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pastxlscorp · 6 months ago

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Palia Character Impressions (pt.2)

I wasn't expecting my last Palia post to attract the fandom! I actually have played hours of it since then but because of college haven't had the time to get to writing another post! Thankfully I just finished my finals, so I'm back to being chronically online. Hope you all enjoy :)

Einar

A lot of people asked me about my thoughts on Einar, which was super surprising! I honestly didn't have many thoughts on him when I first started playing Palia. His dialogue was not very engaging to me. After HOURS (and I mean hours) of playing AND the most recent Ancient ruins that got added to the main storyline, I see why he is so well loved! He is such a fucking cutie! I find how much he enjoys the beauty of the world he is around so sweet, especially trying to understand the culture of the humans and engage with them in it. The recent story quest was sooooooo good at characterizing him.

*Spoilers*

In the most recent ruins added to the game, we meet another Galdur called the Gardener. His setup is so dystopian, I fucking adored it. Essentially, The Gardener is an AI of sorts that is able to control all Galdurs because he created them. That is his Oneness. He was abandoned by his human and was rarely acknowledged as a sentient being, thus he cannot understand the purpose of life if not to fulfill ones Oneness. When first meeting them, Gardener reveals that Einar is malfunctioning. I initially thought it was something serious, but the Gardener considers Einar a malfunction because he has more than one Oneness. He thinks Einar must be suffering from a lack of fulfillment and purpose and thus tries to reset his system. He continues to refer to Einar as "The Carpenter" (also calls him the "vertically gifted" one which I thought was fucking hilarious), which heavily implies Einar's oneness was something related to construction and he likely was a builder robot. I find that really wholesome compared to the Einar we know now, someone who finds fulfillment in fishing, something so far from his original Oneness. The Gardener also confirms that Einar likely has so many Onenesses because of his relationships with the humans he's met along the way, which put Einar in a whole new light for me. I didn't find my interactions with Einar anything special but now knowing that he does think fondly of the humans he is friends with really shows that his dry demeanor does have a lot of sweetness and thoughts behind it. Especially taking useless items to him, like carrots (that I always gift him) and using them as decor. I wouldn't romance Einar personally, but I can see why anyone would. Total cutie, and easily one of my favorite NPCS now.

Hekla

HEKLA MY BELOVED!! I love she. She became one of my favorites early on when I first started playing Palia. She is just so cute! She is so loving and kind and her adoration for Jina is so sweet. *Somewhat spoilers* I thought her lore was really depressing and it's somewhat angsty when you realize she latched on to Jina because she failed her prior child. It's even more angsty when you do her friendship quests and find out she is aware her attachment to Jina initially started because of her instinct to find a new Oneness. She's such a mom with her awkwardness sometimes and lack of awareness of social cues. I thought her friendship with Einar was always cute since she confirms she plays mental chess with him, but the recent quest shows that they really do respect each other in a high regard. They have somewhat of a familial relationship, almost like brother and sister. I think having Hekla be so spherical is a really nice contrast to her character. She is big like a shield, providing protection but also comfort and companionship-- like the whole idea around loving someone who can give "bear hugs."

Tamala

I love her design. I actually did not know Tamala was a NPC until I began engaging with Hassian and found out they were ex-lovers. She gave me witch vibes and I was right, not disappointed since they nailed that perfectly with her design (or at least an alchemist of sorts). She's a flirt and my first impression was honestly "Wow, I know why so many people love her. She's a milf." That changed when I found out she is hundreds of years old, using magic to rejuvenate herself. Makes sense since she does give off Mother Gothel vibes! Not only did she ignore all of Hassian's letters but she also laughs about it in the player's face. I feel even more bad for Hassian after learning this since Sifuu is implied to be somewhat of a neglectful mother and his other mom died. Poor dude already has mommy issues and gets groomed by a witch (I think it was also implied they had been intimate, considering Hassian wanted to marry her). I wonder if Hassian was always so closed in and it was encouraged by his heartbreak with Tamala, or if he became reclusive because of her. Very interesting background characterization, but this bitch is a predator since Hassian is most likely in his early or late 20s. Aside from her very obvious character flaws, I do love the choice of having a morally incorrect character. Most of the other villagers warm up to you, and even Eshe I would mark in the morally grey category. I also love the detail that most of the village is aware of her relationship with Hassian and doesn't fuck with her for what she did, or they just don't fuck with her period. Imagine being practically immortal and spending each century or so being hated by everyone.

