The sun was bright overhead as Shar'si broke free of the cover of the woods, leaving her to walk the open space of the grassland washed in its warmth. The land ahead was open as far as her eyes could see ahead, and the woods began to fade off behind, making for the perfect place to experiment with her newfound elemental talents. Where first it was simply the wind that had come to her, it was now all four. Earth, water and fire had proven to be much harder for her though, which was her reason for seeking a place free of clutter. Once the trees were no longer in sight with a glance behind her, she came to a stop, pulling four small books from the pack over her shoulders and setting to work. Careful notes had been taken from the books within the library of Lómëdor, as well as those within the library of the home of the Blades.

After nearly an hour of reading through what she had pulled from those books, she once again returned them to the pack, eyes going to the heavens to see what the weather would hold. The sun seemed as if it would dominate the sky for hours still, and no clouds came near enough to threaten its showing. The afternoon was truly perfect for a bit of study and practice. She took a deep breath to relax her body, then began to search her mind for that elemental presence. Warm strands of red seemed to wrap about her thoughts, giving images of a flame, yet the images were still quite blury. A feeling of irritation came over her, causing her to just about give up when a flurry of ashen drops suddenly began to fall, leaving Shar'si to avoid the fiery rain. The rain extended out a healthy distance, like a storm of fire, and her mind continued to blaze with the presence of the element. Suddenly the dry grass at her feet and all around singed and began to smolder, which caused her to panic and search for the cool presence of water, which came easily to her. In a matter of moments, the ashen shower had ended, and instead everything was soaked, completely.

Shar'si gave a soft sigh, one hand coming up to brush stray strands of wet hair from her face, her frustration manifesting into a bolt of lightning which simply zipped about with no care. Her eyes grew wide as she watched it, a certain realization of the fact that it would take plenty more work before she could truly control the elements coming over her. Fire, water and lightning had already marked the area around her, and a mild fear kept her from delving further into her mind for further teachings. With the turn her day had taken, she was worried that the next attempt would lead to an all out storm of the four elements, one which she would have no control to bring to an end. In some small way, she realized how simple and carefree she had had it, back when the presence of wind was all she felt.

She flopped down crosslegged next to the pack, which fortunately had managed to keep the four small books from becoming soaked. Pulling the books free, she went back to reading through her notes once more, while allowing the sun to do what it did so easily, and dry away the water she had brought down. Blades of once brown, now black and soggy grass spread out in a wide circle around her, and there was no telling just how far out the rain had extended, though at least the stormy clouds that she had created were now gone. It did bring a certain small bit of laughter to her, to wonder what other travelers who might have witnessed the elemental showing just might have thought. Such was the life of a novice, which reminded her that the time was near when she should finally give up on trying to teach herself everything, and seek out a tutor of some sorts. For the time being though, she would simply study the four books, and allow nature to right itself.

The grasslands seemed quiet enough, but Sraxen would not be fooled. The quietest places on the earth were the ones where you could expect the most amount of trouble, though that trouble may manifest itself in different forms. The dwarf had heard whispers of a threat that loomed over the large expanse of land that was the grasslands, so he sent himself on a mission to discover the source. It was probably nothing. But these things had to be checked out, anyway. If there was indeed a threat, he'd report back to Frôkar - a leader in his clan of dwarves - and get reinforcements. If he needed them.

He was glad for one thing: the land in these parts was fairly easy to traverse for a being of his small stature, so he could make good time scouting out the area. His unkempt beard was starting to become oversaturated with sweat, he would need to sit and rest soon, for a few minutes. He was about to do this when ahead of him he spotted a sight like nothing he'd ever seen.

Ahead of him, fire poured down in drops the size of rain, a shower of flame. The fire scorched the earth beneath it, leaving the blades of grass to crumble in defeat. As instantly as the flames had appeared, they were destroyed by rain clouds that had suddenly moved their way over to small patch of land that the flaming rain had covered. Smoke rose out from the dead foliage, leaving the final trace of what had come to pass.

It was surely something a dwarf didn't see every day, and it chilled Sraxen to the bone. Could this be the source of trouble he had been looking for? He gathered his mace to his side, contemplating his next move. If this was indeed the disturbance he was seeking, it would need to be approached with caution, if at all. He couldn't see anything at the moment, the smoke had risen too high. But when it calmed back down, he'd be able to investigate the area further. He'd search for clues, determine what he could of the situation, and report back. He had a feeling this would be more than he could handle by himself.

