Annie milled about in the streets of the city, looking at the vendors stalls, foods, and colorful clothes with hungry eyes. Oh, Emme, you'da loved all this. One more thing to knock off yer list o' Stuff You Ain't Seen Afore. Annie shook her head, a sad smile on her face as she opened her money pouch to inspect its contents. She was down to her last shill, but did have an assortment of interesting and slightly rare-ish seashells. Not that they'll get me anywheres, but there's always hopin'.

She'd always wanted to visit the wick festival, but never had the oportunity. The Post, back before she turned renegade against the Resistance that is, would never pay for the trip; it wasn't news enough for the 'big city'. Nobody wanted to hear about a bunch of wicks getting drunk and loving on each other.

Annie stopped at one stall selling chains and necklaces of various sizes, her eyes coming to rest on a simple, thin silver strand. She thought of the heat-shaped shell she'd found on the beach with Emme that day...I bed it'd look nice hangin on that. If'n I had the coin fer it, anyways.

Wendy was standing at the stall next to the one Annie was at, looking at the jewelry with an appreciative eye. Not that she could buy any of it-- but it was nice to browse. She'd been here for more than a few days already and knew how to look for bargains. A woman staring rather closely at a silver chain caught her eye and Wendy automatically glanced at the price. She winced. No, that won't do at all.

Usually Wendy wouldn't have bothered to say anything but she'd learned that wicks helped each other out. Whether they knew you or not. Like Jerzy helped me!

The passive sidled up to where Annie was standing and nudged her, "That one's too much, chip. He's an artisan." She whispered with a nervous smile. She pointed at the ornate lily earrings and shrugged.

"I can show you some nice ones that are at a good price...if you want. I've been here for a few days." Wendy said with an impish grin at the man behind the stall who was glaring at you. "No offense mate, but we aren't walkin' bags of money like you seem to think it."

Annie jumped, startled out of her thoughts by a young wick with very--extremely--blue hair. In fact, she was having a hard time concentrating on the girl's words for staring.

"Aye, erm, that's very kind of blue--I mean, you! Um, thanks. I, erm, ah, don' have much in the way o' payin, if'n ye know what I mean. The coinbag's runnin' light nowadays." The reporter gave the girl a cockeyed grin and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

The wick festival was most interesting. Annie knew wicks traditionally wore bright clothing and hairstyles, and were usually covered in tatoos, but not having seen this many wicks outside Vienda, she certainly wasn't used to it. In fact, she felt a little out of place--her hair was the standard dark brown she'd been born with, and her clothes blended in perfectly well for Vienda. Here, though, she was the drab tan spot standing out amidst a sea of bright orange, pink, green, blue and spotted purple. It felt a little weird.

((Can't bring in Calli but I can bring in some NPCs!))

The silversmith gave Wendy a dirty look.

"Sure chip, you can go yerself some cheap silver and watch your ears turn green, see if I care." He gave Annie a wry look. "Hey, miss, we haggle around here. If you don't like the price you can talk it down, don't let the other kovs intimidate you or nothing."

He turned back to Wendy, folding his arms as if to say, "take that!" The smile he gave to Annie was much friendlier.

"If you need some new clothes," he said it kindly, though the assumption was a rude one, he knew it wasn't always easy for town-wicks at the festival, "you can try the west side o' the markets. Sometimes they'll let you swap clothes for barter and they're helpful to boot."

He tried to keep from using too much tek, he was used to dealing with humans so he didn't find it too difficult.

Wendy grinned, "Aye, I know what you mean."



Wendy glared right back, every inch the reluctant buyer, "Green is a lovely colour! Besides, you don't have naught that's under a hundred million shills. Nobody's got that kinda money."



The small passive tried not to make a face, but she couldn't help rolling her eyes. "That was classy." she said sarcastically, and then glanced at Annie, "But I can take you there if you want." Wendy gave her the once over. Maybe she was finally starting to get used to wick clothing if her eyes felt weird staring at colours that weren't fluorescent.

"Hagglin', eh? Alrigh'. What can ye give me fer a quarter shill an' some seashells?" Annie laughed. "Yeah, I doubt that's gonna go far 'round here. It's hard to haggle when ye ain't got nothin t'haggle with."

Annie's brow creased as she looked down at her clothes. This was her favorite skirt! It made her legs look pretty, and her butt--"Erm, thanks? I...guess..."

Well, this is weird. Annie was used to being the bold one whose confidence matched her outward appearance. It usually got her the information she was after with a little extra kicked in for bonus. But here...she'd been onced over by two wicks in the same thirty second time frame, and neither seemed very approving. It was an uncomfortable feeling for Annie, and she didn't like it at all.