Najuma

MY DAUGHTER! I love Najuma she's basically my kid. The parental figure you become to her has me weak in the heart every time she comes to you for help. I felt so bad when she comes to your housing plot after getting into a fight with her dad in one of her friendship quests. She even apologizes, not being sure you would kick her out or be bothered by her presence. She heavily confides in the player and even Hodari acknowledges this. When you try and talk to him about banning Najuma from the mines, he's firm on his answer and appreciates you looking out for her but that won't change his mind. I really wanna make a separate post on what NPCS would have a crush on the player despite not being romanced and Hodari is absolutely up there. ANYWAYS back to Najuma. I love how socially awkward she is too, really does a good job characterizing that she's just a teenager. I didn't even notice this until a friend who plays Palia pointed it out, but the fact she lost her leg in the explosion makes sense as to why there is such a big maturity gap between her and Auni. Auni has a good chunk of angst (which I will soon discuss) but he is certainly more on the carefree and energetic side compared to Najuma. Her intelligence is off the charts and makes sense considering she was hands-on working with both her father and mother. Her relationship with Auni is adorable, and I love how he looks up to Najuma. She's got the whole "Ahh you're so annoying but you can stay" dynamic with him and she clearly tries to act like she's annoyed by his energetic behavior with the player despite clearly hanging out with Auni enough to know a lot about him. Auni even has one of his friendship quests about Gardenia's, who he learned about from Najuma and wanted you to verify if it was true or not since she likes messing with him. Her bond with Zeki too was fairly surprising, and I like how Najuma is essentially an apprentice for him. He does not patronize her because she is a kid, however he does acknowledge that she has grown up too fast because of her experiences and is softer on her compared to the other villagers.

Auni

Last one for this post! Auni was always adorable to me, but his quests got him to be one of my favorite NPCS! I actually thought he was around the same age as Najuma because he has some pretty heavy inner turmoil for his age. He has a whole quest about wanting to run away because he feels so distant from his older brother, Nai'O. I absolutely adore their brotherly bond and Nai'O after this quest continuously mentions that's worried about Auni or mentions he appreciates you looking out for him. Nai'O (my impression of him has changed, I mind redo my initial impressions later on after I've written by impressions on everyone) is a super hard-worker and can't say no to people and frequently overworks himself (ex. that one bakery festival with his mom and the concert with Kenyatta). He has already confirmed his path as a farmer. His family is dirt-broke poor and frequently is behind on their taxes, which makes sense why Auni feels distant from him. Not to mention Nai'O is also dating Kenyatta, where some of his free time does seem to go. In addition to a less-than satisfactory relationship with his brother, Auni also is already having an identity crisis. He has an obsession with magic and is instantly enamored by the player upon meeting them because he thinks humans are all magical. His dream is to join the Order when he's older, but that would mean straying from his Path as a farmer. We already know what happens to villagers that stray from their path-- Look at Reth! He was not good at his path and went with something else and despite being good at it, he still receives a lot of judgment and shame. Then you have the angst with going along with your path, like with Jel. He is the only son in his family and all of his sisters are successful, creating a rivalry and tension between them all. Not to mention, his mom is still working as a high-end tailor present day. He has not been accepted by his mother and has been feeling the pressure since he was young, even going as far to steal one of his sister's designs. Despite having an obvious passion for tailoring, it makes sense why he's so melancholic. Imagine having this angst at Auni's age, especially seeing that his family is struggling and this Path is leading them into the ground. Not only does he have to acknowledge that this Path is not successful for his family currently, but that abandoning this path means it will die out (especially with the implications that Nai'O does not really wanna do this for the rest of his life). Aside from all that turmoil, his child-like innocence and his love for insects is so adorable. He admires Najuma (platonically or romantically as a little school-boy crush, who knows) and I love how he learns a lot from her. His relationship with Hassian too is also super adorable, since they seem to play cards every day. I was super confused when Auni tells you that Hassian is mad at you and then Hassian denies it-- for a good bit I couldn't tell if Auni had misread the situation or Hassian had gotten vulnerable and wasn't expecting Auni to tattle. In either interpretation, he clearly trusts Auni and I think that makes his whole situation with Tamala even more tragic. He was young and naive, and likely a lot more social-able before she broke his heart. I would say Auni is my son but my player would get jumped by Delilah and Badruu, so he's my surrogate son for the time being.

