--- ALAFAYA ---

From near the top of the city, Alafaya watched the traders arrive. It wasn’t a noteworthy thing with a junction so crucial as Thundercrossing, but she’d seen people talking of this caravan, often with their wards against danger within grasp and fearful looks just behind their eyes.

Alafaya was good at faces, she was good at faces and eyes, but mostly she was good at telling people apart by their mouths, the way they’d curve with displeasure at a bad scent or wobble into a grin at the slightest provocation. Everyone’s mouths were different, everyone’s words unique and personal. Sometimes she thought she was the only one who saw those things, but that wasn’t terribly odd.

Alafaya smiled as the city gates opened and the caravan rolled in, three weary looking wagons and the oakay birds that pulled them telling the tale for her without needing to see the tired eyes of the merchants and mercenaries.

It had been a long journey through the dead river then, the closest city in that direction was Starlight, and they weren’t exactly known for their hospitality from what Alafaya could tell.

She grinned wider when she spotted a head of bright red hair among the traders, the rumors were true then. More odd, however were the Niortak, the bird like people who seemed to be the only ones who looked up into the floating lake and at the enormous tower beside it. These were the only ones who would spot Alafaya from where she clung to that tower.

She’d always considered herself to be good with climbing things, dexterous, strong. She’d first climbed the tower when she was eight. It was a place to get away from the people and just exist. A place away from the looks and the judgement. Even fourteen years later she wasn’t any less capable of climbing it, or any less willing.

But she also wasn’t any more happy, not in a place like this.

Alafaya let out a long breath, the air in her lungs was much warmer than the current weather, it was late fall by now, and the way her coat clung to her was just a reminder of that. It wasn’t the best time of year to join a caravan, especially when most of them would hole up in whatever city they could find until the coming winter passed.

The Leftbite’s Wings wouldn’t be doing that; they were famous for winter trading after all. They were also famous for having an entire menagerie of odd people. People that most places would never allow into their walls if they didn’t need the wares and know they wouldn’t be around for long.

Alafaya watched them for a long moment, making sure they weren’t going to be moved to a different location. That happens sometimes. After being sure that the trademaster wasn’t heading in that direction, she was fairly sure that wasn’t about to be the case this time.

She felt herself relax greatly as she started scaling down the tower, smiling all the way. Finally.

The streets weren’t terribly full this late, but it was still a busy road to get from the tower to the market. Alafaya watched the people flow onward, wrinkling her nose at the scent of dung as one of the oakay birds that was pulling a cart released its nether innards.

Dodging around the whole cart, Alafaya joined the flow of traffic. Even as light as it was at the moment there were still plenty of people to press against each other uncomfortably. Alafaya could almost feel their breath on her as she wove through them.

She bumped straight into a man, both of their balance wavering. Alafaya turned to give him an apologetic look once she caught herself, but his face was already contorted in that angry way she was too familiar with, his mouth open into a shout. Alafaya watched his face for a moment too long before turning and being swept away again by the crowd.

Eventually she was spat out near the market. It wasn’t as busy as she’d expected there, but most of the shops were closed for the night already. She wasn’t even jostled anymore, as most of the people had been heading away from the market, likely back to their homes. Even as she watched, Alafaya noticed several market goers trickling toward the road.

Shaking her head at the shops, Alafaya passed the regular shops by, following the gathering crowd who’d come to gawk at the traders. And the Leftbite’s Wings were certainly worth gawking at.

Alafaya herself slowed to a stop at the ring of people, three annoyed looking merchants—some of which were Niortak—sat a distance from the wagons that were being unloaded, keeping people away from the goods since no trading or selling would happen until tomorrow. Behind them, several others were setting up tents and sorting through items, likely cataloging everything before tomorrow.

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Hesitating at the ring, Alafaya watched the three merchants with anxiety. Now she started to wonder if they would even accept her. She had no way to be sure who she was even supposed to ask, and the Leftbite’s were infamous for not taking travelers with them without reason.

