Complete Eastern Brisshal Song and dance

[Fina Drago]

Venturing out into the other areas of Falderen was a harrowing experience at first. It might have all been still considered the 'starting' area and all, but without an adventuring partner and her rather offensively-oriented setup, she just didn't want to risk it. While she could have stayed inside Stokbon all the time, the place wasn't large enough to properly stretch her legs. At least in the proverbial sense, the city was actually quite sizable. Considering these limitations, it was no surprise that the girl had often returned to the area she was most familiar with by this point - Eastern Brisshal.

'Maybe I am going to end up getting to the higher ranks by just staying here…' The thought crossed her mind as she moved past the many trees that formed the giant forest, only to reach its end with a view of a large open clearing. And who would have thought, a village a bit further on? Fina never bought a map or anything, so she had no idea what all she could still find here. And as it turned out, it was quite a lot. A friendly settlement that posed no real danger was a perfect target, too.

Of course, there didn't appear to be a whole lot when she actually started walking the streets. A local tavern and an inn, of course. Plenty of wooden houses. But something did manage to catch her attention as she walked the barely paved road. Music and someone singing - not something she would have expected here at all. 'An NPC?' Was the girl's first thought as she quickly turned a corner to spot a small crowd gathering. She was already here, so why not investigate? Pushing past the people required no effort at all, with a grand reward of laying her golden eyes upon an avatar that was far too pretty not to be made by a player.

@Vina Skysong

 

[Vina Skysong]

Being back in Terrasphere was truly a strange sensation, but Vina was nothing if not good at enjoying herself even under circumstances where others might still be stuck being uncomfortable and awkward. That didn't mean she was completely ignoring the strangeness, but she could prioritize having fun. And one of the things she liked doing best was performing, preferably with an enthusiastic crowd to both entertain and be egged on by. If that meant she was a little bit of an attention whore at times, so be it.

She'd made her way back to Eastern Brisshal because it was one of the most pleasant areas in the land, with flowing plains and healthy young forests, all underneath a wide open blue sky with soft white clouds and a bright sun. It was summertime, so the weather was perfect and people had plenty of time on their hands. Sure, there were tasks to perform, but it hadn't taken Vina a long time to find a village where the people seemed to be spending more time just passing the day with pleasant trivialities than doing any actual work. Which meant she had an audience.

Of course, since she was just a traveler who'd flown in with the wind she didn't have a platform or anything, but she didn't need one. Finding herself a nice spot in the sun in front of an empty shed she took out her violin, fiddled a bit with the strings, then began to play as she closed her eyes and let the tune in her take over control of her body and her fingers. At first, her movements were slow, but as she got into it everything began to flow together, especially when she began to add her voice to the performance.

"Suddenly you're nowhere to be found
I turn around and everything has changed
Looking for a way to work it out
I'm trying to find some peace to navigate"

It took a bit, but soon there were villagers gathering around her, some curious about who she was and what she was doing here, others just listening to the song. As Vina kept going members of the former group slipped into the latter, and before long the villagers were all enjoying the performance.

In the midst of all this, another person slipped into the audience. Vina had opened her eyes by this point, although even if she hadn't her fox-like ears would have picked up on the footsteps anyway. The newcomer was definitely not a villager: you quickly learned to spot the difference between a Person of the Land and a Traveler, or even just between adventurers and citizens. She was quite pretty as well, so Vina winked at her even as she kept playing and singing.

During her performance, Vina moved about with her large, fox-like tail swaying and swishing behind her in accord with the movements of her body. The fox girl wasn't satisfied with just playing her instrument and singing: she used her entire body as part of the performance, right up until the end when she finished the song and bowed deeply towards the audience.