#palia #palia game #palia einar #palia hekla #palia tamala #palia najuma #palia auni #einar #tamala #najuma #auni #hekla #palia mmo #palia open beta

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caleris-library · 1 month ago

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It Starts With H

You can also read also on AO3!

Summary: Reth was on his way to deliver a “cake” in Bahari Bay when he stumbles upon a bittersweet love letter to “T.” Who else could it be other than his dear sister, Tish? Well, whoever this person is better prove themselves if they want to get back with her. There’s no other way to determine it except by investigating all the villagers whose names starts with “H.”

Author's Note: This may possibly be out of character for most, if not all, of the characters that show up in this fic. I do hope that you will still enjoy this!

What a coincidence their names both start with T.

Can’t blame Reth for accidentally messing it up. There were only a few people he knows their names that start with T and one of them is his sister. A love letter? Who would it be for if it weren’t to his sister? If he wasn’t the most wanted person, then that title would’ve gone to Tish. There was nothing to not love about her. She was the village’s sweetheart.

Just as there were only a few people he knows their names that start with T, there were only a few people he knows their names that start with an H. But, who the person writing the letter was more obvious than anything. It was an open secret.

It was Hodari.

Jel’s face falls flat at that conclusion. “You couldn’t be anything more than wrong,” he says, voice dragging out the last word.

It was a warm, busy evening, despite the season getting colder as if shifts from summer to fall. There were preparations being made with the Maji Market, furniture being made for the Watcher, the humans’ upcoming Acceptance Ceremony... A lot to do. Reth was busy enough already having to make food for literally all three events.

Yet, here he is.

The Tailor was small and quiet shop, fitting for the lanky melancholic man that works the place. Reth always makes his way after his shift to Jel’s store. All he has is three hours to spend time with Tish, his little sister, and Jel, his little sister’s best friend. However, it was only the two of them today.

Tish was working overtime at her shop for the Watcher. The materials needed were hard to come by. From what Reth remembered about Tish’s rambling, they required palium ore.

And, Hodari is a miner.

“How could I be wrong?” Reth asks flabbergasted. “If it’s not Hodari, who could it be?”

Because, without a doubt, it was certainly meant towards Tish. Who wouldn’t want Tish? Well, next to the furniture was the library. And, guess who stands in front of the library.

Reth gently smacks his palm on the table. “Hekla!” But that doesn’t sound right.

Jel rolls his eyes and chuckles.

“Then, who could it be?!”

At the same time, both Reth and Jel lean over the table to look at the letter. Reth found it while making a delivery in Bahari Bay. The words were sickeningly sweet — Reth is sure that Sweet Tooth would eat this up if he were to show them. However, he can’t reach out for their help right now as they were busy.

Reth huffs a little and slides the paper towards Jel while he rests his head on his palm. Jel takes the paper in between two of his fingers and rereads it again, over and over, through his tinted lens (how can he read through that?).

“How about you ask Tish?” Jel suggests. He leans on the table with his other hand and swings his other hand with the paper in it. Everything about him just exudes elegance. “She’ll tell us whenever she’s ready. It is her letter after all.”