"Yeah, uh, sure. Do I look that bad? This is one o' my nicer skirts, ye know. I thought, erm, I thought I looked...nice..." Her voice trailed off in a massive wave of awkward embarassment. What am I, a ten year old?!

Wendy's mouth twitched into a smile, "You look fine. It's all of u-- of them that look weird. Wicks think if it isn't colourful it doesn't count as clothing." She remembered her first reaction when she had arrived at the island. What an eyesore that had been. She jerked her head at the vendor, "He's probably trying to help you 'cause he thinks you're in the nude."

Although her tone was quite serious her eyes twinkled merrily and the movement of her mouth betrayed what she said as a joke.

Annie's face didn't betray her thoughts one bit, although she had most certainly picked up on the girl's slip. Them, she says. So that makes her one of three things: a human playin wick, a golly playin wick, or a passive playin wick. I can't pick up on a field, so option two's out, and she speaks far too propper to be a human, which must mean--

"It's livin in Vienda what's done this. If'n ye don' blend in with the walls most o' the time, somebody's bound to kick ye up fer somethin'. An' in my line o' work, it's helpful not to stand out so much." What I wouldn't give to have my fedora right now...

The reporter threw back her head and laughed. "The world ain't ready to see that yet nor ever. I'm just the lady in tan when errybody else is whearin' red."

Annie thrust out her hand towards the blue haired girl. "Name's Annie November. Pleased t'meetcher."

"I wouldn't know. I haven't been many places." Wendy said with a shrug, "But I understand the need to blend in."

Too well.



"I suppose the builds are different to what I'm used to, if they're tan." Wendy said carelessly, her mind going back to the red buildings of the university. The passive smiled and shook Annie's hand quickly, "Venadi. The pleasure's all mine, chip."

She paused awkwardly for a moment, "Are you sure you don't want new clothes? If you want to be blending in you'll probably need some. They're pretty good, quality wise." She rocked back and forth on her feet and glanced at her own more quiet clothing.

"And it isn't all so...raw."

Annie cocked a light eyebrow, the gears in her mind clicking away. It payed dearly to have a job that provided so much information about so many places. "Not too many buildin's what ain't tan. You must home from somewheres a lot more colorful than most anywheres else."

Annie looked down at her skirt, mulling it over. It was her favorite skirt after all, and she could clean it...but the more she thought about it, the more a new outfit seemed to appeal to her. "It must be the woman in me. Hells, let's go shoppin'!" She looked up at Wendy with a grin that faltered as she watched a wick with bright green hair walk by wearing something akin to a banana skin.

"'Ceptin', maybe, we don't shop where she does."

Wendy shrugged, "I wouldn't know." she said shortly, closing herself off from the topic abruptly. She's human... they hate the galdori, and I'm not really one but I'd rather not be pitied, just yet. I'm doing fine for myself, after all.



Wendy laughed, glancing at the woman with the green hair. "Aye, I don't fancy showing so much skin, myself."

She started off towards the west end of the market where the clothes vendors were. This area of the market was much more crowded because the prices were generally more reasonable and trade was sufficient to get new clothing. Wendy headed towards the stall where she'd gotten her dress with Annie in tow.

"I like this place. It isn't so crazy as the rest of the stalls. I traded this horrid pink dress that--" She stopped when she went in and saw a woman trying on that very dress and choked into her hand.

"Um." She said in a small voice, avoiding the very tall wick with her old dress on and walking farther in, "Miri! Miri? I got a human who wants to trade clothes for something better!"

Wendy sneezed violently and wiped her watering eyes. Everything was so dusty here! If only I could come in here and wash everything!

Miri appeared from within a pile of clothes, like a deer stepping out of a forest. She had violet coloured hair, tied back in a simple ponytail and her clothes were a combination of tasteful violet hues. She was ever inch a wick but it was obvious that there was method to her madness.

"Hello Venadi, hello friend of Venadi." She said, joyous and airy. "It's a lovely day today, isn't it?"

She looked at Annie seriously for a moment.

"Red for you, no more of this brown." She said, nodding her head. "Come, come."

Annie nodded, her eyes a little bit wider than they should have been. "I've seen less skin on a nekkid babe."

Annie followed Wendy, weaving her way through the throngs of people hunting for bargains. It was interesting being among so many wicks. She'd never really experienced her own kind en masse, and while at first it was a bit awkward--the first person she'd talked to spoke almost all Tek, and Annie was pretty sure she'd accidentally agreed to sleep with him if he gave her a puppy--she was getting used to the feel of it all. Granted, it would be a while before she felt like she fit in, if she even decided to at all. But...it was fun.

