A man sat by the waters edge listening to the soft break of minuscule waves onto the shore. He was drow, a race of the elves secluded to the darkness where they grew their resentment for the realms around them. His skin was dark, a purple/black with white hair streaked with a light grey color. The man’s body was well built especially in the arms and betrayed his life style of living with nature relying on your strength and endurance to survive. It was a calm and uneventful day up till now. The wind was a light breeze enough to just tussle your hair and keep the temperature mild in the bright afternoon. The late afternoon moved by with fish jumping at minuscule bugs on the surface of the lake for food, a small number of snakes bathing in the rays of light warming on rocks that littered the beachy side the man sat at, and wild animals every once and a while peeking out of the tree line and taking a drink from the cool, cold waters of the lake.

This man was Vol and he sat by the lake upon a large boulder on a short stretch of shoreline. He wore essentially normal clothing of one completely living off of the land: a shirt obviously made of some kind of deer or elk, long brown leather pants made from the same sort of material, leather boots with twine looking lacing, and a mediumly sized backpack made of a black fur. His short ash bow and quiver of arrows leaned against the rock as Vol thought this place of solitude safe and not easily find by the eyes of mortals. The way to get to this small beach was quite hard and grueling to reach but very worthwhile for a quiet afternoon by the waters in solitude.

If he had the skill to fish, he would have thought of fishing at present, but alas with the resent of civilization he had no where to learn the ability to capture such a fine food source. For the past years of his life in the wilderness, Vol has been keeping alive with game hunted by his bow and fruits found off trees around the large forest which was decent enough for him for now. Plus, living in the forest, it is hard to come across gold. Money was scarce and kept for future uses for when he visits small towns for short periods of time to renew his supplies and weapons.

Kyaera smiled as sunlight fell down around her and a light breeze danced with her blonde curls. Her sword hung in it's sheath at her waist, and a slight line of sweat had formed on her forehead. Her calfs burned from the long walk to "her spot" as she liked to call it. On beautiful days like today it had always been hard for her to resist the trek to her favorite part of the lake. Where the light was plenty, and she could sing in peace. She rounded the last bend of the path, and she began the final steps to the small beach, humming her favorite ballad sweetly. She turned her head to the left and was completely startled to see someone else there. Apparently this was someone else's spot too. She wondered if he heard her humming. Most likely he had, she fought the blush creeping up her neck.

The sound of humming behind Vol had alerted him to the presence of another being and readily turned around his ash bow in hand. An arrow made from the wood of an ancient tree, remarkably similar to the ash, tipped with a metal tip and a raven's wing feather at the end lay notched in the bow. His breath shortened to steady the aim of his shot as he tapped into his skill of marksmanship long practiced for centuries.

As the woman came into view Vol hesitated. He did not recognise whether she was a threat to him or just a traveler who new their way through the forest he had called home for the past few summers. He kept the bow trained on the lass and wrinkled his brow in confusion of what he should do.

If she draws a blade or responds hostilly, she will not make even one more step on this earth alive. He finally decided to himself noticing her blade resting at her side.

Her eyes opened wide in a flash of fire as he held his arrow on her. Her first reaction was to rip her sword from its sheath, but she realized that would give him perfect justification to shoot his arrow, and most likely kill her. She held up her hands, showing they were empty.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to disrupt your peace."

Her green eyes focused on his, hoping that he would be able to tell she wasn't any threat. At the moment she wished that her cape wasn't tied securly over her wings, because if he shot there wouldn't be time for her to rip it off and take off into the air. If he shot, she would surely die.

Vol assessed the situation in a few short seconds and decided quickly that she was just visitor and no threat. He lowered his bow slowly and released the strain on the taunt cord which if let go would have projected the missle into the woman's chest. Now pointing at that ground and the arrow just lightly nestled on the cord, the bows' new position was to show no hostility, yet if she did try something Vol just had to draw back and lift the bow.

Kyaera noted the position of his bow, so she stood where she was. "I... I didn't know anyone else knew about this place." She let the wind play with her blonde curls. "It's so far back in here..." She looked over at him again, raising an eyebrow. "How did you find it?" Kyaera asked, wondering who he was, and why he was here. She imagined that he had just come to enjoy the peace like she often had.

"I thought the same m'lady," Vol responded to her question. "I found this place in my search for a place of solitude to calm the mind and witness the beauty of the nature in these lands. How have you come across this place?"