Jel was right. Whatever happened between Tish and her secret partner — ex-secret partner — is between them. There was probably, obviously, a reason she kept it a secret. Even though the thought of his little sister keeping a secret from him hurts a little, Reth knows that he has more secrets that he has never told her before either.

How something like ours was never meant to last. Did Tish say that to them? Was it something about her health? Was she getting worse? Is that why they both broke up? Is that why Tish was keeping it a secret?

Clearly, whoever wrote this letter to her cares about her. And, whoever they are, Tish must’ve really trusted them to tell them about their health first before her own brother. Reth would do anything for her — even if it meant going in debt to the cartel. Still, Reth wants to see himself if the person Tish broken up with was really a good person. If they would do anything for her, they gotta prove themselves they could do more than him.

It was nearing 8 pm. Reth stands up from his seat, some of the paper falls off the table, and stretches his arms. “Well, looks like my time is running short,” he says. “I think I’m gonna stop by Tish’s before I head back to the Tavern. I have to make sure she gets her dinner.”

“You’re gonna ask her?” Jel asks lightheartedly, offering back the letter.

Reth takes the letter off his hands and slides it in his apron pocket. “Nope,” he answers, popping the ‘p.’ “Like you said, this is Tish’s business.”

Jel raises a brow at that statement. “And, what does that mean?”

“Nothing you should worry about.” Reth winks. “Don’t tell Tish about this. If she stops by later, I was helping you come up with ideas.” He waves as he departed from the store.

Jel sighs and pushes his glasses up his nose. His eyes wanders to the floor and spot the fallen sheets of paper. As he picks them up, he realizes they were sketches for his new clothing line and he gasps. “Oh, right. I need to talk to Hassian about the fur.”

Jel quickly gathers all the paper up and places them on his desk neatly. There was a small closed box where Reth was sitting at, taped with words “Fragile! Zeki’s Special Cake Delivery! Keep Refrigerated.”

“Oh dear, did he forget to take this?”

Well, he’ll just put it in his fridge until Reth comes back. It would be awhile until Reth is available and he doesn’t want the cake to spoil.

Very rarely does Reth and Tish have a full day together.

Tish doesn’t know how Reth did it, but she assumes that he got a human (Sweet Tooth, he calls them) to do his work. Nothing wrong with that. It’s fine to slack off for one day or two. Despite what the other villagers may think of Reth, she knows that Reth works hard. She could never blame him for getting some help. Tish is grateful that he has a friend, maybe more, he can rely on.

But, it was a very strange day.

It was early when the two of them set off from their house. The morning was chilly. After all, it was very important to get some clean fresh air. Kilima Village had that rural essence that a city can’t achieve. It was a quiet village yet it was noisy in it’s own way. Everyone pretty much knows everyone. Mostly.

They made their way straight to the Mirror Pond Ruins. The plan was to have a picnic first thing in the morning. Leafhopper Hills was usually a nice place to have one — lots of land and grass, a good amount of trees, and a nice view of the beach. Reth suggested that they should try a new scenery.

That wasn’t the strange part though.

It was when he invited Jina and Hekla over to their picnic.

“Are there any dishes I can make with mushrooms?” Reth asks casually. He’s sitting criss cross applesauce while holding a bowl of his world’s famous lettuce soup. “I’m trying to expand my menu and Sweet Tooth complains about having too much mushrooms.”

Jina lights up and leans forward. “I know one that fits right in your expertise!” she answers excitedly, but she coughs a bit as she regains her composure. “Have you heard of cream of mushroom soup? It’s a simple recipe.”

Tish doesn’t mind the company. In fact, she considers herself and Jina to be good friends. She often goes to Jina to ask her about the ruins for some craft ideas and it’s fun learning new stuff. Old human civilization had some creative choices. Thinking about it, maybe she has some sort of magnet that pulls Water-type personalities towards her.

“Oh, right, Hekla, didn’t we discover what brightshrooms could do?” Jina asks, facing towards her Galdur partner.

