Black roses

[Tismri]

Gloriann sat under an ancient oak tree in the forest, gazing at all the colors of flowers around its roots. The bright yellow buttercups and dandilions, and red and purple snapdragons. The way they flared such bright colors made her eyes hurt to look at them too long. She had begun tending to a black rosebush right outside the door of the residence she was staying in, using magic to keep it as healthy as possible. She felt no one appreciated the darker colors the way she did.
Glory glanced up as she heard someone coming. One of your classmates, perhaps? Sundavar suggested. The dragon already knew the names of every one of her mentors and peers, and she knew most of the names of their Riders as well. Glory stood quickly. She had come to this isolated part of the forest to get away from all the endless people of the city.

[Max452]

Seth stumbled about in the forest, trying to memorize everything with his hands and senses.
You're going to fall! Hyperion cautioned, following after Seth with a nervous jaunt.
You worry to much, Hyp! This is the best way to learn, besides, I'm staying on the trail...I just want to explore the woods a bit.
But you must'n go so fast! Remember what happened in the training grounds! You nearly knocked into the weapons rack! My heart nearly exploded from worry! The young dragon proclaimed.
Someone moved that without telling me. Besides, I nearly hit it; I felt it before I knocked into it. Gosh! You're worse than my mother! Seth exclaimed as he stumbled further into the woods, enjoying the moist and danky smells, as long as the feel of the different lights on his skin. It was quite peaceful here, though, he could hear the songs of birds, the chirping of squirrels, and perhaps the gurgling of water off in the distance.
I'm only worried about you... Hyperion replied, his little talons following his bond.
I know. I'm grateful for it, really, but this isn't my first time being blind. He smirked and heard his dragon moan in annoyance.

The two continued to walk until Seth felt two other presences besides his and Hyperion. Seth's noise picked up a familiar scent of his classmate. Ah. Its Gloriann and Sundavar. Seth informed his bond nonchantly, having memorized everyone's scent and voices since he met them.
I swear, Seth, you act more like a dragon than a man. Hyp commented as they drew closer to the pair.
Seth mentally laughed. That wouldn't be so bad, would it?
Nope! Dragons are far more "cooler" as some of your classmates say.
They approached closer and Seth waved out a hand in greeting. "Good morning, Gloriann and Sundavar!" His cheery voice greeted as he continued to walk toward them. "How has your day been?" He asked politely.

[Tismri]

Glory looked up to spot the blind boy, Seth, and his dragon Hyperion coming their way. She was always just a little bit curious about how a blind man managed to function daily. She knew she relied on her eyes almost more than any other sense.
"Hello," she said in her usual, quiet voice. She hardly talked to anyone these days, except to Sundavar, and that was always in her mind. It would probably make her parents so sad to see her so withdrawn, but she just couldn't help herself.
Hello, Seth! Hello, Hyperion! Sundavar called out in a cheery voice...a voice that in a way reminded Glory of bright flowers. Our day has been going quite well. How have you two been?

[Max452]

It has been going well! Although, Seth insists on scouting around! He's nearly fallen a few times. Hyperion proclaimed, his tongue flicking out to taste Sundavar's scent.
"May I point out the word "nearly"." Seth glanced at the direction of his dragon. His gaze then went back before him, his blind eyes finding Gloriann. She sounded like she was seating. "We're not disturbing you are we?" He asked, not knowing if Gloriann was practicing meditation or some other assignment they had received. His nostrils then caught the scent of the flowers around them. "Hmm, its very beautiful here." He turned his head about him, trying to memorize the scents and processing them to some of the flowers he knew. "Oh snapdragons!" He then sneezed. "Oh, dandilions are here too. Whoo...they make me sneeze. Sorry." He rubbed his noise for a moment. "Oh, and roses! I do like roses; they've always had a smooth, satin-like smell." He commented.

[Tismri]

Glory shook her head when Seth asked if they were disturbing her. Then she realized what she was doing and said, "No." Though she couldn't blame him, she was a little bothered by the fact that he made her talk more than was otherwise necessary.

Have you ever thought of guiding your bond with your mind? Sundavar asked Hyperion curiously. Like, letting him somehow if you think he is about to run into something dangerous or about to trip and fall...

Gloriann looked around at the flowers as Seth named them. She thought for a moment or two about how he could decribe the place as beautiful. It must have been the way it smelled. She closed her eyes and breathed in the scent of the air. All she really could tell was that it smelled overly sweet. She was amazed that he was able to pick out each scent individually.
She looked at him as he mentioned the smell of roses. "But each kind of rose has a different smell, too," she told him. Cautiously, she stood up and shyly took his hand, leading him to where various rose bushes were lining the path. "This rose is red," she told him. "For some reason, most everybody thinks it's the prettiest. I think it smells the nicest." She took him to another bush. "These are pink roses." Their scent was extremely strong and sweet. "They remind me of candy," she explained to him. "Too sweet and bright for me." She guided him down the path along several more bushes until she came across the black rose bush.
"These roses are black," she said to him. "I decide that they smell bittersweet...that's the only word I can think of. They're my favorite...they seem lonely, because so few people like them. But they still florish, and seem almost content with where they are."