Once her mind had settled, slightly, she summoned the winds to dry away the water which had been called down to douse the flames that had accidentally scorched the earth. Needless to say, things hadn't gone as planned, and this meant it would be time to return to the libraries, which was yet another added frustration. The day would now be a waste, for the most part, and in the process of wasting the day she had also caused quite a mess. The ground was still wet under her, the grass was still shades of brown and black, and there was nothing she could do to repair the damage. "Oh goddess, forgive me," she muttered softly, as she could only imagine what one would think when they saw the land around her. Of course, she wasn't much of a sight to look upon at the moment either, as wet bits of hair still lay plastered against her face and down her shoulders and back. The leather tunic which had set over her cloth wrappings was now draped over her pack, hopefully drying without shrinking beyond a wearable state.

Three of the four books were tucked away in the pack once more, all but the book of Earth -Oream- which was open. Somewhere within her notes she knew there had to be a way to repair the damage she had done. A mild feeling of frustration began to cross her mind though, as she realized she might not have planned for a mess such as this. That trip to the libraries would have to be followed up with another trip back to this place to undo what she had done. A passage of interest caught her eye as she was reading though, causing her lips to play with a set of words found upon one of the pages. Her memory could not bring back the reasoning for adding such notes to the book, so it came as quite the surprise when her skin suddenly began to take on the texture of a tree's bark. A soft groan came from her lips, as first she worried that she'd be deprived of the ability to move, noticing that Oream was now laying upon the ground. Strangely though, she was still able to move just as she had before speaking the words, though it was at a slightly slower rate of movement.

She pushed herself up from the ground, stretching her arms one by one, adjusting her movements to the arcane spell that settled over her skin. It felt as if she were working against her own body, which was a completely strange feeling after all the years of training as a monk. Her body could better be described as water, in its normal state, flowing through the motions she chose with very little to no resistance, or wind, with the flexible and nimble movements. This bark skin state seemed to make her skin tougher though, which would have its uses, as long as it didn't incapacitate her. She continued working her way through movements, making every attempt to grow more comfortable with her current state, pausing only when she caught sight of a strange form off in the distance.

The smoke from the flames was starting to die down, sinking back to the earth and settling into place. It would leave quite a mark on the land, this chaotic storm. Sraxen bent down low, shaded his eyes with his hand. He thought he could see someone now, something. To the dwarf's surprise, the offender of the deed was covered in bark like a short and skinny tree, moving slowly around and making motions with its limbs. Sraxen bent back up to his full height. On the ground could be seen four books scattered around near the storm maker. Just what was going on here? In the last few moments, a storm of fire had been created, a plague of rain came to wash it over, and then a moving being with bark for skin and four books appeared in the area of the storm. None of it made sense, but none of it sounded too good either. Something was up, and the dwarf would not stand around idly allowing it to happen.

He contemplated the best move from here. He could maneuver his way over to the... bark thing... and gain a little more information, or he could straight away chop the thing down and be back on his way. The latter seemed the most efficient by far. "But if I do that," thought the dwarf, "there would be no turning back. I will have to be certain this is a creature of evil before I strike it down. Innocent blood will not be shed today." He wasn't sure what the odds were that this thing was innocent, but he would not act too hastily. He'd get to the bottom of the mess first, then he would deal with the person to blame.

He sprung out from his hiding place and made his way over to the ash resting on the ground. He could see the barked thing better now, could see its human features, could see its tough skin. It rivaled anything else strange he had seen in the land. It was downright absurd. He had wanted to say something to it, but now he was lost for words. His mouth held open as if he was ready to say something. No words came. He started to show the faintest signs of nervousness, his ears twitching and his hands held still. His mind raced, searching for something intelligent to say, a smart question to ask, but there were too many questions and he couldn't pick one. And so he was silent.

The stray bolt of lightning zipped off in one last direction, which caused her eyes to follow it and catch sight of the dwarf, who was now much closer and seemed to have quite the perplexed look upon his face. Shar'si reached up and cleared a stray strand of soaked hair from her face, then went to thinking about the best way to explain this mess she had caused. All that thought caused a silly sort of look to come across her face, as she realized there really was no good way to explain what had ocurred, other than to state that she was still quite the novice with the elements of nature. Unfortunately, her slight bit of ego wouldn't allow her to state that, so she simply remained silent for a few moments longer. Two strangers and a whole lot of silence, that sure made for an interesting start to a meeting that had not even been planned.

She tucked the last of her things, including the still slightly wet vest of leather into her pack, then decided there was nothing much to do other than to say something... anything. "Well," she began, enough to keep herself from backing out, "I hope you weren't caught up in this mess. If you were, I truly do hope you weren't harmed." That might have been a slightly silly thing to say, as he wasn't soaked in the same way she was, and there was no sign of him having been caught up in the ash storm. The wild lightning bolt seemed to have gone off and fizzled out somewhere else, so all should have been well, or so she hoped. "I'm not sure what else to say, well, other than the fact that I did not come out here with the intention of destroying the grasslands." There, she said it, without coming straight out and saying she was unskilled or untrained with her own magic. The mere statement of fact as she had made it caused her cheeks to become slightly pink though, as she never was the best at admitting her weaknesses. Her eyes went up to the clouds, which fortunately had returned to being fluffy and white, a silent prayer going to Liara in hopes that she too knew of her true intentions, as she waited for the dwarf's response.