Annie looked at the dress. Wendy was right, it was indeed horrid. Frills in places it didn't need frills, a neckline that covered half the chin, and a color so bright it was it's own lightsource. The reporter squinted as they walked past, doing her level best to not laugh and gag at the same time. "If'n that's what ye try to get me into, I'd rather have that banana skin."

Annie stopped in her tracks, staring at the back of Wendy's slightly fuzzy head. Human? She looked down at her skirt and top again. Did she really look human?! I mean, it pays to not look crazy like when ye're workin a story in the city, but ain't it a little obvious I'm not...

"Human? Where's a human? Ain't nobody here but us wicks!" Annie put her hands on her hips, a slightly amused look on her face. Maybe I should practice some magic an' actually try to work up a field every once in a while...

Annie looked at the wick clothing vendor for a moment, her eyes lingering on her hair. She abscently plucked at her own deep brown strands, subconsciously wondering how she'd look if she had--

"Y'know, ye ain't the only one t'tell me that in my lifetime. I'm Annie, miss, it's nice to meet ye."

Wendy turned and gave her an odd look, her cheeks shifting to a mild pink colour before going back to normal. I'm not a wick... And then, She...has a field! "Oh! Oh I'm sorry! I'm just um. Spacey today, I guess...Although to be fair the only wick's I've seen so far wear crazy things." She justified her mistake rather poorly and her cheeks promptly turned pink again.

"But that's why you're here so that's good."

Real classy. Almost as classy as the silversmith.



Wendy followed as Annie introduced herself, her mind buzzing. She'd never really met a wick that wasn't entirely insane... Annie must be particularly good at disguise because she looked and sounded human. The passive wondered if she could pull it off half as well and her finger went to the delicate curve of her nose pensively. Maybe if I got a tan... This Annie person may know if I could get a job in Vienda...

But that prospect seemed a little far fetched. They'd just met, after all.

"I like the idea of red. It would look very striking on you..." Wendy mused, giving Annie another brief eye sweep again.

She changed the subject abruptly, suddenly curious. There were no markings on this wick, no colours, no tattoos, no discernible speech impediments (tek, Wendy felt, most definitely an obstruction to speech), and nothing that said she really belonged to anyone but herself.

"So what tribe are you part of, miss wick Annie?"

"The pleasure, it is all mine." Miri said, ambling over to Wendy and placing both her hands on the other woman's cheeks. "Your aura, it is quite grey today, if you are not careful the wind will change and your face will stay that way. And it is such a pretty face."

Miri let go, raising her hands in the air with a dramatic flounce. She turned to her pile of clothes and sifted through it quickly, pulling out a red dress, jacket and pants along with some white shirts, dark coloured slacks and a plethora of belts. She layed them out with care, arranging them and rearranging them into different outfits.

"This one first, Miss Annie," Miri said, pointing to the red dress and a belt, as well as a short white jacket. "I think that would suit you well for the festival."

She made a grande gesture towards her kint, which had a makeshift changing room constructed using wooden doors. It was painted blue.

"Venadi, I think perhaps we should try you in greens today. I think you favour green." She said, smiling serenely.

Annie laughed and shook her head at the girl. "Let's not go overboard on the crazy, alrigh'? I ain't too keen on lightin' up the sky while the sun's still shinin'."

"Y'know, I had a nicer dress once, all fancylike, made outta red satin. Wore it at a press party once an' got such a reaction outta one fella his wife had t'take him home five minutes after I got there. 'Course, that could have somethin' t'do with the neckline goin' down so far as it did," Annie said with a smirk. Now that was a party.

Annie looked at the outfit Miri had assembled with approval. "I think ye might be on t'somethin', Miri. Now it's just a matter o' makin' sure it all fits on me." She laughed, taking the clothes and heading towards the 'dressing room'.

She had just managed to get the dress over her head when she heard Wendy's question and froze. Tribe?! She hadn't thought of that...and of course being here among so many wicks she'd almost surely be part of a tribe. Aren't they all named after colors an' animals?

"Urm, well, I'm part o' the, uh..." I got it! "The Rainbow Trout. Yeah, that's it. It's young, mostly unknown. There's maybe five o' us in it, an' none of us ever knew our mothers."

Annie stepped out from behind the doors of the dressing room. The dress fit her perfectly, only slightly looser than a glove to a hand, and the belt settled nicely around her hips. The jacket would have looked good as well, if she'd been wearing it, but it was warm enough that she had it slung over her shoulder instead.

"Whaddya think?"

Wendy smiled bemusedly. "That's nice." she said in a half awkward voice. A party?



