Tapestry of the Ages Volary - Laylah's Introduction

[Tiko]

"Laylah! Laylah!" Ambar called loudly through their home high within Upper Volary.

The white marble floors echoed his rapid footsteps up and down the halls before he took the stairs two at a time.

"Laylah? Where are you?"

With a skip in his step he cleared the top of the steps, scarcely paying much mind to his surroundings.

The beauty of avorian architecture was well known throughout the world, but when you're born and raised with every house and every spire as exquisite as the next, the beauty of it becomes almost mundane. The sweeping arches, the spiral staircases, the crystaline sculptures, the gold chiseled engravings... every bit of it was so common place that they had long since faded from his active perception until one room was the same as the next.

Not all of the fancy spires of Volary could compare to the excitement in his voice as he searched for his sister.

 

[Faithy]

A soft sigh slipped from her lips as she stared across the horizon from her current perch on the window sill. She could vaguely hear her brother shouting for her, but hadn't gotten the gumption to move quite yet. He would find her eventually and until then, she would just keep staring longingly towards a place she was forbidden to go. Her mother and father had made it perfectly clear after the last time she had taken it upon herself to sneak out and Laylah knew it was vital to lay low for a while.

"I don't want to be a diplomat... how boring." Muttering to herself since she was ultimately alone, Laylah just snorted and rolled her eyes. Her blue eyes dropped down towards the guards roaming the area and part of her knew they were watching her closely. So boring. After a few more minutes, hearing Ambar growing closer, the lithe female finally shifted herself back into her room, closing the window in the process.

"In here, Ambar." She called out, unsure what he was wanting this time.

 

[Tiko]

"Oh hey!" he exclaimed as she called out to him. "You'll never guess the news I got!"

The excitement danced across his eyes and the grin upon his face as he stood in the doorway.

"Tahir did it! The Royal Guard is going to let me join the new recruits and start training!"

Ambar's excitement to chase after his older brother's path in the royal guard was no secret between the two. But his age left him a few months shy of the typical age requirements, which would have normally meant waiting another full year before he could apply. Another whole year of tedium and bordom...

He trailed off as he noticed his sister's expression at her own predicament.

"Hey, why don't we go out tonight? If anyone asks, we're celebrating, and I'll be with you," he suggested with a mischievous grin.

 

[Faithy]

Unable to help herself, Laylah was soon grinning, the excitement her brother was projecting catching. She knew he didn’t want her to guess what the news he got was, so she just remained silent, brow arching slightly as Ambar remained in her doorway. When he said that Tahir had gotten him into the Royal Guard training to become a new recruit, she felt conflicting emotions. On the one hand, she was thrilled for her younger brother. On the other hand, it just reminded her of what her fate was going to be—stupid rules and traditions.

“That’s great, Ambar! I knew he would do it. Tahir is phenomenal like that.” Grinning at Ambar, Laylah hated that he could sense that something was up with her. She usually was pretty good at hiding it, but today was not a good day. Her gaze shifted towards the doorway at his suggestion, and she mused a moment or two before grinning widely.

“I guess that would be alright. It’s not like I’m out scheming or getting into all kinds of shenanigans after all. A celebration is just what we need! It’s not every day my little brother gets to skip waiting another whole dull year before joining the guard after all!” Beaming brightly, she moved to the door and ruffled Ambar’s hair with a smirk.

 

[Tiko]

"Hey, stop that, you're going to mess up my hair," he huffed indignantly as he swatted her hair away from grinning. "We can head down to La'ita Hara tonight," he suggested. "It seems like forever since we've been there. We could head on down to the Malaja district, I bet there's a lot of new faces at the monorails."

A seemingly innocent enough statement, but one of which Laylah would no doubt pick up on. The Malaja district was so over populated that one could scarcely walk the streets during the daylight hours, but the monorails offered pockets of land where buildings couldn't be constructed. It was beneath these monorails that people tended to gather for street entertainment.

Unlike the more reputable markets and vendors of the main streets one could find all manner of gambling, shady dealings, and street fighting if they ventured down beneath the monorails.

It was far from the classiest place for the son and daughter of a diplomatic avorian family, but one of which they used to routinely sneak out to in their youths to watch the street fighters duking it out.

For Ambar it was the grittiness of it that he loved. Everything in upper Volary was always so pristine, so perfect. Something about the imperfections of La'ita Hara always had a way of drawing the two of them like a moth to flame.

 

[Faithy]

The moment Ambar said La'ita Hara, Laylah felt a zip of electricity surge through her body. It was there, beneath the monorails that she truly felt alive. There, the golden spoon recipient was able to do things she couldn't at their home. Things their parents would frown at if they witnessed the type of entertainment that occurred.

"My dear little brother who is growing wiser everyday, that is a brilliant idea. What better way to celebrate than to head there?" Laylah was once again ruffling Ambar's hair, loving how he hated it.

"When shall we leave?" She questioned, a mischievous glint already appearing in her eyes.