@Fina Drago

 

[Fina Drago]

It took Fina a moment before she'd even realize what instrument the other woman was holding. Violin, rather refined. In the somewhat distant past, Bianca took piano lessons herself, though it never quite seemed to go anywhere. She was able to play at a basic level, but that was about it, unfortunately. At least that didn't prevent her from enjoying the music and performance of another. Of course, she had no way of knowing if what was being presented to her was any good by the musician standards… but it sounded just fine to her, so why feel like there was something to be criticized.

The show would eventually come to a close, and the fellow beastkin would take her bow, earning applause from the villagers. Fina would take a note and join in. It'd be rather rude if she didn't. Though as she clapped, there was one somewhat unpleasant thought. That wink from before… it most certainly was directed at her, was it not? What did it mean, exactly? Just an acknowledgment of presumably the only other player currently around? Or was there more? Hell, was she now expected to give the other woman some money for the performance?

Fina had no idea if the game even had a trading system of any kind. Then again, with how things have been going, she probably could just take the money out of her inventory and physically hand it over. But in real life, people usually did that during the performance, not after! Not to mention that she didn't have all that much gold to spare, to begin with. The whole thought process was starting to make the girl flustered, attempting to hide behind the other less notable people to avoid being admonished.

@Vina Skysong

 

[Vina Skysong]

Vina hadn't meant much with the wink, but it seemed like the feline female was getting rather flustered by it, the way that she tried to hide behind some of the villagers to avoid eye contact. It was amusing, in a way, but the vixen also felt a bit bad that an innocent gesture had been interpreted in such a manner. Better to clear up the misunderstanding.

The villagers, for their part, had enjoyed the performance but were spreading out now that it had come to an end. Several of them would stick around and talk with each other, first discussing the fox girl and her violin before their conversations naturally moved on to different topics. A couple of them also asked Vina questions about her music and where she'd come from, to which Vina answered smoothly that she was a wandering bard and that she went wherever the wind led her.

However, she didn't want to lose track of the silver-haired newcomer, and before long Vina would have managed to disentangle herself from the attention of the curious villagers to approach Fina, if necessary following the girl in whichever direction she'd moved in the time it had taken Vina to satisfy the inhabitants of this small settlement.

"Hello there! Did you enjoy the performance?"

Vina wore her usual friendly smile, her tail swishing from side to side behind her. While she was hoping to make the other girl feel at ease she also couldn't fully suppress her enthusiasm at meeting a new person. It was a bit too soon to assume that Fina would be just as eager to make new friends or respond positively, but Vina wasn't about to let her optimism be deterred by such things as uncertainties.

@Fina Drago

 

[Fina Drago]

Seeing all the different interactions with the villagers impressed Fina quite a bit. If she didn't know any better, then it would be easy to assume that these people were just like ordinary fleshy folk who led their lives in peace. This game certainly was something else. But that might have also been her cue just to carry on and not worry too much about things that just transpired. The other woman was cheerfully chatting the villagers up, after all. Not a hint of anything.

Turning around, she managed to take only a few steps before the voice rang out behind her, making her jolt slightly as she stopped and turned around. "U-um… hey there. Yeah, it was very nice." And so, the situation became awkward right away. It was unlikely that this stranger would just stop at asking such a simple question. Collecting feedback was nice and all, but no one would just go around and individually ask each listener whether they liked the performance or not without something else also coming up.

As the feline turned around to face her company, she could finally fully take in the girl's visage. Her vulpine traits, an almost unnatural beauty… well, anyone could have those in this world. "Your skill with the violin is impressive."

@Vina Skysong

 

[Vina Skysong]

Vina's smile brightened a little after the feline confirmed that she'd enjoyed the performance. It was always nice to hear that people liked her music. Of course, she could also tell that the girl still felt a bit uncomfortable. Maybe she was just the shy type who had trouble with social interaction in general? Or she just had a hard time dealing with the fact that she'd been singled out amongst the villagers, even though she was clearly different from them both in appearance, outfit, and demeanour.

"Thanks, I'm glad you liked it~"

She glanced down at her violin. It wasn't her favoured instrument, as she preferred to play the flute, but if a song included lyrics she needed to keep her lips free.

