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1200 Hours
Astonie
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"A big... picture." Makia said in her broken Estuan. The Human man beside her laughed.
"Tattoo... but it is a type of picture, yes." He continued with his work. Makia was lying face down on the man' wooden eating table, the only hard, flat surface in the house that was high enough for him to sit next to and work on Makia's back. She was bare chested, her breasts flattened under her weight on the table. The wood had warmed to her body heat by now, and so the only remaining uncomfortable aspect of it was the rough surface on her soft skin. This feeling, though, was easily ignored when the needles of ink were quickly puncturing her skin.
Taris was a fun Human, Makia thought. He was one of the few permanent residences of Anostie. He mainly worked in supplying wooden goods to the traveling Wicks that passed through, mainly the Black Hand tribe that journeyed to the little campground more regularly than the other tribes. Makia had known Taris then for many years, and had been coming to him for tattoos for just as many. He was not the best tattooist Makia had seen, for sure. But it was a little hobby he seemed to enjoy, and Makia enjoyed his company as well. She did not mind filling in the tiny spaces of white skin left on her with the little drawings of the simple Human.
Because of his close dealings with the Wicks, Taris knew the Tek language very well, however his first language, like most Humans, was Estuan. Makia knew little Estuan. Her tribe had taught her the broken words so she was able to communicate with other races such as Humans and Galdori when they came across them in their travels. But Tek was the language the Wicks spoke, and so over the years her Estuan was rarely used.
Makia was soon headed to the Wick Festival in Surwood Isle, like she and her tribe, along with most Wicks around the Kingdom, did every year. But Makia had changing plans soon after, and while her tribe was not aware quite yet of such plans, she had decided upon them, and needed to take some action pertaining to them.
She knew that soon, she would be in the company of mainly humans, rather than Wicks, depending on where she ended up in the world after leaving her tribe later this season. The Wick Festival would be a celebration not only of her race and culture, but of the life she led with the Black Hand Tribe. They were her family and while it hurt to know that she would be leaving them, she was hopeful that she would find her place in the world soon after.
Part of preparing for such a life, Makia knew the Estuan language would be more important to her than ever. She knew her chance to learn was limited, as life on Surwood Isle would be exclusively Tek, so this month of Intas was extremely important. Taris was helpful here, and he agreed to help Makia with her goal, as well as give her another picture.