Memory of a good time (Ra'Shari came, EE, open)

[Al-Haddar]

Soraya shows up at the Ra'Shari caravan, no longer disguised like she was last month. Gone are the brown robes and more than visible are her silks and jewelry, thankfully not so cold as to preclude the Dahabi House princess from wearing the belly dancing clothes she wished to arrive in.

Looking around, she checked out the differences between this caravan and the last, drinking everything in, happy to not have to worry about bodyguards or arrangements this time.

Rich target detected.

Al-Haddar had slipped to the princess' side with surprising swiftness, and was all sweetness and light when he addressed her, back bent and hat in hand.

"Good evening madam! What good wind has dropped off a lady of your quality in the sands of the desert? Whatever your heart desires, al-Haddar the resourceful can provide."

[Soraya al-Menjari]

Sora had actually met Al-Haddar before... though of course she didn't recall him. He was just another bland merchant in a city full of merchants. Regardless, he didn't look like a Ra'Shari certainly.

"I am not here to shop, merchant. I'm here to have fun. Though information about the caravan would be nice, if you have that."

Merchants often traded in more than goods, after all.

[Raya]

Rufus' smile becomes easier. "I would say yes to all, and would prefer to hear yours is those things apply." The Ra'Shari were easy to chat up in this stuffy place. So what if he was flirting with another one? Kezia and he had an understanding, and she was off the Gods knew who. Neither had a claim on the other, so why not chat up her friend?

"Hmm, dealer choice then yes?" Raya laughed, taking a few steps away and then spinning on the spot, kicking up some sand and as she did so she spotted another bundle of colour.

The grin got a little bigger.

"How about a story of adventure then! One that comes from lands far far away, where instead of sand as far as the eye can see it was water."

She cleared her throat, stretched (totally to keep the suspense going) before starting.

"Once upon a time there was an island out in the widest ocean. The people there lived like royalty, protected by a great fleet which not even pirates dared to face. The great and revered ruler, Jose, had treated his people well, but his younger brother Ranjitt grew envious of the love the people had for the man. In secret, with a pirate gang that he contacted, he planned the most heinous of plans;"

She took a few steps forward, leaning forward, and stage whispered

"To have his own nephew, the son of the great and revered king Jose, kidnapped and killed. To drive his brother into depression, and in turn take the throne and the island from him!"

Raya stood back up straight.

"The plan was a simple one; take his nephew Andrei to see the tide coming in, and the pirates would capture him. And so, it came to the night of the boys 8th birthday. As had happened every year, Ranjitt took his nephew to the beach."

Raya walked slowly around in a circle.

"They went to the waters edge, and in the distance a vessel could be seen. Rowers on little boats coming out of it, towards the beach they stood on. 'What is that?' asked little Andrei, having never seen anyone from the water before! 'That little one is your new friends. They come to bring you birthday gifts' Ranjitt grinned, putting her hands on the boys shoulders. Holding him firmly as the first boat docked. There stood a man in vile green and black clothing, tattered and torn, with a patch on his left eye."

Raya covered her left eye and started to speak again, imitating the pirates voice.

"What do we have 'ere? A coupl' rich treasure chests I see men!"

She uncovered her eye.

"Ranjitt, he was confused. Before he could speak though, one of the man had pulled a gun and they shot! Ranjitt staggered back, then collapsed, blood gushing from where the bullet had struck him. Andrei screamed, but his mouth was quickly covered by another as the pirates began to attack on the city from the ocean. The BOOM of the cannons, and the screams, Andrei could hear it all as he was dragged and tied up onto the little rowing boat and taken back to the main ship, a giant vessel with the black skull and cross tattered flag fluttering in the evening breeze. The boy was tossed into a bay, and passed out as his head struck a beam."

Raya took a brief pause, looking at her enraptured audience, before continuing.

"The pirates attack on the city had killed and wounded many, but they had failed to claim anything more of value. The guards of the island were well trained, and soon the pirates were gone leaving broken walls and smoking buildings behind. It wasn't until the next morning that Jose discovered the horrible scene on the beach; his brother dead, and his son gone."

Raya fell down to the sands, bending over as if being the king beside his dead brother.

"He cried out in pain, in mourning, and his people were afraid for the future. He remained inside mourning for many days while his people got 'information' from a captured pirate. After three days, they got something to bring back to the king; they discovered the plot of Ranjitt, and that the pirates were intending to capture the boy. But rather than kill him, they were going to sell him! One man decided to take this information to king Jose, not about his brother but about his son being still alive. In that one moment he could see the life come back to his kings face, and King Jose stood tall and spoke."