"You think so? I'm more comfortable with the flute, but I can't really play the flute and sing at the same time."

Looking back at Fina, Vina wondered if she should cut straight to the chase or not. She did enjoy talking about music, but if the feline was feeling uncomfortable it might be better to put her at ease and reassure her that the vixen had no ulterior motives. On the other hand, abruptly switching the topic might also just make her appear disingenuous.

"My name is Vina Skysong~ May I know what your name is?"

@Fina Drago

 

[Fina Drago]

"Mm." The girl really had no idea what more to add. She was never the verbose type, and conversations in the physical world were hard to come by unless they were about work. In which case, they were pointless. All she could really do was nod along and affirm what she had said or react to whatever the other girl would say. She probably wasn't a better conversation partner than an old-timey AI.

"Makes sense. Being a one-person band must be difficult." Not that she could imagine it. Music really just wasn't her topic of interest. She knew only the basics, and such things would bore an expert exceedingly. It was also then that the question came - an introduction. So this Vina really did expect a bit more than just a quick chat about her performance. Fully turning around, Fina would put one of her hands behind her head as she looked to the side before she'd answer. "Fina Drago."

Then a sigh. "Sorry, I don't really know much about music or instruments… aside from piano, I guess. You'll be disappointed if you expected to have a meaningful conversation about that." Getting that out of the way, the feline only hoped that she curbed any and all expectations, as she could never really live up to them.

@Vina Skysong

 

[Vina Skysong]

"It's not so bad. You just have to adapt your style to it. It's not as impressive as a full band, but you can still give people a good show with just an instrument and your voice."

It seemed like the feline wasn't really open to a lengthy conversation regarding music, or just wasn't sure how to contribute to it. But she did give her name, and Vina didn't need much more for encouragement. The vixen looked a bit surprised as Fina explained that she had no expertise when it came to music, tilting her head slightly.

"Really? You look like you could be good at it~ Or are you perhaps more of a dancing type?"

Since Terrasphere allowed you to sculpt your figure however you wanted pretty much every player had the body of a superstar. Still, what someone considered the perfect body they wished to inhabit told you a little bit about what kind of interests they had. Fina's body was beautiful, with an athletic and agile aesthetic, suitable for a feline.

"I didn't really call you out with a specific goal. I just like meeting new people, and you stood out to me. Are you new to the game?"

@Fina Drago

 

[Fina Drago]

Listening to Vina's observation, Fina couldn't help but take a step back as if she was saying, 'Here, look at me in all of my glory,' all the while actually saying, "You do realize that this is not me… me, right? No, I don't think there is even anyone who would make their character look identical to their real self! Games are meant to be for escapism and all that." In Bianca's case, that rang double true. "For all you know, I could be super fat and unable to dance at all." Well, half of that was correct, at least.

She didn't want to go around just to spill actual facts about herself to everyone she would meet. If just because she hated the fake sympathy, she often got from people who were aware of her situation. It was best that no one here knew what her life was really like in the physical world! "But yes… more or less new, I guess." She had already ditched the dirty tunic she had started with, replacing it with the somewhat exposing gear she wore right now. It made it a bit more difficult for others to immediately recognize that she was a complete newbie, although her behavior did still give it away, it seemed.

@Vina Skysong

 

[Vina Skysong]

Vina listened attentively as Fina replied that her current appearance didn't accurately represent her true self in the physical world. She suppressed the urge to make a face when the feline pointed out that most people wouldn't just style their avatar after themselves when technically that was exactly what Vina had done if you discounted the fact that in the world of Terrasphere she was a fox girl instead of a human. Instead, she tapped her cheek thoughtfully.

"Escapism is one reason for playing games, but couldn't someone use an avatar which looks like them if they see a virtual world as just another place to visit?"

