Sarinah marched through the festival grounds, knowing exactly where she was headed. She made her way over to the Crow camp and towards a familiar blonde head. Closing in on Calli, the dancer reached out and took her hand.

"Hesta Calli, can I ask you something? As a friend?" She smiled sweetly and her big brown eyes seemed to ask plleeeasssee.

Calli had been happily playing with her pet hingle, whom she had not found an appropriate name for, when Sarinah took her by the hand and asked her for a favour. Sarinah was everything Calli admired, poised, confident and sure. She'd had Calli's unconditional and slavish attention at "Hesta".

"Oes!" She said, delight to have been asked to do something that was possibly important. "What is it?"

If she'd had a tail it would have been wagging.

Sarinah felt embolded by Calli's eagerness. Taking a big breath, she prepared herself.

"Okay, I was going to see if you would come and hold my hand whilst I got a tattoo." Pausing, she made a pleading face. Whilst the woman could go get it done alone, the statement she was making with it made her feel like she would need someone there to be her support. Just the idea itself was already making her stomach churn. But come hell or highwater, she was doing this.

"I ent gonna force you rosh, but its real important. To me."

Calli whitened. She wasn't so much scared of needles as she was of people coming at her with them and not doing anything about it. Watching someone prod at Sarinah was enough to make her stomach lurch unpleasantly.



"Oes." She said, voice cracking, she coughed to lower her voice again. "Oes, I'll come."

She tucked her hingle into her pocket and steeled herself, boney chest expanding as she fought to breath normally. She was not going to punch the tattoist, she was not going to punch the tattoist... Again.

Sarinah grinned and gave the girl a warm hug.

"Mujo ma, rosh. I promise, I will buy you anything you want after this!" Pulling away, she took Calli's hand again and began to lead her through the festival, making a beeline for the tattooist she'd seen the first day she arrived. A pink haired woman with tattoos on her arms and piercings everywhere. She was a good artist, the witch had been watching her work over the past five days, and now she was ready. Determined. Sarinah had known she was going to get another tattoo, but she'd never planned on this. However, it felt right.

Reaching the stall, she looked around for the woman.

"Junta! I'm here to get a tattoo."

Calli smiled, allowing Sarinah to lead her.

"You don't have to do that, we're friends!"



Calli took a deep breath. She was not going to punch the tattooist. She kept repeating it as a mantra under her breath. Just because she didn't get it didn't mean she could go on letting her fists talk for her. They were only right some of the time.

A young, pink-haired witch poked her head up from her stall, and recognized Calli with a wordless nod. She raised an eyebrow; surely the young witch had not changed her feelings on tattoos? Gods, she hoped she would never have to be the one responsible for ever putting a mark on the younger witch. She'd heard about her misadventures already.

Then the woman noticed Sarinah and eyed her carefully, gaze lingering more than a little judgmentally on her tattoos, knowing the markings.

"Junta, chip. Are ye sure I can help ye?" Keiyra managed an almost friendly smile despite her gruff reply, but it was obvious where her thoughts were.

Calli blushed and waved. That had been such a horrible day. Calli didn't like thinking about it. She was idealistic even now, being confronted with the world's cruelties was incredibly difficult for her. She did not think she'd ever get up again if she'd suffered as Keira had. She caught the pointed look at Sarinah's tattoos and stood a little straighter. She was proud of her friend, she'd stand by her.

Sarinah nodded, looking at Calli with a smile.

"Oes, I really think you can." She'd noticed the way Keiyra looked at her Yellow Eye tattoos and set her jaw, prepared for whatever the reply might be.

"I want a Red Crow tatt, on my right shoulder blade. Here. In bright red." She turned slightly to point. It was out there now, time to see what she said.

Keiyra's eyes widened momentarily, but then they narrowed as the pink-haired witch brought her hands to her hips and scowled, "Ye want a what? But ... ye ent ... wait ... Are ye makin' a statement or just tryin' to start trouble here at the festival, too?"

