It was probably due to his curious nature that had gotten him this far, to this odd little area that was strangely comforting in the way it seemed to be a bustling community gathering of stands and wares and those interested in adding to whatever collection they had. Or perhaps that was simply how Lasairian imagined it. It wasn't simple, this place, not compared to many other areas, but it wasn't extreme, either. The marketplace was a middle ground Lasairian hadn't expected, but it still felt like a too close reminder of the Bheo's gathering place in enough ways to draw him in.

There might not be as many different creatures as back there, but it was enough with the strange equines, the tiny dragons, the bonded animals still about. It lacked the over-grown stone and dirt walls, the blue flowers tangled every which way, the sheer amount of odd bipedals that the Bheo housed. The only smoke forms here were from things that had been set on fire, nothing alive in those darker masses. Lasairian did not know what was going on there, and he did not intend to stand around and gawk, either. He kept moving, looking, learning about this area and the things being sold, the overall social dynamics that he hoped to soon fully grasp and develop for himself.

This was what Lasairian had come here to do, not realizing how vastly it exceeded expectations of what he thought this place might be. He should have gathered more information, but just the idle talk of a marketplace had drawn him in, ensnared him with how tempted he was to check it out and see what it had to offer. How these others interacted with each other in such a setting. All of it was of interest to the curious Lasairian, and it was knowledge that he wanted to most collect when he had set off to get here. None of the rest had been thought through all that much; and Lasairian had not been well-prepared for it.

So much to take in, after everything, and he moved off to the side to take a moment and observe while standing back. He nearly jolted away when the sound of a voice from the nearby dark corner was out, not expecting someone to be there, either. Lasairian had controlled his reaction enough that he had done little more than fidget at the sound -- a small shuffling of hooves -- then he settled again and glanced closer yet to that spot where the voice had come, "the marketplace," was his answer, though he did not wish to give the wrong impression and went on, "granted that this is my first time being here," his added words, glancing around and then back.

Perhaps he had taken too long to respond, or maybe he had been delusional all along that he heard anyone speak at all. That was where his mind jumped when he noticed the reaction of the mare tucked there in that nook after he had spoken. Lasairian hadn't meant to startle her, though he is reminded that she had first startled him, as much as he had struggled to keep himself collected over it.

She was small where he was not, and that alone could have been seen as threatening, though Lasiarian truly did not mean to been seen in such a manner right now. It had been awhile since he had tried any of that to begin with, because he was no longer a wily child that needed the approval that came with such things. He wanted respect and to be seen, to a degree, but in the medic field more than anything else.

To be known for collecting stories and gathering knowledge; that, too, he wouldn't mind being known for here. Not the point, of course, but many things were prone to running through his mind on the spot. Better than really diving into his past memories, as he had tended to do of late. That sort of thing was not doing him any favors, and it was probably holding him back more than anything else.

Here and now, however, a conversation was unfolding where Lasairian had been concerned there would only be disapproval for how he had approached, and he was grateful that it was the first and not the other. He said nothing at the stare, acting as if he hadn't noticed it happening at all, and offered a polite smile to her in return. "You've done nothing I would need to forgive. I was being clumsy in my observational skills when I stepped too close," he responded apologetically.

She was then speaking more, and Lasairian's interest was peaked when she mentioned the library and her intention to go there. Lasairian nodded when she asked if it was familiar to him; he was new, but the library was in the lands he had been settling into, and it was already his most favored of places in the entire realm. "I know where the library is, yes. It's my favorite place within these lands," he confirmed almost cheerfully.

Seeing her step from the more shadowed spot gave him the opportunity to see her better, to notice that she was also pale in color. The comment on it being beautiful but loud here gained a quick, good-natured laugh from him, "I agree," and he might have said more, but her name was caught, and he assumed it was his turn to give his own, "I'm Lasairian. A pleasure to meet you, Cassilyn. Would you like an escort to the library?" and then, "take you're time, of course. This place really is a sight to see," he amended gently.

As far as Lasairian was concerned, there was good and bad with being within a crowd, but he did perfer to be without the clamour and proximity of them. He liked his personal space, and as calmly as he would let another walk beside him for a time, he did not enjoy being pressed from all sides like this for long periods of time. He was reminded of the common area of the Bheo while being here in the Market, but that wasn't always a good thing.

There were far too many shortcomings of that once-home, and buried in books and scrolls was always better than the crowds. The medical side of it wasn't terrible at all, and Lasairian did feel good over what he had learned that gave him an edge here as a medic, but so much of that had been studies as well. Lasairian had been taught to be social, and he did not think he was terrible at it, but one on one encounters were always better than being in a crowd.

There was beauty and charm in this place anyway, though. The marketplace may hold some interest, but as always the library held more. Much more. Yet Lasairian is amused at her words and the sheer fact that it was true enough; this place was the least likely he might have expected to encounter someone napping in. He shrugs at her words, the barest rolling of his shoulders, because she's right and he has no comeback for it.

She was speaking of travel and he listened attentively, curious of where she had come from and why here was where she decided to land, of all places. One thing at a time, of course, so he stored the questions for later moments and nodded his head to her, thinking that it was lucky indeed that he had met another who was so fond of the library. "I do very much enjoy learning new things, and there are often worlds of knowledge within books," he said, explaining his side of it.

The silence mattered too, yes, but even in a place like this, Lasairian wouldn't look past trying to read something new and exciting if it was presented to him. Cassilyn seemed happy with the idea of being escorted to the library now, and was soon asking if they should face the crowd once more. Lasairian looked out at the masses and took a deep breath, "yes, into the fray we go," he responded, stepping up beside her as she started forward.