Vol hopped down off of the top of the boulder he had been standing on with his bow in hand. He replaced the bow to its spot leaning against the massive rock and the arrow back among its breathren in a black leather quiver also leaning against the rough surface. Vol remained standing and enjoyed the cool breeze that played through the forest and tossled his hair slightly. It would be sunset soon and then the coming of darkness to bring the chill of the night air. He would have to return to his camp soon. With encounter he probably wouldn't have enought time to find game for the evening and would have to settle for dried meats and fruit again. But none of that mattered. He hadn't been in the presence of another humanoid in a long while and was interested in finding out much information if it was possible. He was also quite curious about this woman who had found his spot of meditation easily that most mortals would have thought the trail to impossible.

"Oh I have my ways of finding things." She said looking out over the calm water again. The truth was she was somewhat embarrassed to admit that she had wings. Yes she had flown over the place when she discovered it, but every other time she had come she had used her own two legs because she loved the physical exercise of the difficult path.

Noting that he had set his bow down, she unbuckled her heavy sheath from her belt, and let it hit the sand with a soft thud.

"Isn't the weather beautiful out here?" She tilted her face up letting it run calming fingers through her long hair.

"It is.." He turned sideways to veiw the lake and all of its beauty. Vol had always loved this spot and came as often as he could to experience all of the wonder in nature and the beauty it radiated. His eyes followed the path of a bird flying high and rythmicly over the waters it's wings beating every few heartbeats keeping it aloft in the sky.

Kyaera saw him look up, she tilted her head and looked at the bird. It almost made her wish she was in the sky next to it. She watched it glide across the wind, cutting through it, trying to get where ever it wanted to go. She looked over at the Elven. "How did you find this place?" She asked keeping her eyes on him, just in case. She still felt somewhat uncertain about whether or not she could trust him.

"My feet drew me to this place. I was hunting a doe one afternoon and stumbled upon this place. The sun was falling and the beauty gripped my heart. This is one of the reasons I have been here so long."

He warmed up to the woman enjoying the small social interaction he had not had in months. His eyes drifted away from scene and met her's. Vol broke the connection heartlessly and examined his surroundings in case this was some sort of trick. He knew the hearts of mankind and they always were trying tread on others lives for profit of their own. In these lands drow were very rare and almost a legend to the children of this place. His immortality and ancient culture was a joke and a show to some and this is the hatred that burned in his heart. Ever since his homeland was destroyed from the ravaging army of men that thru fear of the unknown of his people.

He glanced at her but his eyes ripped away startling her. She watched as something in his face seemed to harden.

"Did I say something wrong?"

She asked, her brow furrowed in concern. What had she said to make him change? She started at his profile not knowing what she had done wrong. It was easy to guess that he completely didn't trust her. It was possible that he even thought she wanted to do him harm, but she didn't.

"I... if you want me to leave, I'll go." She said quietly.

"No no.. I do not mind.. You may stay here as long as you wish." He turned and resumed his position on the boulder he was sitting on earlier. Vol cleared his mind and pushed away the fury leaving a hardened expression on his face letting none enter his mind. If he were to be captured and tortured, so be it. His life was to end sometime and as soon as one understood this they were apart of nature. Most think of the life just life. But in fact nature is life and death, not just one or the other. With life there is death, and with death there is the beginning of new life.

She looked over at him and furrowed her brow in frustration. Fine, if he didn't want to talk so be it. She walked slowly toward the water's edge, and slipped off her boots. She stepped forward an inch or two, and let the water wash over her bare toes.

Kyaera reached up her hands and untied the strings on her cloak, letting it billow to the ground following the movement of the wind. She stretched her arms high above her head and crouched down, letting her hands run through the cool water

As the wind caught her wings, she stood up quickly in a moment of panic and reached for her cloak. She'd forgot that the Elven didn't know she was half-angel. Too late now, he surely had seen her wings. She glanced over at him with her piercing green eyes.

Kiara was walking around the woods, just admiring the beuty of nature. She did that a lot. Much more than sneaking around cities. Here she could pack up her uncomfortable cloak and just walk around. Her swords were thrust through a sash on her hip, being disregarded.
She heard talking up ahead suddenly, and peering through the foliage saw the shimmer of a lake and a couple figures.
she got closer and kneeld down near the edge. She recognized Kyaera, but not the dark one. Shrugging, she guessed if he was good enough for Kyaera, he was a good person.
she had just spread her wings when Kiara emerged from the woods, hands behind her back, walking carefree. suddenly Kyaera whirled around, sword in hand. Kiara immediatly put her hands on her blades, and noticed she was looking at the dark one, thus Kiara adjusted her aim a litte.
"Um...am I interupting something?" Kiara asked.