(1208) Tobias, L'aire and Terra

"I'm from New Jersey," Tobias said. "Small town, with it's share of troubles." And more than my share of my own, he added mentally. "We all have a hard time fitting in when we come back." His voice softened as he acknowledged her struggle. It mirrored his own, and that of everyone else in this room. Even with his Elemental nature, he knew that they weren't alone in this. "I hit the road for a few years, traveling from one place to the next. Performing, selling guitars out of the back of a van, that kind of thing. Ended up here after a game of darts, and hte rest is history I suppose. It's a good community, and I'm glad things turned out this way."

The absolute panic started to ease out of Terra's eyes as Tobias talked. i owe him.
"Did much hinge on that game of darts, or was it another happenstance in the whirling eddies of our lives? For me at least, landing here was completely random. I mean, when the only goal is to run away from something, one direction is as good as any other. But then the writing on the wall...haha, that's an actual turn of phrase. Turns out it was part of the bulletin board that I was seeing. I decided then I was done running. Proving harder than just one decision though, but to echo your sentiment, it's a good community."

With a more solemn tone, fastening her eyes on his hands that she might not glance away, Terra asked,
"Do you have any insights on how I could interact better? I'm not sure what I've done to offend our recently departed Winter friend, though I can see several points where I might have. Though I'm sure some of that is just me over-analyzing, because I can draw the wrong conclusion about anything if I put enough brain power into it. But eh, I'm not some Myspace girl fishing for complements, say 'pass' and I'll not involve you in my hysterics."
She rolls her eyes, a little bit of self-deprecating truth opening the door to hearing anything difficult.

Tobias shrugged. "At the time? It didnt' seem like much, just a game to see who'd pick our next destination. After the fact though... if I hadn't come here, I would have missed out on a lot. There was more at stake than I had realized, though there's no way I could have known it at the time. Prophecy isn't one of my gifts after all."

He considered her other question. It was a tricky one, and it didn't take long for Tobias to realize he couldn't really speak for the other woman. "I can't speak for L'aire, but there was a mistake I would caution you against in the future," he said. "Your joke drew attention to my change, while in the same breath suggesting you could use my body for your own ends, as if it was one of the instruments I make. Being free of them means we're still finding ways to fit in in this world. The Human world. In spring, we celebrate not what we've lost, not what's changed, but what we gained by escaping. We can do some amazing things, and our gifts allow us to live a very different life. But each one is a remembrance of what we went through. Each one ties us back to them.

"My body is evidence of my failure. You couldn't have known that, but every piece of it is a piece that didn't do what was asked of me. I bear my greatest failures on my skin for all to see. That is what you drew attention to." He strummed his arm, releasing a slightly sour note into the air. He sighed. He hadn't wanted to turn the conversation in this direction. He didn't want to see pity, nor horror on her face, not when she'd just started to relax. But he wouldn't do her the disservice of not responding to her question either. He searched her gaze, trying to find even the smallest bit of hope there.

  Wits + Empathy: 1 success

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2012-09-06 08:08:59		Tobias rolls 5 to Wits + Empathy (Please let me not have ruined your night...)		1, 9, 7, 5, 1		1 success

"I see. I will avoid that in the future. Sorry again for my rudeness. Thank you for explaining and being understanding."

Terra gives him a little grimace smile, both acknowledging it's a difficult conversation and that she's glad he's open about it. Shifting her body, she glanced at some of the competition activity happening.

"Are you competing in anything today?"

"No problem Terra," Tobias said. "It's how we learn, after all." Still, he welcomed the change of subject when she asked about the competitions. It reminded him that he'd been wanting to compete. "I was thinking about the Footrace and the Archery competition. I... should probably go do that if I'm going to, shouldn't I?" He looked slightly embarassed as he looked at all the activity. He didnt' expect to do particularly amazing, but it would still be fun to participate. "It's all in good fun," he repeated out loud. "Are you going toi try anything?"

"I'm definitely in more of a watching mood right now, and am seldom competitive even at that. But I will cheer for you running and shooting!"

"Competition's only useful when it's fun," Tobias agreed. "If there was more at stake than a couple of laughs, I'd be less inclined. Thanks for the vote of confidence though. I think I can manage not to make a total fool of myself."

"I may shift my focus to the buffet here. That's a sport with less competition today. Do the events need signing up for ahead of time? There's some movement, and I don't want you to miss out."