It looked like a flea market of epic proportions. Every smell was unique, and the people walking by were anything but ordinary to each other. One never knew what kind of things you could find. Maybe beneath an old shoe was a bottle of hope, or perhaps hidden behind a pile of clothing there might be a computer. The eclectic mix echoed the fact that people from every world were able to visit this place.

No one knew how, or why, this place had come into being. None questioned it really, since it was such a joy to walk trough the isles and hear the different languages flying about. Sparks of magic appeared here and there while vendors tried to sell their things to passers by.

Her purple hair fell to below her shoulders in gentle waves as the woman walked slowly trough the crowds. Though she seemed young the once human immortal was far older then anyone could possibly guess. An eternal sense of wonder and curiosity did tend to confuse people as to how old Daralis truly was.

It always made her laugh to see the shock in their faces when she told them she was already three centuries old. Oh all the things she'd seen! All of which had passed trough here, this marvelous place between worlds. It didn't really matter to the pink eyed woman that she'd never left, since all the adventures she wanted tended to find her. Even her long life didn't phase the dress clad woman.

Such a pretty dress it was, of a nice ruby red with brown swirls embroidered along the hems and sleeves. Daralis had found the things under a pile of abandoned things when she'd needed more clothes. For you see, that was why the mage had wanted to grant her immortality. The gift of finding, as he'd said, was a rarity indeed and many people would need her help.

When it'd been put that way, the young woman had agreed to the rather painful process to immortality with a smile. For you see, she wanted to help others.

A beautiful woman by the name of Scarlett slowly made her way past all the venders carts. She had a small woven basket in her right hand that was full of fruits and vegetables for her to make soup for her and her brothers dinner. She looked around with her emerald eyes to see if she needed anything else, and then started to walk out of the market.

It had just rained recently, so there were many puddles all over the cobblestone ground. But, She didn't care if she stepped in a puddle. She had gone through much worse. The dark haired woman peered down at a puddle to eye her distorted image. Her long black curls fell just beyond her shoulders, and her fair skin looked pale enough to be porcelain. Her bangs fell just above her right eye, so she gently moved them a little, only to have them fall back into place. She had an hourglass figure from years of learning to fight, and due to what she shape shifted into. But other than her shape shifting giving her the gift of grace, if had also given her elegance.

She continued to walk, hoping that her sapphire blue dress wouldn't get too damp at the bottom from the puddles. The dress was a sweet heart neckline that was skin tight until it reached her waist. Then it flowed outward with silver swirls and beads. The dress covered her feet, which were in black ballet flats. On top of her dress she wore a black cloak with the hood up. It was velvet, but one would only know if they touched it.

She turned around once she reached the alley she would have to take to get back to her home. Where was her brother? She rolled her eyes and grimaced. He was probably still messing around at the market. Oh well, she didn't need him home just yet anyways. She turned back and started to head through the alley.

Dmitri's dark blue eyes scanned the area of the marketplace. He had no clue where his sister had gone. She had probably gone home, but still he felt the need to look around. The tall male then turned back to the vender he had been talking to. "Listen, I better be going, I need to find my sister." He said, nodding a goodbye to the old man before heading in the general direction of home.

Suddenly his eyes were attracted to a woman with beautiful purple hair. He stood tall, eager to show off his chiseled appearance as he walked past her. Though he was only wearing a long sleeved black shirt and regular blue, ripped jeans, he hoped she wouldn't be turned off by his under dressed appearance.

The male strolled by, running a strong hand through his dark brown hair. His hair was longer than most mens and stopped just after his ears. His hair was straight and seemed to be two shades of brown; dark and light. The male shook his thoughts away from the woman and started to look for his sister again, looking around the marketplace one last time. It would take him at least ten minutes to find the alleyway that led to their home anyways.

With a start, Daralis stopped in her tracks and whirled around. Sometimes when finding was important enough she was compelled to help. She half jogged to the tall man's side and tugged at his hand lightly. She was rather small at five"three, and sometimes found it annoying. Oh well, it wasn't anything that would change. It hadn't in her centuries of life, and it wouldn't in the time to come.

"Excuse me, but are you trying to find something? I could help, and I really want to!" Her melodious voice rang out, and her words caused some passers by to smile. Daralis wasn't unknown to the people of the marketplace. In fact, many of them watched out for her, and helped her out often enough. They knew that when the time came Daralis would come to their aid without any incentive. For that most of the regulars looked upon her with kindness.

The fact that Daralis could flip a man twice her size to the ground usually didn't cross their minds. Though really, just because she knew how to do such things didn't mean the woman would ever put them into practice. Daralis was a gentle person who abhorred thinking of anyone coming to any harm.

Faolan wandered about with a stoic expression. Upon his back was a silvery sword, which was in great need of repair. It had broken to pieces upon his last adventure. Now that had been a disaster! What with dragons flying in from the air, a sorcerer trying to turn things into a pack or rabbits, and a prince to rescue, it was no wonder the weapon had suffered this fate. Now it was either find a smith who could repair it, or go buy another blade.