Raya stood up straight, head up, and a single cheek ran down her cheek as she spoke with a powerful but emotional voice.

"Prepare the ships. I will lead our people to my son, and we will sink that vile pirate fleet and claim back the heir to our island!"

She returned to a normal voice.

"Within a day, five ships were prepared. He left his most trusted aide in his steed to run the island as he would, and with that the kings fleet took off. They explored the islands around them, gathering information about these pirates based off little more than whispers of information and a powerful rallying cry. The people of the islands were pulled by the story, and did they best they could. However, after many many months of no answers, the people began to lose hope. Not Jose though. However, his great fleet of five ships reduced as the months went on, and people returned back to normal lives. His trusted aides tried to convince the king to give it up, but he would not. Eventually, there was an agreement; he would sail out once more, and if he did not find the boy then it would be considered too late. With this, Jose sailed out once more, his final venture! Would fate be kind? Scanning the horizon after five days at sea, nothing around, all seemed lost. The ship was out of supplies, and ready to return home."

Raya sighed, as if getting read to lead into a sad ending, falling into silence with her head lowered.

"Then suddenly."

Raya raised her head, bringing something up to her eye as if looking out to sea.

"Sire, a ship with the blackest flags!"

Raya ran to the side, moving her hands as if looking over the edge of a boat.

"It was there. The ship they had been looking for! The cannons were prepared, and Jose sailed at full speed towards the ship. Without giving the pirates a chance to react, they fired upon the ship! The BOOM of cannons and explosion of wood showing they hit their target. The pirates fired back very soon after, and the ships grew close. So close they nearly hit! Jose jumped aboard, his sword drawn quickly."

Raya feigned drawing a sword, and started a pretend sword fight.

"Ducking, diving, striking. He was skilled, and his men followed him. The pirates fought back, but soon he pushed his way towards the cabin and kicked the door open. In there he found the captain, hiding. The man drew a gun, and pointed at Jose as he strode in. 'You'll pay for this!' and he fired his gun."

Raya reigned the gun, pretending to shoot at Rufus. Then again. Then again, and looked at the fake gun in confusion.

"The gun, it did not fire! In the confusion, Jose strode forward, and with one swing removed the pirates arm! He stood over the now shaking pirate and said in a firm voice 'where is my son? Answer this and I will spare your life!' The man, with his remaining arm, pointed shakily at a set of stairs at the back of his quarters. Jose strode over, shouting down. 'Is anyone there?'"

Raya moved away from Rufus, standing over a bucket and looking down.

"Nothing for two, three, four, five seconds. Jose began to fear the worst, but as he turned away he heard a voice. A quiet voice, as if buried under many layers. 'Father?'"

Raya stood back, looking shocked.

"'Andrei?!' Jose climbed down, fast, and landed in a flooded room. Many holes from cannonballs lined the sides, and in the corner huddled behind some barrels, was Andrei. 'My boy, quick! Run to me, let us escape this sinking ship!'"

Raya crouched down slightly, her arms wide before wrapping around as if hugging a child.

"The boy ran, and the two hugged tightly for a few moments before another BOOM as another cannonball hit the ship. The two climbed up the ladder once more, before moving through the captains cabin again. The pirate captain, bleeding and dying on the floor, said 'you said you would let me live!' Jose looked at the man, and said simply 'I did not say I would rescue you' before striding out, Andrei following. They quickly escaped off the sinking pirate ship, and as they sailed away the pirate ship sank. Nobody survived."

Raya moved back to the middle again between people.

"Jose and his son were welcomed back to a heroes reception! Every man that stayed with Jose until the end was honoured, and Andrei grew up to be a kind ruler like his father before him was."

She bowed.

[Rufus Belgica]

Rufus offers a round of applause to the story at its completion.

"Well, you promised action and you certainly delivered! That was a good one." He grins. "Excellent choice, picking a story about a land filled with water while we have none...and telling the story to the one whose armies are famous for fearing water."

Rufus takes the chance to slide a bit closer during the story and he can't help but notice a familiar face...with a less familiar amount if figure visibe. "Um. Wow. Did Domina Soraya happen to raid your wardrobe by any chance?"

[Al-Haddar]

Sora had actually met Al-Haddar before... though of course she didn't recall him. He was just another bland merchant in a city full of merchants. Regardless, he didn't look like a Ra'Shari certainly.

"I am not here to shop, merchant. I'm here to have fun. Though information about the caravan would be nice, if you have that."

Merchants often traded in more than goods, after all.