"And dark blue. I like dark blue okay. I won't have anything to wear it to though..." Wendy murmured, half tempted to take Miri up on the offer just to wear something pretty. She did like pretty things...but...but they weren't very useful. Not that she'd been doing many useful things here. Nope. Nope you're not allowed to think of that todayy.



"The Rainbow Trout? Are your fathers colorful people?" Wendy asked with surprise and ignorance. Odd that you were only wearing brown with such a colorful name...

She dismissed it from her mind. "That looks nice. Very...red." For lack of anything better to say, she coughed into her hands, "Miri couldn't you give her something with more colours than just red? She is a rainbow trout...She might want to live up to her name."

Annie looked at the crazy haired girl quizzicaly. "Nowhere to wear it? Yer at a Festival! Everywhere's somewhere to wear somethin'! There's all sorts o' dancin', an' dinners, an' storytellins...wear somethin' pretty to all o' them, you'll catch quite a few eyes! Or Crows, even." Throwing in that last bit about the tribes she actually knew about made her feel a little better about her lack of knowledge of all things wick.

"'Spose so, though we ain't never met our fathers neither."

A slight look of panic crossed Annie's features. The last thing she needed was someone who knew things to call her out on her made-up history. "Ye don't have t'go round wearin' the color o' your tribe all the time, ye know. What tribe are ye from, Venadi? An' what colors are ye wearin'? If I didn't know any better, I'd say ye were a trout m'self!" Annie looked back down at the dress she was wearing. She did like it, but...

"Maybe somethin' a little less deep, though. I've always been right partial to the Springy colors. Light blues, yellows an' greens, stuff like that..."

Miri looked at Annie's outfit and saw that it was good. She took affront to Annie's suggestion that she wear yellow.

"No, no, no..." She said, waving her hands and putting the other outfits, including Annie's old one, away. "No yellow, perhaps an ocean green once you tire of the red."

She turned her watery, otherwordly gaze upon Wendy once more.

"I shall get you into green one day, your preference for such dark hues defies your fighting spirit." She nodded to herself. "I think chartreuse might make you more serene, perhaps..."

She clapped her hands twice and bowed her head at the two witches.

"My the gods watch over you both and your clothes." She said, smiling brightly.

Annie bowed her own head a tad awkwardly at the other, more fashionable wick. "An' may yer, um, headlines always sell yer papers for ye."

Turning to Wendy, the newly attired Annie cocked an eyebrow. "Where to now, O Great Fightin' Spirit? We should go somewheres an' attract some attention!"

Wendy squinted at miri and shrugged off a frown. Cnartreuse? What? Is that a wick word?



"Ummmthanks." Wendy mumbled, wondering when she'd ever be able to understand wicks.



Wendy snorted, "Attract attention? Here?! Unless you run around naked--" She paused as two stark naked wicks ran past her and blinked, "You know what? I'm going to take that statement back."

She could feel a headache starting again from the colours and shook her head. "Do you do anything? Like sing? I know there are places where wicks go and sing...and there's places to eat... ummm..."

I wouldn't know a lot about attracting attention...

Annie watched the bums running, eyes a little wide and slightly confused. "Yeah, I'd say that's a, um...good idea."

Annie laughed. "There ain't nobody in the world who'd wanna hear this set o' pipes quackin' in public. Leastwise, not 'til I had a drink er two in me." Annie cocked her head to the side for a second, contemplating. "It'd be fun, though...heck, I'm in if'n yer in. Ye game?"

"To sing?! You want me to--" Wendy stared at Annie with an expression that seemed to swing horrified to...really horrified. "Noooo that's not a good idea." The thought of opening her mouth...in front of lots of people no less! She'd rather punch a chrove in the face.

"You're clocking nuts if you think you'll get me anywhere near a stage." Wendy said with a weak smile. "But I know a place with drinks...if you're interested. I'm sure we could manage to get us a few free ones. Especially with that outfit you're wearing."

I think Petra goes there to drink. Clocks curse it now I have to be sociable. I'm not good at this sort of thing. I should stop trying to be nice...

Annie lightly pushed Wendy's arm, just barely. "What's the matter, Venadi? Ye scared? I didn't have ye pegged fer the chickenin' type. You seemed like the kind o' gal who'd step up to a challenge." The reporter shook her head and crossed her arms. "Guess I read ye wrong, girl."

"I guess you did." Wendy said through clenched teeth. Uh uh. I may be a passive but I'm not stupid!

"We're getting a drink. Now." She growled, dragging Annie to the place she'd seen Petra frequent.

It was a different matter altogether when they got there. "Okay. Go on. Go get us some free drinks." Wendy whispered, nudging Annie towards the bar.