The vixen had always been very fortunate, which might be why she hadn't thought of Terrasphere as an opportunity to escape her real-life self the first time she started playing. Of course, that didn't mean she couldn't empathize with people whose lives were more stressful and for whom the opportunity to be someone else was much more appealing.

"But even if the beauty standing before me isn't what you look like outside of the game, your avatar still looks like she was designed with dancing in mind~"

She smiled at that, intending for it to be a compliment. She nodded as Fina confirmed that she was new to the game: even if the feline wasn't wearing the beginner's outfit anymore, one could still see the signs that she was getting used to this world and this body.

"And, how does the game feel to you so far? It's very realistic, isn't it?"

@Fina Drago

 

[Fina Drago]

"People can have any reason they want and do whatever they want. As long as they aren't harming anyone else, anyway." That was Fina's simple answer. She did say that no one would ever have an avatar that looked just like their authentic self, but she was well aware that outliers and exceptions existed just about anywhere. However, the fact that Vina herself mentioned it like that made the feline a bit suspect as to what might have been going on with this specific player. Oh well, not like it was necessarily a bad thing. Though Bianca did feel a bit of envy if the player she was interacting with right now really had such good genes outside of this game.

The fox also insisted that the body, which was Fina, was basically made for dancing. Well, it was probably the one thing most connected to music, but Bianca still had no knowledge in this area on account of being deprived of such activities. "I really didn't even consider such a thing when making the character…" She would admit, just hoping that such words didn't disappoint the other girl too much. "But yes, the game is very realistic… to a fault in some places. But I guess that's why we're all here instead of some other and actually legal virtual MMO, no?"

@Vina Skysong

 

[Vina Skysong]

Vina nodded and laughed softly in response to Fina's simple response. Live and let live, a perspective which the druid could heartily agree with.

"I can't argue with that~ People can have many reasons for how they design their avatar, but there's no reason to judge unless they're harming others."

The vixen blinked and looked mildly surprised when Fina stated that the entire idea of dancing hadn't entered her mind when she created the avatar, but there was no disappointment in her mind.

"Huh, I guess you managed to do that by accident then~ But I'm curious now: did you have anything in mind when creating your character? Or did you just go with what looked nice to you?"

She did frown a little bit when Fina brought up the reason why they were playing Terrasphere, a game which was illegal and which was known to have killed people in the past. The vixen glanced to the side for a moment, multiple thoughts going through her head before she returned her focus to Fina.

"That is how it started, yes, but I think that for many people it has become more complicated than that."

She could go into more detail and explain that there are people who'd gotten stuck in the world of Terrasphere, and that those people had friends who wouldn't want to abandon them. Or the people who wanted to figure out the truth behind this world, the people who created it and their intentions. But those weren't exactly happy topics, so Vina would rather avoid them unless Fina showed a deep interest in them.

@Fina Drago

 

[Fina Drago]

Being praised for something a person didn't do on purpose certainly diminished the value that praise held. Although Fina did end up wondering if it really was the way she sculpted her virtual self or if that sense Vina spoke of was aided by the attire she currently wore. It, admittedly, might have come across as a bit dancer-y, at least if one considered the more exotic forms of dancing that often also doubled as entertainment for onlookers. "I didn't really give it much thought. I figured these features were pleasing to the eye enough, and I also liked them."

While she said that there was no real motivation to make herself look the way she did, there might have been a subconscious reason why she specifically ended up cosplaying a cat girl, the most cliché thing she could have possibly chosen. It was as simple as her goal here in the game - to get to feel like she was having a life free of some stupid disability that complicated everything. And cats, or felines in general, were often associated with mobility and certain finesse of movement. Her goal was to run across fields, leap from one place to another, and always land without issues. Being part-cat seemed appropriate for that.

"Well, whatever. I'm not qualified to talk about human psychology and why people might do the things they do." It was awkward enough of a topic already for a conversation with a near-complete stranger. They weren't meeting on university grounds to talk about this kind of thing; they were inside of a game designed to encourage role-playing as a hero, champion of the people.