For an adventurer without a weapon wasn't as successful in his self imposed tasks. There was a competition coming up, one in which many of these people would set of to see who could find the items upon a list first within a certain amount of time. And the prize! A book of ever changing quests, now that was a treasure beyond words to someone such as Faolan. Blue eyes alight, the tall honey blond ate up the ground in the alley. His mind was so occupied with finding a new sword that he didn't notice a dark haired woman until he'd bumped into her rather rudely.

"Please accept my apologies Lady!" The young man held out a leather covered hand to offer support as he used the other to shove his cloak aside. It was cumbersome sometimes, but it was more use then trouble.

Scarlett had spaced out when suddenly a man bumped into her. The graceful woman had turned clumsy and almost fell backwards, had it not been for the hand the male offered. She grabbed onto it and steadied herself. "Oh thank you, It's fine. I should've been watching out." She said, looking up into his face. She gave a soft smile at his rather blue eyes. "Oh excuse me," She said, releasing his hand and then making sure she had everything in her basket.

Suddenly Dmitri looked down at a woman who grabbed his hand. "Oh its quite alright. I'm just looking for my sister, though I'm assuming she just went home." He said, giving the beautiful woman a smile since he had just been eying her moments ago. Though up close she was rather short compared to him being six foot.

"Though if you want to help that's fine." He said, looking around. "I'm Dmitri." He said, looking back down at her. "And you are?"He asked, his blue eyes darting around for Scarlett. Due to him being able to shape shifting into an eagle, he had the traits to be able to see rather well for far distances.

The young man let out a sigh of relief when he saw that no harm had been done. "Please accept my apologies... Is there anything I could do to repay you for my clumsiness?" Faolan had been the distracted one after all, immersed as he'd been in his own thoughts. "Is there some magical item you want, some impossible to find herb?" Questing for things was his specialty, and if finding such an impossible thing for this young lady was enough to gain her forgiveness, then so be it. Even if she didn't want him to do so, Faolan found himself thinking of going off to get some magical jewel to adorn her neck as proof of his admiration, for he did find the woman striking.

With a smile she tilted her head to the side and closed her eyes. That tugging sensation Daralis always felt when something that needed finding was quite strong now, pulling her one way or another as she tried to narrow down on that particular kind of slow pull that meant the finding wasn't urgent. Ah, there it was! Towards those alleys.

Opening her dark pink eyes, she waved towards the area nonchalantly. "Daralis the finder, a pleasure to meet you Dmitri. Now about that sister of yours, I think she's around there." Again, the purple haired woman pointed to the opposite side of the marketplace. A rather beautiful bottle caught her eye, making her step forward a little. It was so pretty with the light glinting off it's diamond sides in rainbow colors. She was a collector of things, which wasn't all that strange since she was always finding the most unusual of items that had no apparent owners.

Scarlett fluttered her eyelashes at him saying he'd get her anything she liked. "Really it's no bother. You don't have to get me anything." She said, looking down at her slender hands. She then looked back up at him. "As you can see I have many herbs for the soup I'm making." She said, raising her woven basket. "But thank you for making such a selfless offer." She said, lifting her hood back up. "But since you seem to be on your way somewhere I'll leave you to go." She said, giving a nod.

Dmitri nodded. "Why thank you!" He said, then saw her eyes fall on a beautiful bottle. He walked over to the merchant table it was on and paid for it. Once the merchant wrapped it up and gave it to Dmitri he walked back to the girl. "Here, for your troubles." He said, handing her the bottle. "I should probably be getting home though." He said, giving a soft smile.

He shook his head and smiled. "Allow me to escort you, it's the least I can do." Such a beautiful lady needed to be guarded and treasured. Faolan was the one for the job, or so he would be for the time being. It might not even be needed, this escorting and protecting, but the young man felt the need to do so .

She accepted the bottle with a smile and a bounce of her feet. "But I do want to help you find her. I haven't helped you yet, not really!" Eagerly, the young woman reached out to grasp his hand and tug him along behind her. That tug was getting so much more insistent.

((sorry for the shortness))

((It's fine. my last one was short too.))

Scarlett smiled weakly. "Well alright. Though I must warn you, chivalrous men that walk me home are always granted with the gift of a kiss." She warned, putting out her hand for him to take. She then bit her lip. "Oh excuse me for being so rude! I'm Scarlett. And what might be the name of this handsome man before me?" She asked, winking. She put down her hood again and looked over at the man.

Dmitri nodded and led the girl towards the alley that she pointed to. He peered in and smirked when he saw a man taking his sisters hand. "I found her. Though I think she's busy right now. Do you want to go get a bite to eat?" He asked, looking over at her. "My sisters supposed to be making dinner, but since its lunchtime and I haven't eaten today I would be honored to take you out for a nice lunch." He said, flashing a devilish grin.