[Max452]

We've tried that once before, and it ended up making things worse. Hyperion explained. He ended up walking into a tree and I had tripped on my tail because I was concentrating on him... Hyp abashly admitted. We've haven't tried it since...but I would like to do it again! Sometimes it might be good for him to see through my eyes! The young dragon chirped excitedly.

Seth angled his head a bit, listening for Gloriann's movements. He could hear her clothes rustle gently, and that familiar scent coming closer. "You're right...they all do smell differently; I'll have to memorize those." He told her as she had taken his hand, smelling the flowers. "Oh, yes, the pink one is much too poignant for me too..." He commented briefly as she explained how the roses smelled to her. Finally, they were at the black rose. Seth took a whiff and nodded his head. "Yes, it seems, forlorn...perhaps that is why it is black or maybe something happened to it in the past? There was a storyteller in my village that use to tell us how the world was created and why things were the way they are." He took another sniff of the rose. "Its...sad, but has a lovely smell; not overwhelming." He turned his head toward Gloriann. "You have a black rose in your hair." He pointed at the general direction of her head. "I can smell it now; I thought it smelled familiar. Well thats good that they're growing; its a shame though that they aren't appreciated that much. The smell isn't bad." He commented and put his hands behind his head. "So, what are you doing out here?"

[Tismri]

Gloriann smiled as Seth explained how he appreciated the black roses as well. Though he only really had scent to judge them by, perhaps that was better. Most people seemed to think that black flowers were ugly and all flowers needed to be bright and colorful.
She reached up to touch the rose in her hair when Seth mentioned it. She always wore one, which occasionally brought strange looks from people, as if they didn't understand why she liked such a flower, or they thought she was sad for some reason.
"I just came out here to sit," she told him. "It's much less crowded. I'm...I'm a little scared when there are a bunch of people around." She looked down, a little embarrassed at what she had just admitted. After about a second's pause, she looked back up at him.
"Um...if you don't mind...I mean, you don't have to say anything if you don't want to, but I'm just curious...What's it like, not being able to see?"

Sundavar tilted her head slightly as Hyperion explained what had happened, and gave a small laugh.
I'm sure that was such a sight to see! she said. But I think it was probably because you hadn't practiced enough. Maybe you should start off standing still and just looking around? It's got to be a little strange for him to process images if he hasn't been able to see.

[Max452]

"Oh, well, there's nothing wrong about that." Seth shrugged. "I use to be scared of crowds too, but after awhile, I got over it." He replied simply as he listened in on Hyperion and Sundavar's conversation.

Yes, I suppose you're right it was hard for him to adjust using my eyes. Hyperion told his kin. But, I think I can get him to try it again...around things that don't bruise. He added.

Seth had to smile at his dragon. He was very thoughtful and eager to help him see. It wasn't a bad thing, but it was different. Seth had grown up this way. Seeing, well, seeing had just become something he didn't do...but secretly, he did want to see. If only to see those important to him. He turned his attention back to Gloriann when she asked her question. It wasn't the first time someone had asked him that.

"I don't mind at all." His smile grew more appreciative that someone would want to learn from him. "I don't know how to compare the two as I've never really seen, expect through Hyperion's eyes, but that doesn't really count yet." He crossed his arms, thinking. "I don't know, but I just "see" with my hands and my other senses, and inside my mind I piece them all together. Kinda like using your imagination; I build an image in my mind." He reached out his right hand. "If you don't mind, I can show you; I touch people's face and form an image in my mind." His sightless eyes blinking in patience.

[Tismri]

Gloriann looked up at Seth curiously as he explained it to her. She realized just how much she relied on her eyes for just about everything she did. She looked at his hand as he asked to touch her face.
"...Okay," she said after a pause. She wasn't sure how it would feel having someone touch her face, but she knew it might help Seth. She did want him to "see" her as well as he could. "Haven't you ever wondered what something really looks like, though? Like...what the difference is between black and pink." She shook her head. "Sorry...I think I might just be making everything even more confusing."