"It's a Ra'shari caravan. Everything you've heard about is both perfectly true and irremediably false. The Ra'shari wouldn't be interesting people if they weren't always shrouded in mysteries, both sides – and also the edge – of a thousand coins from a hundred countries at once.

And fun is the other name of that little thing I have there."

In Al-Haddar's hand, come out from somewhere, was now what looked suspiciously like a hollow tube of green wood.

"You drop it into a fire and boom! The thrill of an explosion with none of the danger."

[Soraya al-Menjari]

-snip-

Soraya hears a familiar voice and realizes that it's Raya herself telling a story! She can't make it out from here... she'll have to ask about it in a second.

-snip-

"That's... a Rokugani hanabin or whatnot, right?"

Being from a rich family, such things had been at one or two parties she'd been to, and she'd read about them in fantastical stories.

"How did you manage to get your hands on that sort of thing I wonder?"

Head tilts curiously as she watches Al-Haddar handling it.

[Raya]

Rufus offers a round of applause to the story at its completion.

"Well, you promised action and you certainly delivered! That was a good one." He grins. "Excellent choice, picking a story about a land filled with water while we have none...and telling the story to the one whose armies are famous for fearing water."

Rufus takes the chance to slide a bit closer during the story and he can't help but notice a familiar face...with a less familiar amount if figure visibe. "Um. Wow. Did Domina Soraya happen to raid your wardrobe by any chance?"

Raya laughed.

"Perhaps it is a sign that the water is not so bad sidi? I've never seen large pools of it, but I've seen things in the sand that would make a big ocean look like a fluffy pillow in comparison. Still, you are not your army, yes? You are in the company of Ra'Shari, and here things like that are left outside!"

She did look in the direction Rufus was looking and smiled, giving the woman a wave.

"She looks nice in those colours yes? I really think it brings out her eyes. I suspect her clothes are worth more than my wardrobe though sidi Rufus" she laughed "who wears it better, her or I?"

[Al-Haddar]

"That's... a Rokugani hanabin or whatnot, right?"

Being from a rich family, such things had been at one or two parties she'd been to, and she'd read about them in fantastical stories.

"How did you manage to get your hands on that sort of thing I wonder?"

Head tilts curiously as she watches Al-Haddar handling it.

If it had ended up in al-Haddar's bag, it was far more likely to be a poor forgery or a defective product than the real deal. But customers didn't need to know that before they've paid for it.

"If something exists somewhere in this world, it will eventually find its way to Medinaat al-Salaam. Such is the blessing and curse of the Jewel, the crossroad of horizons."

[Rufus Belgica]

Raya laughed.

"Perhaps it is a sign that the water is not so bad sidi? I've never seen large pools of it, but I've seen things in the sand that would make a big ocean look like a fluffy pillow in comparison. Still, you are not your army, yes? You are in the company of Ra'Shari, and here things like that are left outside!"

"Hah! You don't know the half of it." Rufus pauses for a moment. "I'm Gallim. The newest part of Yodotai, and even if I was raised by the local orphanage, some things stick out like a sore thumb." He motions to his mop of red hair.

She did look in the direction Rufus was looking and smiled, giving the woman a wave.

"She looks nice in those colours yes? I really think it brings out her eyes. I suspect her clothes are worth more than my wardrobe though sidi Rufus" she laughed "who wears it better, her or I?"

Rufus thinks about the question. Seriously thinks on it, looking back and forth and both women before coming to his answer.

"You do." He finally says. "With all respect for Domina Soraya, she looks like she is dressing to impress. You appear like this is who you are, like a second skin. Not that there is anything to improve upon the first one.'

[Soraya al-Menjari]

-snip-

Truthfully, Sora didn't trust herself to know what to do with a firework, and she'd not brought much coin with her. If there's anything she'd learned since she turned eighteen, it was that it didn't pay to carry too much actual coin around the city.

"So they say. I suppose the challenge comes from finding where in the city it is though, no?"

-snip-

She saw the wave and smiled brightly and waving back before turning to Al-Haddar, "I think I shall pass; Even if it is safe, I'm not here to shop, like I said. And I have someone I must meet up with."

Being used to just dismissing people she did not even beg his pardon as she went over to Raya and Rufus, "Raya! Out in the rain telling stories I see? And you were..."

She looked at the Yodotai man, knowing she'd seen him before, "...yes, you were at the other Ra'Shari caravan as well. I could hardly mistake that build and hair anywhere. From the way you look at Raya... does this mean you are courting her or something?"

Another curious headtilt from the princess.