@Vina Skysong

 

[Vina Skysong]

Vina nodded as Fina explained that she hadn't really given her avatar's design much thought beyond making it aesthetically pleasing to herself.

"You look beautiful, yes, and as long as you like your appearance everything else is secondary, isn't it? Sorry if I'm asking too many questions about it."

Vina was quite interested in the workings of the mind, not professionally but because she wanted to understand and get along with practically everyone she met. She did also believe that people's actions told you a lot about how they looked at the world, even if not every action was as deeply motivated as the next. As it stood the only thing Fina's avatar told you about the feline was that she thought it was nice to look at, and Vina certainly agreed with that.

That said... The vixen idly tapped her hip as a thought occurred to her.

"Say, Fina, did you have any plans for what you wanted to be doing next?"

Vina wanted to spend more time getting to know Fina, as she found the feline quite pleasant to talk to. Sure, not exactly the most expressive of people, but she had a good head on her shoulders. Her tail swished from side to side behind her as she eagerly awaited Fina's answer.

And, of course, she wanted to ensure that if Fina wanted to play Terrasphere she'd enjoy herself here, and not get herself killed or anything. A part of Vina wanted to convince Fina to quit the game and move to something else, something which didn't carry the risk of death, but she doubted that she could persuade the feline. She'd already pointed out that this game provided a level of immersion and realism that other VR games couldn't compare to thanks to all the regulations, and if that was what she was looking for there really weren't any alternatives.

@Fina Drago

 

[Fina Drago]

"T-thanks." Well, being told that she was beautiful felt strange, as Bianca now discovered. It even made her avatar blush a bit, it seemed. Perhaps the disconnect between herself and Fina was not as deep as she had initially thought. She was in control of that body, after all. She could also imagine an argument that someone else could make, that it did not matter if one liked their own appearance. The only thing that actually mattered was whether that appearance would be alluring to others. But it seemed that Fina was, at least partly, attractive if Vina's comment was to be believed.

That said, when the feline was asked for her time, it shocked her a bit. Especially after their conversation topics went, well, nowhere, really. "Um… not really, no. But I have to warn you that I just don't know much about music or dancing, so if you want to talk about those more, you really should just find someone more qualified than me." Otherwise, things would probably get very boring very quickly for the both of them. People could get along only if they had at least something in common that would connect them. Otherwise, they'd just miss one another entirely and never agree on anything. Much like politics. Just… less deadly, hopefully.

@Vina Skysong

 

[Vina Skysong]

Vina smiled as she saw Fina blush slightly at the compliment. There was the temptation to giggle, as she found the reaction both endearing and entertaining, but that could easily be interpreted as condescending or mocking.

"Any time! And I wasn't exactly thinking about talking~"

While the vixen's words might sound a tad suggestive, her thoughts actually were going in another direction entirely. After all, what use was talking about music and dancing if you could actually play and dance instead?

"Instead of talking, would you like to try dancing?"

She dismissed her violin by placing it inside of her inventory, swiftly pulling out her wooden flute as she kept talking.

"It's a lot of fun, and I can either play music for you or guide you along. It's also a lot easier than you might think since outside of professional performances dancing is mostly a form of self-expression."

Vina wondered if she was being a bit too pushy, but she did really think that Fina would enjoy dancing if she gave it a try. That, and she was quite sure that most people would agree that watching Fina dance would be fantastic: Vina wasn't exaggerating when she called the feline beautiful, and her clothes only accentuated that beauty.

"Of course, if you want to do something else I'm all ears~"

To emphasize those words she twitched her vulpine ears, grinning at the visual pun she just made.

@Fina Drago

 

[Fina Drago]

Letting out a sigh, Fina could only wonder what she had gotten herself into this time. Well… 'this time' might have been a bit too generous. This seemed like her first real hijinx in this world. Still, Vina's words managed to make her mind wonder, if only for a moment. Mainly in the area of 'Let's go do actual MMO stuff' rather than anything else. So when dancing was suggested, especially with the insinuation that it would be done on the spot, in the middle of the road here in the village, the feline's golden eyes widened, and her blush deepened.

