulau]

Kulau scowled at the girl talking down to him. How dare she, a commoner telling him how to behave, and getting close to him like that. He wasn't afraid of fire, he lived away from it, in the water.

"Maybe where you come you stab diplomats in the back. Maybe in the streets where you live you attack people with no remorse. But we're people of class and respect." His scowl faded and was replaced by a grin.

"Not everything burns, land-dweller."

[Tabula Rasa]

x x

He thought he was being coy. Did he really think she was as stupid as he was? Clearly he must. With a flick of her wrist the fire around her gauntlets went out and she giggled again. ”Tell me, have you ever had lobster?” she asked, innocent and sweet. She even scuffed at the ground a little with the toe of her boot. But that innocent look on her face disappeared as quickly as it had come. ”Lobsters are put into the pot still alive, and they exit dead and steaming. What happens? Water can’t burn, but it sure as Hell can boil and every single one of those pretty, shiny scales would flake right off you.”

She pressed her face right up close to his, ignoring the fishy smell that threatened to overpower her senses. How could these zora even look down on hybrids when they smell so terrible? Was this some kind of pheromone meant to attract others of their kind? Or maybe he was excreting danger. Was that the subtle sent of fear? No, not yet. He was still caught up in his idealistic little courtly world.

”But see, you’re not in your court right now. You’re standing in the middle of the wilderness. Sure, civilization is over there. But that means it’s not right here, see?” She giggled wickedly. ”Here you are a fish and I am a girl, and that’s the way the world sees it. Ambassador or not, if you have rupees in your pocket or a fine enough tunic on, I’d say you’d be split open from fins to gills for the sake of them. Wisen up to the world, it may save your life someday,” she finished with a sing-song tone, then hummed some tune no one but she would recognize, grin losing its wickedness and becoming mischievous again.

[Kulau]

Kulau didn't back down an inch. He would never lose out to someone like her.

"I don't need a low-life like you telling me how to survive. I've had enough of your threats." With a swan dive, he leaped back into Lake Hylia.

[Tabula Rasa]

x x

The grin on T.R.’s face switched from mischievous to quite diabolic once more. She reached up and brushed his fishy cheeks with the palm of her hand, almost endearing, if there wasn’t a truly sinister look in her eyes. ”Oh my poor Kulau,” she said as she stepped back, giggling wildly. ”You talk a big game, but you’ve never been a warrior, have you? I could probably knock you over with a flick of my fingers,” she taunted and cackled.

Her hands clasped cutely behind her back as she spun around with a ballerina’s grace, taking two exaggerated steps toward the water. ”My how disappointed your father must’ve been when you couldn’t take the warrior’s path with him. As I understand the zora warriors are a very prideful bunch, very confident in their abilities. Imagine his shock when his own spawn was a scrawny little weakling.” She hummed a little taunting ditty then spun around and looked at him sweetly. ”So what are you going to do about my threats, zora?”

[Kulau]

Kulau did an immediate 180 and leaped back out of the water, scorn on his face and in his eyes. He glared down Tabula before taking a deep breath and attempting to compose himself. The fact that she knew them didn't really bother him, the fact that she used them to mock him did.

"I am proud to serve my people however I can, my extenuating circumstances be damned." He then fully composed himself and straightened out, calming himself down, although still visibly upset.

"I train with the warriors often. I was simply unfortunate to have been born with my mother's body type instead of my father's. If this is the fate the gods have given me, I accept it." Keeping his cool was something he had to work on, but the fact that he didn't explode verbally was a good sign. But being around her any more may not be a very good idea.

[Tabula Rasa]

x x

That got a reaction out of him.

Hilariously he didn’t bother questioning any of it. He just defended himself, and backed himself right into her trap. But then, this was her forte. This was what she was good at. So as he jumped right back at her she didn’t even flinched, but switched expressions from diabolic to almost tragic, with a bit of a quiver in her bottom lip. An almost uncontrollable quiver, to add to the tragedy that was her new expression.

”Cruel gods indeed, to grant you such. But answer me this, Kulau, ambassador, is it my fault that my parents were of different races? I’m a hybrid and no doubt you look down upon me for it. My mixed blood was not my fault, yet I am to suffer the prejudice. And I am fortunate when it comes to that. Tell me, have you ever seen a half-zora? They’re much more noticeably a hybrid, unlike myself. Is that fair?” she asked, temper slowly rising and showing in her voice.

”So now you trounce on back to your cozy little castle while I continue my struggle. You look down upon me and my kind, but we are no more damned thany ou were for being so scrawny.” She turned around, away from him, and shook her head. ”Your parents looked down on you. Mine burned for giving birth to me. Talk to me about fair, fishy,” she finished and then giggled. ”I aim to make things more equal for us hybrids, even if I have to step on feet on my way, because there is something coming. Something big, a holy fire that will cleanse the land, and the hybrids are the blessed folk to give rise to Him.”

[Kulau]

Kulau couldn't help but shake his head at her comments.

"I apologize if my words led you to believe what you do, but I do not look down upon you for being a hybrid. I look down upon you for being unkempt and lacking in class when you speak. As far as your parents go, I never knew them and will not pass judgment." He took one last look at her before jumping back into the water. Poking his head out and treading water, he faced away from her and said one last line.

"I have seen a half-zora. He carried himself with dignity through his hardships. He was an honorable man, unlike you." After that he submerged, not to reemerge until he was far up Zora's River, towards Zora's Domain.

[Tabula Rasa]

x x

T.R. humphed at his response. ”Fishy bastard,” she said with a sigh. She giggled then, shrugged it off, and moved off into the forest. No time for fish. With a hop and a grab on the branches T.R. was off through the trees again. There was stuff happening in the world and every moment she spent blowing bubbles with the fishes meant another moment wasted, it seemed. The zora were a useless cause anyway; they did not hold enough influence to get her anywhere.

And with that T.R. went off to start more mayhem.

EXUENT