A light blush swept across his cheeks followed by a chuckle. With a shake of his head, Faolan tucked her hand into the crook of his elbow. "It's a pleasure to meet you Scarlett, my name is Faolan." He wasn't quite used to women being so forward with him. Usually they were a little put off by his nervous shyness. Though of course the moment they knew he was an adventurer, things tended to change.

She giggled a little when catching sight of the young woman with Faolan. Daralis had met him once or twice. He was a pretty nice guy if a little shy for her taste. The adventurer was certainly a good friend, one who always had wonderful tales to tell. "Yes, that would be lovely!" The purple haired woman's stomach rumbled loudly to emphasize the point, causing her to grin sheepishly.

Scarlett smiled. "What a unique name." She said, pointing him in the direction of her home. She knew the male probably thought she was a bit forward, but thats just how Scarlett was with men. She guessed it was from her swan traits. When female swans were looking for their life long mates, they were the one to be the dominant role.

She looked over at him. "So Faolan, What is it that brings you to town?" She asked, looking over at him with her dark eyes. She led him down the street towards her home and gave a gentle smile to a friend of hers that passed by. She then turned her attention back at him. "You seem like a man thats seen the world." She said, her eyes looking him over.

Dmitri smiled. "Okay. Where do you want to eat?" He said, turning and leading her back into the market. He started to look around for a diner of some sorts. "The only one I know of is a little ways down the street. It's called 'The Wolves Den'. It's more of a bar, but they have a seating area." He said, looking over at her. "Would that be alright?"

Faolan smiled at her mention of his name with a shake of his head. It wasn't very difficult to have a strange name to someone, when this was the meeting place of most worlds. It was a world between them all. He was rather surprised Scarlett wasn't used to this. In any case, the adventurer followed her quietly without comment until she had begun to ask him questions.

"I'm an adventurer passing trough. Traveling is my life." Without it, the young man had no livelihood at all. Finding treasure, completing quests or returning something lost to those who paid him for it, he did all that and more. Often enough he was a delivery man, a messenger and even a mercenary or caravan guard. It all depended on what happened from one day to the next.

She shrugged, not really caring. Deralis was rather adventurous, even if it might not show. It was her lot in life to want to stay where she believed she could do the most good. Sometimes though wanderlust tugged her feet towards one of the gates. Someday soon, the woman though, she would leave. Not right now though.

"Of course, here or there it doesn't really matter to me." She could handle herself well enough anywhere despite her deceptively soft appearance.

Scarlett nodded. "Well I'm nothing but a merchant of sorts." She said, then smiled when they ended up in front of her small, stone, duplex home. "I live in this one, 23. Thank you for walking me home." She said, giving him a quick kiss on the side of his face. "If you'd like to join me for lunch I'd be happy to make you something." She said, eying him as she pulled a key out of her cloak and unlocked the door.

Dmitri smiled. "Good. The foods amazing there." He said, leading her through the merchant area and into a street. It would take about ten minutes or so to get there. "So, Deralis, do you live in town here or are you just visiting?" He asked, looking over at her. "My sister and I share a small apartment in town, though were originally from a place called Aurelia. You might've heard of it?" He asked, but then shook his head. "Sorry for babbling."

He blushed slightly at her kiss and politely inclined his head in thanks. Faolan hesitated at her invitation, before finally nodding. "It would please me to dine with such a kind lady." And ease his travel weary feet all the sooner, though he very much doubted she wanted to hear that.

She nodded with amusement as if she didn't know about the place. Daralis followed the man's lead with that same smile, all the while she waved at merchants here and there. "I've lived here my whole life." The purple haired woman paused to think of his question. "The world is a rather unique one isn't it? And please, don't apologize." It was nice to hear someone talk so normally with her, without having any kind of alternative motivation.

"Okay." Scarlett said, ushering him in. Once she opened the door they were in a medium sized room that had a small, round dark, wooden table with four chairs, and a black stove for cooking and heat. Then in the far corner of the room you could see stairs leading to an upstairs. "This is the kitchen." She said, offering him a seat at the table. She headed over to the wooden counter tops and cabinets and started to get out the things she needed to prepare the meal.

She sat her basket down on the counter and started to chop up the herbs she found. "Do you like stew?" She asked over her shoulder, throwing the herbs in a kettle of boiling water over the stove. She then started to cut up chunks of beef and threw it in the pot as well. "I probably should've asked you that before I started cooking.." She said, giving a small laugh. "Sorry, I wasn't thinking straight." She said, starting to cut up carrots.

Dmitri nodded. "It is." He said, leading her down the street until he ended up by the pub. Once he gently led her inside he got them a booth seat and handed her a menu from behind the salt and pepper shakers. "Get anything you want. It's on me." He said, flashing her a charming grin. He then glanced down at his menu and let his eyes scan over the page. He figured he would most likely get a sandwich since his sister was making stew for dinner. And usually her stew was pretty filling. The male glanced back up at Deralis with kind brown eyes. "See anything you like?" He asked, wondering what type of food she enjoyed.