Alafaya hoped it would be different if they knew she planned on staying with their group.

It took that long for her to notice a woman standing near the center of the crowd she was in, everyone else seemed to be paying attention to her, so Alafaya shifted her gaze there, watching the woman’s face. It took her a moment to adjust to the way her mouth moved, it was so calm and orderly, like a mother lecturing children. Alafaya barely even had to fill in any gaps.

“-be here for the next two days. Remember, no exchanges before tomorrow, but come back with your families and-” Someone bumped into Alafaya at that point, and she was forced to look away, giving the person in question a confused look. There was no reason to…

Squalls.

She knew him, how could she not? Alafaya didn’t remember his name, but he’d been there the day— the day she’d— when—

She punched him before the thoughts even finished, her eyes wide, her mouth pressed into a stiff line of anger.

Someone pulled her away from him.

Someone else pulled him away from her.

Alafaya didn’t really notice what was going on until that same woman before, the one who’d been talking to the crowd, leaned down in front of her, shouting.

Shouting…

Right. Alafaya watched her, feeling her anger melt away into resignation. All she caught of the woman’s words was a belated “-is going on?”

Alafaya cringed slightly, holding up her hands into the sign of repetition, it was a common enough gesture in most places, and most folk got what it meant immediately.

The woman blinked, confused, her neat mouth twisting into a frown, “Squalls, what got into you? What did he do?”

Alafaya watched her for a moment longer, and then shook her head. It hadn’t been him. It had been his friend. She felt her fingers twitch slightly, but she stilled them as she kept her eyes on the woman, who was starting to get more confused. Squalls.

“Can you understand me?”

Alafaya shrugged. Mostly. There were big pieces that were always missing, but she had most of the context at the moment. She knew what this woman would be asking. To alleviate the confusion though, Alafaya touched her ear and shook her head.

It took a moment for that to sink in, but the woman stood up almost immediately once it did. She said something that Alafaya didn’t catch well enough, but she left a moment later, rushing toward the unpacking traders. Alafaya sighed, part of her expecting the woman to be coming back, but the other part was too used to people to possibly think so.

Mostly she expected the pitying looks.

She was more than surprised to say the least when the woman returned less than a minute later, holding something under her arm.

Alafaya looked up at that, finally allowing herself to see the five angry people standing over her, their mouths were curved in anger, their eyes full of fire. The man she’d punched was behind them, staring at her with haunted eyes. He remembered that night too.

She felt her hands curve back into fists at his expression. Haunted, but guiltless. Pitying.

And then there was a notebook in her hands and that same woman holding forward a stick of charcoal. Alafaya stared at it for a long long moment, momentarily shocked out of her anger. Paper. Real paper. That was expensive, she’d learned to draw glyphs and to read, but… she’d hardly ever held a real book.

Alafaya belatedly looked up, giving the woman a completely baffled look as she still held out the stick. With stiff fingers, Alafaya took it. It was smooth beneath her palm. She looked back up at the woman once more, who just nodded.

Alafaya began to write.

The woman read over her shoulder, watching the pencil move. As the moment’s passed she seemed to get stiffer and stiffer in her bearing. As the story was told. She stood up sharply at the end of it. Alafaya blinked as she marched over to the man and punched him herself.

And then it was over.

-

Alafaya looked over the written word, memorizing it. Taenseva.

Names—like every word—were difficult to pick up with lip reading. As it was, Alafaya could barely understand someone that way, it was more a necessity thing than a solution. Regardless, it was nice to know the name that belonged to the person.

Alafaya wrote neatly a bit after the first name, putting her own down. Alafaya.

She watched as Taenseva read it, her lips curling into a smile, her eyes echoing that grin. She nodded, smiling. Alafaya nodded back. They didn’t need to speak to know what it meant. It was nice to meet each other, and to have a name.