[Max452]

Seth laughed, his hand still outstretched a bit, hearing her question. "Of course I've always wondered what color looks like or my parents or even what Hyp looks like, but I really don't think about it too often. If I did, well, then I wouldn't be able to experience life; I'll be thinking more about what I don't have than what I do. Why hold myself back because I can't do what most people can? Besides, I like the way I "see". I mean, there's so much more to see than with eyes." He pinpointed where she stood, motioning a careful step forward. "Although, you might want to place my hand on your face, if that's okay. I don't want to poke your eye out or something." He chuckled again.

[Tismri]

Glory thought over his explanation. The fact that he was perfectly content on not being able to see--or more specifically, on seeing without his eyes--left her surprised for a moment. But then she thought of how he had never really even seen with his eyes before.
"I guess if your eyes ever did start working, it wouldn't exactly be a good experience," she said thoughtfully. "I mean, the way you see thing now would be changed so much, it might even make you crazy or something." She looked at his hand reaching out for her when he mentioned that she needed to place it on her face. Tentatively, with the same shyness as when she had taken ahold of it the first time, she took his hand a guided it to her face, setting it so his fingertips were on her cheek.

[Max452]

Seth laughed. "I don't think it'll make me crazy. Disoriented, maybe. That's how I felt when Hyperion tried to let me use his eyes to see things briefly. That. Was. Unpleasant." Seth sighed but then felt Gloriann's hand guide his to her cheek. Seth blinked, only out of necessity rather than anything else. He tilted his head forward, his eyes seemingly gazing off in the distant, whilst in reality, he was merely concentrating on the senses that the touch envoked.

His fingers carefully outlined her face, memorizing each curvature. She was slender, with a pleasantly curved jaw. Her skin was smooth, a bit rough in some areas, but that was to be expected. "Close your eyes." Seth simply said. "I don't want to poke you on accident." He smirked as his fingers trailed over to her nose. It was small; natural for her age, as it was evenly porportioned as well. His fingers glazed over her lips, giving time for her to close her eyes if she hadn't yet, and felt the moistness from it. Her lips were tender, petite, and even a bit dry due to the summer heat. He found her chin then, and proceeded to trail her jawline back upward toward her eyes. He was intrigued with her eyes, as he never had the luxury of using his own, and softly brushed over them. They were a bit wide, circular almost, as if ready to intake all the sights before her. He smiled and tenderly withdrew. "You are very beautiful, Gloriann." He told her sincerly. "You'll grow into a fine woman." He smiled. "Thank you for letting me do that. I'll never forget your face now." He then felt Hyp nip his head playfully.
Its time for dinner! We better get going before you miss it again! Hyp warned.
"All right, all right. Hey, Gloriann, do you and Sundavar want to come with us? Its the usual, I suppose. Greens for the Riders in training...I sure miss meat...I still don't understand why the teachers make us do that." Seth signed. "Of course, its only mandatory for Riders that have dragons over the age of a month, but still, if only I can eat some meat!" He whined lighly.

[Tismri]

Glory stood very still as Seth's fingers travelled over her face. It brought a pleasant sort of tickling sensation to her, and she wouldn't have minded if he kept it up for a while. At his request, she closed her eyes while the fingertips continued their exploration. Then he withdrew his hand and she opened her eyes again.
She felt her face begin to burn at his compliment. Of all the things she expected him to say, she never thought he would say she was beautiful. All her life, she'd been called "pretty" and "cute." But this blind man thought she was more than that. She was glad he'd taken his hand away before saying it, or else even he would have been able to tell she was blushing.
"T-thank you," she replied to him, dropping her eyes to the ground. She was rather glad when the topic of conversation changed to dinner.
"Sure, we'll join you," she told him. "I normally sit with my cousins Ian and Eva, but I'm sure they won't mind me sitting elsewhere." Well, technically they weren't her cousins. But her mother and Uncle Einar had known each other almost all of their lives, even before they both wound up in Celesti, or so she knew. They were as close to each other as she was to any of her siblings. Not only that, but her father and Aunt Gianna were very close, too, having been the founder of what was first a wandering tribe of freed slaves, and what later became the town in which Glory had been born.
Gloriann thought for a few moments about Seth's complaints on the food. She really didn't mind much. Her family had often lived off a balance of all kinds of food, so she was more than used to eating plants.
"Well, a lot of our masters here are very old Riders, right?" she asked him. "Or else most of them are elves. I know they've always regarded all life as sacred, and see it as offensive to kill a creature for our own comfort. Maybe eventually we'll also see why they think like this."
It makes no sense to me, Sundavar said, her voice a whine almost matching Seth's. The prey knows its place in life, and we are predators. That is the way of things. I can't see why the elders and the pointed-ears go against nature. It was rather frustrating to the dragon whose greatest desire was to know and understand everything she could.
As they walked back to the city toward the dining halls, Gloriann paused for half a second. "Seth...um, if you want...I wouldn't mind if you just call me Glory," she told him.