"Wha- dancing? Right here?! N-no way! I'd die! I'd die from embarrassment. N-not to mention, I've never danced. Never even tried; there's no way I can do it!" Getting perhaps a bit too defensive, the girl even waved her hands around in a dismissive manner. Something that probably only drew more eyes at the two of them from villages who wandered about and around them. The problem was, she didn't exactly have anything else to suggest either. Dancing was not a bad idea per se, but it was a bad one for her specifically! She could barely run and hop around, still getting properly used to that. Dancing? That would be something else entirely.

@Vina Skysong

 

[Vina Skysong]

Fina's reaction to the suggestion that she'd dance right in the middle of the village was quite entertaining, resulting in a chuckle escaping Vina's lips even as the feline was frantically waving her hands in protest against the idea.

"Don't worry, it really isn't difficult, and nobody is going to judge you. If you're having trouble I'll guide you through it"

The two of them did receive some attention, however, as having two striking individuals chatting it up in the middle of the road would get the villagers to be at the very least interested in what they were doing here. After Vina's performance, they'd decided to not interrupt the conversation, but they did receive frequent looks from villagers who either passed by on their way to other parts of the small settlement, or people who were sticking around for their own reasons. Vina looked around, the leaf-clad druid considering Fina's other protest.

"If you don't want to do it where other people are watching we can find our own spot~ Plenty of space outside of the village, after all. Come on, it'll be fun~!"

Vina wasn't going to push Fina into doing it if the other female really didn't want to do it, but now that she was into the idea she was at least going to make a determined attempt to persuade her newest friend. After all, once they got started Fina should quickly learn that it was fun, right?

@Fina Drago

 

[Fina Drago]

"Oh, everyone is absolutely going to judge me." Fina's retaliation to that comment was pretty much instant and in a rather serious tone that indicated she might have had some experience with being judged for things she did where one would typically say exactly what Vina had. Granted, they were surrounded by beings that the feline assumed to be NPCs, so who knew if they were actually capable of judgment… but if they were capable of appreciating the bard's music and clapping for her, then they would surely also be plenty capable of laughing or booing at the poorly dancing cat. If that were to happen, she was unsure if she would ever be able to start the game up again.

When Vina relented a tiny bit and at least offered the option to do so somewhere more private where the possibility of being laughed at was smaller, the feline would whine more than anything. Still, she would not really show much resistance if she were to be dragged somewhere. It was Fina's first time visiting this place, so she naturally had no idea what all could be found here unless they were just getting a private room in the inn, though that would surely prove a bit too expensive for something as silly as this.

@Vina Skysong

 

[Vina Skysong]

Vina blinked as Fina suddenly stated so confidently that she would get judged. That sounded less like the flustered protests from before and more like the feline adventurer had experience with that kind of thing like it was a matter of fact rather than just social anxiety. The leaf-clad druid took a more gentle tone.

"I promise I won't judge you. I'm the one inviting you to dance, after all, it would be silly for me to judge."

She hoped that Fina would trust her words, but she could understand if her friend had a hard time accepting them. If she had experience with being judged for her actions it would be difficult for her to instantly believe that Vina wouldn't do so.

Still, it appeared that the other silver-haired female had been reduced to some feeble resistance, and Vina's enthusiasm hadn't abated yet. Taking Fina by the hand the druid led her away, down the road and past the building all the way out of the village. From there she abandoned the beaten path, leading the way across the flowing plains that expanded past Honeyhome's borders until they found themselves at a large, rounded stone which jutted out from the dirt, large enough to comfortably sit on.

Letting go of Fina's hand Vina would sit down on the stone, twirling her flute between her fingers.

"So! Any songs you really like, Fina~?"

@Fina Drago