Celes
Everbloom Grove |:| Interactions: Theo, Jakal, Zephyr
A delicacy huh? He gives a short puff of a laugh. He's been most everywhere by now, carved every type of soil with his talons, and even within the nature element, he's yet to have been to a place that could claim something simple as chocolate dipped fruit as a delicacy. In the Gladevines he had tried berries roasted on spits over fires made solely of dried flour petals, in the marsh lands, sweet seaweed wraps. To him though, nothing would ever be at the cuisine of the land he currently called home, the sea. Stone grilled fish, muscles soaked in gin, and a thousand other ways to present seafood. One could eat a different dish every day for years and still have new ways to eat a fish. Now, chocolate is a rarity in the sea, the humidity, heat, and weather mean it doesn't keep, so badly so that he's visited deep sea clans that have never tried it, so it could very well be the best chocolate in the world, but he would never have the chance to know, considering the shipping capital of the world didn't carry it.
For the beads, what Celes intended to do was find a seller and have the group help him pick from the larger selection, as most are much to small, some for him to even see. But the little green Ather is gone and back before he can even think to suggest as such, offering a little bag full of beads. He offers a face halfway between consternation and a smile. His hand dwarfs the bag offered, worn and stained talons tremble slightly as they reach, and he grasps as what feels like the biggest bead in the bag, no larger than a glass bead to him. It's a flower in full bloom, trapped in a glass sphere, overlapping petals dark maroon with a warm yellow center, with feathery bits of pollen still trapped in miniature spines surrounded a seed head. It's been drilled through the side, so that flower is facing outwards. "
Ah, it's lovely.". He muses quietly, almost under his breath.
It's not even close to the last time he did this, looming over a blanket spread on sweltering sand, while a hot pink Coatl argues with a distressed looking vendor over the quality of his gold while the rest of the group laughs raucous in the background. It's nothing like the first time, a much smaller Celes trembled head to tail, curls brushed and burned until they resembled a straight mane, bowing before the head of his clan, trying not to giggle as long strands of grash brushed against his belly, dancing in time to tornado song, while the rest of his clan stood off to the side, each with a bead to tie to him, the promise of adventure a ceremony away, an old, old Guardian leaning down to meet his eye, glittering with excitement of her own, whispering advice, don't rush into it too fast, you're bound to crash.
It's good luck to take on new beads for every adventure. That's a mantra drilled into him since birth, by a mother who had so many that she couldn't move without the chatter of metal on glass on wood. He'd forgotten once, and we'll look what that had got him, needing an aid for his spine and a shake in his hands that wouldn't still.
He had to sit, or well lay down, to put the bead in, grabbing half a tuft of the hair that sprouted from his cheekbones, 5 tries to actually get the bead on, but only one to tie a miniscule knot, one that assured it would stay there forever, unless the hair was cut. It never would be if he had his way.
Celes had many, not nearly as many as his mother, not enough to constantly make noise, but enough that were few portions of his mane that didn't sparkle when hit by the light. Patterned cuffs on braids, beads woven in in a thousand different sizes, but no dangles. Dangles got caught and made tangles. Tangles were bad, ment lost bits of collection. He wouldn't let that happen, not when his already curly hair caused enough problems.
He stood slowly, joints popping quietly, less than they had earlier, and shook himself out, settling everything back into place. Turning to the tiny green Ather, he bowed his head. "
Thank you.". The smells of chocolate hits with a soft breeze. Rumbling softly, he begins towards the mango stand. "
Now, it is time for treats.".
If he's faster than the others, he'll account it to the fact his strides are bigger. He'd offer them the perch between his horns, but none of them have earned it yet. It takes a few turns to get to the mango stand, so Celes tucks his wings close, mostly to avoid getting burnt by a stary pan, but a bit to fit better between hanging silk. He hast to duck to speak to the vendor. The dragon running the chocolate mango stand is a purple Tundra with grey-orange wings, still looking flushed with heat despite being almost bald by Tundra standards. He orders 7 mangos, let's glimmering bits of treasure trickle trough his talons, and presents a mango each to the others. The remaining 4 disappear into his maw, and sure enough, despite expectations, they're incredible. The chocolate, though dark and rich, is sweet, sprinkled ever so slightly with salt, with the sort of sparking taste that tells of the outer shore of the Shifting Expanse, to balance. The mangoes themselves are at the peak of their ripeness, soft, but not so that they melt, with a tang and a bite to them, expertly cut to get the most off the pit. They're fresh, the chocolate still molten on the inside, but not hot enough to burn an unsuspecting pallet, so it melts into the juice of the mango. It's all over too soon, in Celes opinion. He resists the urge to buy more, save his treasure for something more meaningful than sweet mangos. With a sigh, he faces the wall of jungle, something that looks impeneraterable to his foreign eye. "
I am ready now.".
Message to Everyone - updates!