(Closed)

[stonebird]

Who: Dali (Sansa) & The Medicine Seller
When: Backdated to when they first met + their first prayer!
Where: Dali's temple to begin and then the world of the living~
What: Bonding as god and shinki (especially since he is her first soul-filled shinki).

(Part I)

Her rounds for the day were nearly finished when she felt a shift in the air. A decision had been made and she had no reason to refute it or be upset by it. Her brief conversation with the Medicine Seller had been curious if nothing else and she did want to know him better. With him as her shinki, her curiosity could be sated and perhaps she could aid him by incorporating more hunting into her routine. She certainly wasn't opposed to the idea.

"Eteri, open the doors. He will be here soon."

Her soulless shinki understood without her having to explain further. She adored them and her only true worry over this change was in how the Medicine Seller might react to them. But, soul or not, Eteri was gentle; she would be the one who had to make sure they weren't mistreated or abused.

"I will protect you." she had said those words before, but they were especially poignant now. Eteri beamed, touched their forehead to hers and then opened the doors wide in welcome.

(Part II)

Answering prayers made her nervous and joyful all at once. She finally had it within her ability to make a positive change for those in desperate situations. Sansa wanted very much to do all she could for those who sought her guidance, but deep down she knew there would be some prayers that sickened her or that simply could not be answered. Regardless, she smiled at the Medicine Seller before they departed, in high spirits:

"Are you prepared? I take it you have done this before?" she had not, of course, and so she relied on his wisdom if he was willing to offer it.

Comments

I

[tadanokusuriuri]

Ah. He'd delayed his decision too long, it seemed.

There had been an experiment with one god, to see how they worked together. It had gone well, he thought, but he'd still had other options to investigate. The other strong option seemed open to sharing a shinki, but the first didn't, so he'd had the name he'd agreed to on a temporary basis removed while he thought it over...

And now word came from the Heavens that a decision had been made.

The Medicine Seller nodded in brief, polite acknowledgement of the the white-clad shinki who'd brought the news, his calm expression betraying none of his thoughts.

On the one hand, it was fine with him. He was confident in his ability to work with whatever circumstances he was handed, and so long as he had a god to work and hunt with, that would be sufficient. On the other...

On the other, as kind as his old god had been, perhaps in some ways they hadn't been a good match. Where the Medicine Seller peacefully accepted the things that were not-quite-human about himself, Hyacinthus had concerned himself too much with them, to the point at times of feeling a little bit smothering with his attempts to get him to have fun and make friends like a normal person. And he'd been delicate, emotionally. There was little that could make the Medicine Seller truly upset, but any brief hint of stormy temper in their emotional connection could hurt him worse than the sting that went with it.

He'd have liked, perhaps, to have been certain of choosing someone he'd work more easily with. But if this was what the Heavens willed...

"I'll present myself to her, then, with all haste."

And though there was little haste in his bearing, his expression as serene and his gait as measured as ever, he wasted no time in seeking out the proper temple. It seemed at a distance to be abandoned, but perhaps "rustic" was a more accurate term. It would make sense, he supposed, for a goddess of the hunt to have a temple that seemed on the verge of merging itself with the forest around it. In past the gates, then, and to the tower, where the doors were open already to greet him.

In the doorway, he stopped and knelt down, placing his hands before him on the ground and bowing until his forehead rested against it between them.

"My lady Dali. I have come, as the Heavens willed it... to serve at your side."

[stonebird]

Her temple looked like it had been taken directly from the Georgian mountainside wilderness. Even the air was pure and clean, carrying with it the scent of growing things and the wild animals that roamed about the temple freely. Most of said beasts were horned - including mountain goats and deer in particular - but if the Medicine Seller looked close enough, he might see the glowing eyes of wolves too. Dali had intermingled her nature with Sansa's and thus a delicate balance had been established. Just like human hunters, the wolves knew what prey was free for them to devour and which should be left alone.

Within the tower, Sansa stood in a dress of robin's egg blue. Her hair was bound back in a braid and there were flowers tucked into the full expanse of it.

"I am grateful to the Heavens and I pray you feel likewise soon." she was eager to meet him in the middle - whatever middle that happened to be, "If you are hungry or thirsty, you will find food on the second floor. All of the floors above it are for lodging or study. You are welcome to choose the room that appeals to you the most - all are themed after a specific beast of the forest or mountain. I am currently lodging in the room dedicated to wolves and Eteri..." she motioned to her soulless shinki, "...resides in the room dedicated to eagles."

[tadanokusuriuri]

It was as natural to the Medicine Seller as breathing, to gather every detail that he could see or hear or smell and seek the meaning in them. He sat up slightly when addressed and looked the goddess up and down, memorizing everything he could, his gaze curious and searching but respectful, never once lingering too long where it shouldn't.

The red of her hair struck him first, simply for its brightness; the color seemed, to him, appropriate for a goddess, slightly inhuman in something not unlike the way that his own appearance seemed to hint at. The poise in her posture and her voice were the next things he took notice of, and they were comforting, in a sense. Hyacinthus had been nothing but kind, but his unpredictable bursts of emotional energy had been... frequently confusing. The notion of serving a god with a calmer temperament was not unwelcome. The blue of her dress, a pleasant contrast against the warm color of her hair, and the flowers braided into her hair gave him an impression of springtime.

Of new life, perhaps. Auspicious, for a beginning.

"Already you're most gracious." Of course, most would try to be, as a first impression.

[stonebird]

The longer she shared her identity with Dali, the more her hair was becoming an auburn-gold. The lighter strands were intermingled and Sansa was fond of them - though she would never wish to be completely golden-haired. She associated that particular color with the Lannisters and...

She really needn't say more on that point.

"You do not deserve less." she was a strict believer in controlling her emotions - outbursts could be obvious displays of weakness - and she treated others as she deemed appropriate. Most, like the Medicine Seller, would only see her as warm and polite. However she could be far, far different to her enemies.

"I am curious about your previous god and what sort of activities interest you. I know we spoke of hunting and I am not opposed, but are you a healer as well?" the latter estimation was, of course, based solely on his name.

II

[tadanokusuriuri]

As they prepared to depart, the Medicine Seller showed no signs of nervousness, no fidgeting or chatter or worry around the eyes, but there was, perhaps, an intangible shift somewhere in his expression, or even just in the emotional bond he had now with his goddess.

Excitement might not have been exactly the right word, but it was close. It was a wave still under the surface, a bolt of lightning ready to strike out from peaceful-looking clouds, a brightness to his eyes like the light in the eyes of a cat on the prowl. There was something sharp about him, and that sharpness felt right to him, felt more alive to him than anything in the world.

"I have, my lady." He bowed to her, graceful and calm in spite of that energy under the surface. "And I am prepared to aid you, by whatever means are needed."

I KNOW WHAT I'M DOING UGH...

[stonebird]

She did not hold his enthusiasm against him; far from it! She enjoyed the idea of fulfilling prayers and, more importantly, having the power to do so. With a gentle smile, she reached out to link their arms together.

"I will take us to them." her heart thudded nervously in her chest, but she took a deep breath. She was a god. She could do this. Closing her eyes, Sansa transported them to the world of the living.

In one piece no less! She expelled a relieved breath.

"Are you well?" she would see to him first before any follower; it was only right.