As the silence continued, Sraxen watched, dumbfounded. The conversation was now one of body language, and the dwarf said all he needed to with his mouth open and eyes perplexed. The mage moved around, gathering the books that had been on the ground and placing them in her pack, acting almost as if she hadn't even seen him. The entire thing was so surreal that Sraxen wondered if he was dreaming instead of living reality. He decided it was the most bizzare encounter he had had to date.

Finally, after what seemed en eternity, the woman spoke. "Well, I hope you weren't caught up in this mess. If you were, I truly do hope you weren't harmed." The dwarf didn't respond. He wanted to, but he was at a loss for words, and his answer to the question wouldn't have mattered much anyway. He clearly wasn't harmed, or his body would say so. What he was was confused.

He was thankful that she kept talking. "I'm not sure what else to say, well, other than the fact that I did not come out here with the intention of destroying the grasslands." As if he wasn't at a loss already, this made it worse. Here he was, thinking this could perhaps be the evil that he had heard rumors of, and now, after a stunning show of disaster, the woman was claiming her intention was not to destroy. Suddenly words found Sraxen.

"Well, ah, that's... good to know. I, ah... feared otherwise." Talking was difficult, but it was becoming slightly easier as he continued. "If your intention was not to cause destruction, then may I ask what were your intentions? Because, ah, that's the part that has me confused."

If this was all a trick, and she was an agent of darkness, the dwarf would surely have regretted those last few moments. Nothing in Arda would have been intimidated by his disarrayed words and his timid composure.


((OOC: Lame post :/ Next one will be better hopefully.))

She gave a soft bit of laughter, understanding his stance, as she'd have thought the worse had she come in upon the disaster that had just been unleashed. Her laughter was not mocking, or directed at the dwarf, but rather just the only way she could express her slightly similar confusion. Nothing so far had gone as she had planned it, and it was most likely sheer luck that had kept things from growing more out of hand, or the watchful eyes of the Goddess protecting Her lands. Shar'si looked to the pack, the back to the dwarf once more, giving a slight shrug, "I was making an attempt to put book knowledge into practice so that I might better understand the magics I possess. The elements were correct as I called them forth, but their reactions to my attempts gave results other than that which I had expected." That much was obvious, by the state of the grass, though at least the lightning had stopped zipping about, and the skies were just as clear as they had been prior to her meddling with them. She lifted her shoulders in what was beginning as a shrug, but simply ended in a long, exhaled sigh.

"It seems I'd be best of keeping to book knowledge, or going in search of a mentor of sorts." She grabbed the pack she had placed the books in, lifting the strap over her shoulders and settling it there. Her skin had since returned to its usual state, and the sun had dried the majority of the rain away, so save the fact that her hair was still a tad on the wet side, it could almost appear as if things were perfectly normal once again.

Her hand patted the spot where the four small books rested as she spoke once more, "I have far too much respect for nature to have done something such as what happened on purpose. I wish to understand them and be able to channel the elements, not control them or use them for ill workings." She suddenly stopped, looking at the dwarf a bit more closely. "I suppose I could ask the same of you though, what brings you so far out into the open here?"

Sraxen pondered the answer to her question. He didn't want to give too much away, but he also didn't want to act suspicious. The simple fact was that he had been told of a threat coming from the grasslands, and upon looking for it he had stumbled into this mage's practice session. He took a moment to collect his thoughts, then answered. "To tell you the truth, I am trying to locate the source of a threat that was rumored to be in these parts. At first, I believed you might have been that threat. Now I'm nearly certain that you aren't."

He tried to think of what action to take from here. It was awkward enough, stumbling upon the inexperienced mage whilst she played with her arts. But now, he was out here in the middle of the grasslands with her, not knowing how to exit. He felt as if the meeting between the two had not yet concluded. And so, not being able to think of anything else to do, he simply introduced himself.

"I'm Sraxen," he said, extending his hand to shake the mage's, "and who are you? My line of work manages to bring me into these extrordinary circumstances that I'm not too comfortable in, so I'd ask you to forgive my uneasiness." The woman seemed amiable enough, and Sraxen was finding it harder every minute to see a reason to distrust her. He had stumbled upon a priest of nature of some sort, nothing else. And nature was certainly something the dwarf could relate to. He remembered the trips he had taken to the Shrine of Water, when the water seemed to give him secrets that he was able to form into a weapon. His latest visit had given him the power he needed to freeze any live being on contact with nothing else but an utterance of the word.