With Cassilyn asking where the library was, Lasairian answered easily, "Delumine, the Northern-most side of the forest there, in the Dawn Court. The trees come together to form walls, hallways, rooms and shelves. It feels almost endless in there with the books," was how he decided to answer. And then, "where do you hail from, if I may ask?" because she might not wish to speak of it, and if so, he would respect that, too.

It was a curious thing, watching Cassilyn watching the little dragon creatures, and Lasairian wonders what she might have made of the raptor form he had once known so well. He shoves the thoughts back, down, away. They will do him no good here, and he needs to keep his mind clear. He had been struggling to do so, to keep his outlook in a good place, to push himself forward. Living in the past wouldn't work, would not help him while he was here. This was where he needed to focus, what he needed to put his energy into. Not as many open doors, but it was enough. He hoped.

The books, they helped. They were something soothing to the aching holes left within him, and he did cling to that fact. To those stories, to the information pressed to each of those pages. They did help to keep his mind busy and away from the memories. As did the way he threw himself into becoming a better medic here, at the base level of it all. No magic to use for it, though he had relied perhaps too heavily upon that way for far too long before all of this. He was grateful that he was also taught the basic ways in it, too. That was what caught him when he had arrived; knowing at least that much.

Soaking up the information on anything relating to the medical field through the library books had become a comfort to him, and something that he had begun quickly enough. Finding them had been the difficult part, because there had been so many books among all those trees and what they had reformed into. Lasairian had still done it, still sought those books out, and to this day he was still trying to go through them. He wasn't sure how long it might take to read them all, but he suspected it would be years, even if he decided to live in the library itself to read as much as possible. The library was that massive.

Words of the library had not caused the pause in step with Cassilyn, but the question that Lasairian had posed about where she had come from. While that pause did not persist, the overall way that Cassilyn reacted said enough to Lasairian as to how much the question unsettled something for the mare. That was not what he had intended, but he could understand pain or unease int he thoughts of what had been left behind. He had his own tale on that, though he wasn't sure he would be able to be forward enough to discuss it all. His prior home, sure. Most things, maybe. But not everything right off.

There was the most subtle brow raising at her words of preparing himself of something not easy to grasp, and Lasairian smiled indulgently at that. It was not that he did not believe the story could be something far from what he might imagine it to be, but that he wouldn't be able to grasp it with ease. He had seen some shit, and his mind was open enough to grasp quite a bit. Yet he said nothing, listening to what she was saying attentively. Taking it all in with a quiet interest. There were so many possibilities to what she was saying, what it could all mean, where she had been, but there wasn't enough to go on.

Another chance. That was what she was saying now, about what she had gotten from these 'Brothers', and that said a few different things to him, but Lasairian wasn't sure if he was the one to ask these questions to. Did he swallow down his gut response to that? "I could speculate a great many things, like a possible rebirth, perhaps?" but being born half phoenix did tend to draw his mind in that direction by default. He simply did not want to discuss that half at length, and didn't gain much from it, anyway. Not even a lot of information on it, but that in itself had good reasons.

When she asked about where he was from, that was easier to answer at face value, "the Coille Bheo, across the veil," he responded evenly, wondering as to how to explain that place to her to give her the best general idea of it. "It's like this endless place of mountains and forests, with small hills and open fields at the center, and everything there feels so alive. The flowers move and lean. The Sithen is vegitation sprawled soil and stone walled, with rooms and great hallways, and all manner of creatures living within it," he added, trying to pain a little bit of a picture of it for her.

The Bheo had been a dazzling place with interesting creatures within it. It was so different, so varied, that Lasairian was hard pressed to be astounded by the variety of appearances here, no matter how odd. How could he be, when back there it was creatures that seemed made of plants, floating puffs of smoke and anything in between? Even shapeshifting have been a very normal part of life there. One of the worst difficulties encountered was the empaths, as it was hard to keep emotional based secrets with those all around. An immunity he had been glad to have back there.

There would always be good with the bad, and the social structure had issues. It was mostly peaceful there -- aside from the pit -- but the ranking system was limited to only the ruling species, and only their efforts mattered. As something half and stuck in both sides, Lasairian had his personal struggles with all of that. Perhaps there was greed in wanting more, in wishing his efforts mattered more, but Lasairian couldn't help that. Some of it was in the way he was raised and who he was, and the rest was simply in that striving need to be better than he felt he was. To matter more.

At least here, in this place, this type of world, that sort of thing did seem more possible to him. Not that Lasairian expected much, considering his desired field as a medic, but he did want to become a better medic. Once he decided on which field to specialize in, at least. Something for another day. Yet it did help in how he was settling in here, despite what he missed about the Bheo and those within it. Mostly a select few of those who lived there, but that was the place he was not so interested to go into with explanations to others. Parts of it would bother him to admit, even.

He's shaken from that train of thought when Cassilyn speaks again, and he nods to that, because the layout, the nature of it is wonderful, even if it comes with downsides. When she asks if he enjoyed it there, Lasairian was silent for a moment, "yes, and sometimes no," he answered it honestly, without holding back the fact that there was negativity in it all somewhere. With the conversation turned to beginning the journey, and how she was glad she wasn't finishing the journey on her own, Lasairian smiled, "it is, indeed, a great thing to have good company on long walks," he responded as he kept going.

(( exit post ))