Her voice was incredulous and her expression was a strange mixture of disbelief and hurt.

Sarinah heard the sound in Keirya's voice, and shook her head.

"It's a statement rosh. If my family can't take me as an Eye loving a Crow then damnit, I ent an eye anymore. I want to show them that I wear the red crow now." She looked at Calli, rethinking her words. Love? When had she come up with that.

"I..that...well..." The dancer had nothing. Looking back at the pink haired witch she rested her hands on her hips.

"Will you do it rosh? If you won't I'll find someone else, but they ent gonna be as good as you."

((Awwwwwww. *squee* Fancy word there ... ))

Keirya stood where she was quietly for a moment, practically a mirror image of the dancer with her hands still on her hips, lower lip stuck out a little in a thoughtful sort of pout. She blinked, only slightly unsure if she'd heard the woman correctly. Was that the L-word?

The pink-haired tattooist finally let a smirk upturn her features. Somehow, this was more amusing than insulting, but she couldn't quite figure out why, "Look, chip, fightin' with yer folks is one thing, ye chen? I ent sure I wanna get involved in family matters, but if ye mean it for other reasons, I might consider it a benny idea after all."

She grinned, curious but still cautious.

"I'm game, but y'know yer gonna be causin' a bit of trouble if it gets 'round, right?"

Calli's shoulder slumped in relief. It was like watching all the water flow out of a plant, leaving it droopy.

"Don't worry Sarinah!" Calli said earnestly. "I won't let anybody give you trouble."

And she meant that. It wouldn't be the first time she'd kicked someone in the face in defence of a friend.

The dancer knew that, but she didn't care. It was time to show the tribes that there were better things than fighting.



Laughing, the dancer caught the girl around the shoulders in a hug.

"I have no doubt of that Calli, mujo ma rosh." Nodding, she smiled at the pink haired woman.

"Mujo ma."

Keirya laughed a little, still uneasy, and looked at Calli, "Ye promise yer friend ent moony, right? I ent interested in any more fightin'."

She waved them both invitingly inside her booth, trying hard to keep the doubt from marring her mischievous smile, "Come on and make yerself comfortable. We'll do our best not to attract any attention 'til we're all finished, ye chen?"

The woman tapped her chin thoughtfully, shifting her gaze to the dancer with a more friendly grin before going to gather her tools and wash her hands, "Ye ent gotta tell me anythin' unless ye want to, but ye'll be here a while ... so eventually ye'll have to be explainin' so we don't all get bored with each other." And by explaining, it was obvious the pink-haired woman was interested in knowing exactly who Sarinah was talking about, being a Crow and all.

Sarinah followed the woman inside, reaching up to wrap her hair around itself into a bun. She put her hands on her hips and listened as the woman spoke.



Grinning, the dancer looked at Calli with a small blush.

"Ah, I ent usually one to talk about these sorts of things, but this kov is too benny not to brag about." Walking over to a rather comfortable looking chair, she sat down.

"Tristaan Greymoor, tallish fellow, long brown hair, piercings, lovely grey eyes..." She sighed dreamily, then focused on the woman with a laugh.

"He ent just a pretty face either."

Calli looked at Keirya's implements of torture with growing dread. It was only practiced will that allowed her to talk at all.

"Oes, he's a great guy, has a sword too." Calli loved Tristaan but she'd never been interested in his eyes of all things...

There was a moment of awkward silence.

Kierya looked at Sarinah with unabashed incredulity the moment she recognized the name, then to Calli as if she wondered whether this was some kind of sly plot the younger witch was in on. The pink-haired witch stood there for quite some time, weighing her knowledge against the rather dreamy, far-away look that seemed to have washed over her unexpected customer.

Then, she laughed, but it was only half-heartedly. There was still an air of bitter doubt about the girl.