Very well then, he thought. If nature is something the two of us share, it may as well be an interesting discussion. As he held out his hand for the formal greeting, he asked the woman, "Have you ever been to the Shrine of Water, by any chance?"

Shar'si took the offered hand and shook it gently, an obvious sign that the dwarf had accepted her answer, which was a pleasant surprise, seeing as it was the truth. His introduction made her suddenly realize that she had missed out on one bit of manners when explaining herself, something that would be rememdied just as soon as she could. His statement of reason for being out in these parts lead her to become quite the bit curious though, as she hadn't come across any outward signs of wrong doings through her travels, yet she hadn't been truly looking for any. In fact, she had been so tangled up in her own thoughts, that she realized just how unfamiliar she was with this territory in general.

"Pleasure to meet you, Sraxen," she began, once the random string of thoughts cleared from her mind, "I'm Shar'si. The Shrine of Water? No, I've not been to it specifically, though I have visited the grove of the Goddess Liara, and have spoken with her briefly. Perhaps that is where I should return when time next allows." She stopped, looking at the dwarf a bit more closely again, curious as to why he'd bring up a question such as this. He didn't quite seem the type who would be involved in magics, yet looks were often quite deceiving, so she held off from making any definite judgement.

"I do understand your discomfort, so do not worry, my new friend. I too feel it when I step within the walls of the cities, far too many people within them." She looked off into the distance from which she had come, reminded of that very thing, the city, and the library, which was what had led to this whole disaster. At least the disaster had brought about this current meeting, so not all was negative. "By your asking, I'll guess that you've been there a couple of times? Do you also seek knowledge of the elements?"

The dwarf nodded. "I seek much knowledge, but specifically, knowledge of nature and its powers. I travel quite often to Liara's temple, but the shrines I only go to every so often. My instincts tell me when it is time to go again, and I believe that time has come." He reminded himself that he had only just gotten started in his search through the grasslands, but that would have to wait. This rendezvous with the monk had not been purely coincidental and Sraxen surmised that he needed to go, now, to the temples with her. He wasn't sure what, but something was bound to happen. Perhaps after that he'd return to these lands and seek the danger he had come to quell, but perhaps that in and of itself had only been a way to get him to this meeting.

The temple of Liara had been good to Sraxen, offering him the secrets of okárash, and many other nature oriented powers. His last journey had taken him into the halls of Draco, the guardian of water, which had been his only time passing through that shrine's doors. It had immediately become a favorite of his and he had vowed to once again journey that way. He hadn't gotten around to it until now.

"Would you care to join me? I feel the need to once again visit the shrines and discover their secrets. I almost always venture out there by myself, but this time I believe I must make an exception. We certainly need to work on your control over the elements a bit more." Sraxen gave her a teasing smile, then nodded to somewhere in the distance, and reiterated his question. "Would you join me?"


((OOC: Gah! Real lameness. I'm not doing very well lately!))

Shar'si couldn't help but to chuckle, as she saw that smile, knowing this trip was meant to benefit her as much as himself. She had not thought to return to Liara's temple, an error on her part, as she had viewed learning to control the elements as something that would require training by a mage. Druid magic? An interesting thought, perhaps, that her magic was not that of a mage as it had been determined during her long time in training, but rather that aligned with the druidic origins. She'd done little reading in that regards while at the library, but this now seemed like a very possible direction to take her interests in. None the less, this visit which was coming, was needed, as she at least needed to give her apologies to the Goddess for the mess she had made.

Her eyes met those of Sraxen, and she gave the dwarf a slight nod. "I do believe that would be best for all parties involved - you, me and nature herself." She returned the earlier smile with a quick wink of her own, giving hint to the fact that she had caught his humor and agreed with it. The dwarf seemed to shed his more shy side, which Shar'si assumed was due to learning that she wasn't some great monster. That picture alone made her chuckle slight more, as she could imagine just how one would have come to the conclusion that she was one. It's not often that one comes upon a creature with bark for skin who has singed the earth, then soaked it and has random bits of lightning just zipping about. What a disaster the day had been, yet some gain had been made in it, after all was said and done.

She opted to keep the leather chestpiece she had been wearing earlier remain in her pack, along with the four books of magic. The slight breeze which now floated across the grassland was quite welcome as it rustled across the linens which made up her outfit. Her eyes looked off into the distance, the softest of sighs parting from her lips as she realized they had some way to travel before they would reach Liara's temple. Another glance to Sraxen reminded her that she would not be making this journey alone though, so the distance suddenly felt that much the less. "I suppose we should be on our way, if we plan to reach Liara's domain before the moon is high in the sky. I have no wish to find out what creatures might come out to play at night." Perhaps that gave hint to her shortcoming, a fear of her magic after the afternoon's events. Whatever danger came to them would have to be dealt with in a more traditional way, with her melee skills, and those were best used against the human sort.