He was lost.

Eos was... much, much larger than he could have anticipated. It was one thing to be told that it was large and yet another to experience it. He thought he'd try to familiarize himself with the area--- he'd woken up a little earlier than the people who had generously given him lodging. He'd promised he'd repay them some way or another when he'd managed to sort things out for himself, but it looks like he'd have to sort out just where he was first.

It being the early morning, there was barely any people in the roads--- he remembered the shock he got when he'd experienced the crowds before--- with his supernatural sense, which he had learned not everybody had, it added a lot more sensory overload, and crowds were flashy and noisy already in the first place. The lack of people was refreshing, but at the same time, it meant there was a distinct lack of people who he could ask for directions. Perhaps it had been truly been a mistake to sneak out at this hour.

That said, he wasn't really in a hurry, and if he had to wait for people to appear, to wake up, well, it probably wasn't much of a problem. This area that he'd managed to stumble upon was rather gorgeous; it was decorated with all sorts of colorful flowers and foliage, and while the forests and jungles he'd experienced before coming here had their own beauty, there was something quaint about the peacefulness in these tame denizens of nature. Here they could bloom without being trampled or eaten by animals, he supposed.

He blinked. Underneath a tree that had flowers of a pinkish color seemed to be a person--- he approached, slowly, quietly, squinting a bit. It was... a girl, reading. She felt... peaceful... or at least she was feeling peaceful. There was... something strange about her complexion, but perhaps it was just a quirk of her magic, just like how he was... well... different. At any rate, she was somebody he could talk to, somebody he could ask.

"Um, excuse me?" he began, tentatively. "Uh... I'm a bit lost, so..."

She... disliked his presence here.

Well, he supposed it was understandable; it looked like she wanted to read, and of course reading was usually done alone--- not to mention she was here when almost no one else was around. His expression morphed into a sheepish, wry grin as he felt her discomfort--- although he supposed he didn't need his variance to know that; her voice had trembled and she wouldn't look him in the eye, and that was clear enough body language.

He felt rather guilty that he had disturbed her, but then he would probably achieve no progress just meandering about by himself--- but then again, he had thought that he was in no hurry--- but he had already disturbed her, and it felt impolite to just leave like that--- murgh. He noted her scales and her claws with a passing glance, slightly curious, but felt that it might be too much to inquire about them.

"I'm sorry for the trouble." he ended up saying. "I was... staying in the house of a friend of mine? Somewhere close to here?" he began. If he could get to the point as quickly as possible, maybe he could reduce the pain for everyone involved. "...I thought I'd walk around, but well... suddenly I'm here." he finished. "I'm not even sure where here is..."

"So, uh, I guess I'm asking what direction the... houses are?"

brighid stoneshire

"Err, I guess you could say that." he nervously replied.

For all he knew he might've been to Eos, long ago, but without memories, it was as good as his first time; and so everything was strange and new to him, even if sometimes it seemed that some things were familiar or nostalgic in passing. It was all rather confusing.

"Ahaha, I suppose." Well, he'd been walking quite a lot, and perhaps he'd gotten engrossed for too long enjoying the sights that he didn't realize he was lost until much later.

There was still a flavor of hesitation in the woman's feelings that he could perceive, but it seemed she was curious about him, too. Well, at least she wasn't completely against the idea of helping him--- he would have excused himself if he was being too much of a nuisance already. That was at least reassuring, although he still hoped he wasn't too irritating.

"I think I could recall that, yes." he began. "It had a red roof and just one floor, of moderate size, I think? There were a bunch of similar houses in that area, too. I think it was some sort of housing district, if that's the right word for it?"

It had been mostly houses until it became roads and then it became gardens... cities were definitely something he would not underestimate from now on. He'd probably have to get a map or something.

"Again, I'm sorry for taking up your time. I'm Rhyme." He felt he should at least introduce himself.

brighid stoneshire

He felt her eyes and the curiosity that maneuvered them; for a moment, he was rather self-conscious. He knew that her intent, in those gazes, was to probe, but as his variance dealt mostly with feelings and impulses, it was not like he could find out what exactly she thought. At any rate, she didn't seem terribly displeased with his countenance--- it was a mostly neutral reaction.

Well, that was good eough, he supposed.

He nodded as she informed him she knew what the place--- or, well, the general area--- that he described. For a moment, he waited, wondering if she would take the lead, and then she supplied him with her name.

"It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance too." he replied, returning the bow in kind; he did not know how courtesy worked exactly in Eos, so he supposed he would do as he saw others did, at least.

He raised his head to see her smile, which was something new and reassuring that he found himself smiling back. "From what I've seen, it is." he said. Of course, he had heard his friend's warnings of the... less savory parts of the megalopolis, but he supposed those didn't exactly count.

"It is ridiculously large, though." He chuckled. "But yes, I suppose I'll be staying." While he could probably survive in the wilderness, it was not exactly a comfortable existence, and besides, his best bet to figure out his identity was here.

"I suppose you live around here, too?" he found himself asking.

brighid stoneshire

At her admission of having been lost before, Rhyme chuckled. It was heartening to know that this place did befuddle people who were not used to it, and it was not just him.

"The Rosa district?" he echoed. What did he remember about the city's districts, again? This place, unless he had somehow wandered past the district lines--- and he supposed there'd probably be signs that would have told him if he was about to do so--- "Wait, we're in the Ordan district, right?" he asked.

"Rosa district is..." he tried to recall what he had been told. "...the rich place?" he sheepishly inquired. It looked like it, with Brighid confirming that the place was... expensive. "I'd probably never be able to afford a place there, haha."

"Work, huh..." To be honest, he wasn't quite sure yet what he could do that would earn him money in Eos. He supposed he could do all sorts of labor and perhaps some dangerous work since his aberration protected him from most physical threats... "I haven't found one, actually, yet. I'm mostly gathering my bearings for now... although it seems I might not be very good at that." he joked, in reference to his being lost.

Proof of education... When the girl mentioned that, Rhyme frowned. Not just education... he didn't really have any sort of identification or documentation on him, and he did not have any memory beyond his name, either. He probably wouldn't qualify for a lot of things. "Proof... I don't really have that..." He wondered if he should say more.

"What do you do for a living, Miss Brighid?" She must earn enough to have that place in Rosa, he surmised.

Lightly, he followed in the direction she lead.

brighid stoneshire