"I see. Guaril's boch. Riiiiiiiiiiiight. Wo chet—"

The tattooist wasn't trying to be offensive so much as surprised. She shook her head and held up her hands in an expression of disbelief.

"Really?" Kierya looked at Calli again, as if expecting the more familiar witch to blurt out how the two of them were kidding. It didn't happen. She smirked, officially amused. Her voice still had an edge, as if the pink-haired witch found it difficult to believe anything could really put an end to fighting, "I suppose there's some things worth bein' a Crow for, an' if yer not just pullin' my leg, then it sounds like ye found one. It's benny to know that kov didn't go off an' get himself shivved for havin' such a nice ... face ... after driftin'."

The girl groaned for emphasis, "Poor Guaril was such a mess. I'm sure there was a chip or two who shed a secret tear as well. Though, since yer here with Calli, I'm gonna guess Tristaan ent here."

Kierya had been gathering her tools and setting up as she spoke, disbelief fading into focused amusement, "So, ye sure what ye want, eh? As a tattoo, that is."

Sarinah couldn't hide the look that crept over her face as the woman spoke. She looked out and out surprised. The dancer looked nervously from the witch to Calli.



The brunette leaned against the chair, arms crossed.

"Thats right rosh. Uh...do you know Tristaan well?" She felt a little awkward.



The dancer nodded enthusiastically.

"Oes rosh. With everything in me."

"Oes, that's the one!" Calli said happily.



Calli looked down, everyone had been sad when he left but that was what happened when you were a traveller. Either you left eventually or everyone else did. It was the flipside to being able to go places other people never got to go to.



Calli nodded along with Sarinah.

"And I promise to keep my fists to myself and everything." Calli blurted, realising that her promise was altogether not very reassuring.

Kierya glanced at Calli, remembering stories of her last experience around a tattooist, "Don't worry, chip, I ent gonna try an' stick ye. Remember that."

She grinned, turning back to Sarinah, "An' to answer yer question, ne not really. I mean, it ent like we didn't know each other, of course. He wasn't so social at first, so ye know, some of us missed out, ye could say." The pink-haired witch chuckled.

"Now, tell me again exactly what I'm doin' so I can get started." She looked back up at Calli, teasing warmly, "Are ye ready, then, to help yer friend? Or should I go call for some back-up in case ye can't handle it?"

The dancer snorted a laugh at that, again glad she'd asked the younger girl to come along.



Sarinah's brown eyes slowly dawned and she coughed embarassed and slightly red. Obviously Tristaan had been a bit of a catch to say the very least. Somewhere inside, her heart did a little triumphant jump.



The brunette nodded.

"It's just the red crow tribal tattoo, in red, on my right shoulder blade." Nice, big and bold.

"Benny." Kierya laughed and found a stumpy wooden stool, sliding it with her foot in front of Sarinah and grinning at Calli, "That's for ye ... hopefully, it's far 'nough away from me ... I hope. Ye got yer own job to do."

She stepped behind the dancer and out of her view, "Obviously, I ent gotta tell ye this'll be uncomfortable. Ye've been in this sort of spot before." The pink-haired witch took a moment to admire Sarinah's other tattoos. Yellow Eye markings or not, they were nice.

She chuckled, "Ye got some good work there already. That must've taken a while, eh? Might as well get comfortable. I'll clean up, draw some lines, and then get down to business."

Sarinah nodded with a laugh. It had been more than four years since her tattoo, but she remembered the...discomfort like yesterday.



The dancer spun the chair around and sat, leaning against the back of it.

"Oes, it was about three days of work. I remember at one stage, when my daoa was working over my spine, I thought I might vomit. It hurt a bit." She winked at Calli with a grin.

Calli laughed a little self consciously.

"I'll measure out the distance..." She said, smiling wryly.

Calli looked at Sarinah a little fearfully.

"I hope you don't feel sick this time!" She said, a little worried again.