Hekla’s head bobs and tilts before answering, “Brightshrooms get their glow from absorbing flow. Because of this, brightshrooms have some healing properties.”

In the corner of Tish’s eye, Reth glances at Tish then back at Hekla. His face was slightly scrunched. He had one hand rubbing his chin while another on his bowl of soup. In front of him was a small notepad. Tish remembers him writing on it earlier when Jina shared the recipe. She leans in a bit. There were some doodles that looked like Hekla and... was that Hodari?

Reth places the bowl of soup down, on top of the notepad. Gosh darn it. “So, basically, you’re saying is that we can make an immortality potion out of that,” he jokes and Tish giggles.

“The flow intake is too little to cause any change when consumed,” Hekla finishes. “Most of the flow is used to make it glow, so when it is cooked, the flow is transferred somewhere else. Flow cannot be destroyed.” Her head sinks back into her body. “The only thing it adds is an umami flavor, as humans describe it.”

“It would be really cool if someone figures out how to make medicine out of that.” Tish claps her hands together and smiles brightly. “Maybe Kenyatta knows more about that! When I visited her at the City Hall, she suggested that I put some heat root when I got injured while I was crafting.”

Jina nods her head. “Brightshrooms have a lot of alchemical purposes and...”

And, the entire time, it was about mushrooms. Tish had a lot of fun conversing with Jina and Hekla. It wasn’t every day she talked with them when they were always on some sort of adventure together. Just whenever she leaves her store and sees them at the library does she give them a small chat. Maybe suggest a few books on architecture or such. It was a nice experience.

It was just strange. Reth’s a social guy, but he wouldn’t try to get interruptions during their hangout. Even though he invited Jina and Hekla, he was overall quiet with the exceptions of a few jokes. It was mainly her and Jina talking with Hekla making some more commentary.

After Jina and Hekla left to head to the temple, Reth was writing something in his notepad before packing all the stuff up. He sighs contently, brushing his hands off after putting all the bowls into a backpack. “That was fun. Maybe Jina and Hekla will come around more often at the Tavern once I put that recipe in the menu. What’s your opinion on them?”

“Well... Jina’s a good friend and I would like to know more about Hekla.”

Reth nods his head quicky and stares at Tish expectantly.

Tish tilts her head. “We’re not gonna stay around here a bit more?” she asks. Typically, they would stay in one spot and catch up with each other since it’s not every day the see each other despite being family, until it was the end of the day or until they were busy. Regardless, she helped carefully place the bigger pots in another bag.

“Nope,” Reth answers as he takes the picnic blanket. “I had another idea planned. We’re gonna go to Bahari Bay.”

“Bahari Bay?” Tish squints her eyes as she picks up the basket. “Why?”

“Heard from a certain Sweet Tooth you were eyeing some Palium Ore to make the furniture for the Watcher. So, I thought, maybe we should go mining together!”

“Mining.” Tish slowly nods her head and squints her eyes. “Reth, uhm,” how does one say this kindly, “we don’t have pickaxes.”

Reth clicks his tongue and points a finger gun at her. “I already asked some human friends to lend me some of their old pickaxes. Had to mend it a little since it was getting worn out. It’s a great chance to go sightseeing and get a little bit more exercise.” He mimics a quick run. “Don’t worry. I’ll do all the work.”

For some reason, Tish was convinced.

Najuma’s breakfast was interrupted when her dad unexpectedly came back with the village’s cook and carpenter following after him. Her mouth was opened, the spoon in her hand halfway into her mouth. She couldn’t even take her first bite. Her dad stops at the table where she was eating her fried eggs and diced tomatoes and says, “These folks have some worn down picks. I’m gonna head back to the workshop and grab them some better ones. You don’t mind talking to them, right?”

Yes, she does very mind it, but she doesn’t say that out loud. Najuma didn’t say anything as her dad already left off to head to their workshop. Well, there he goes.

Fortunately, Tish was good at making small talk. Sure, it just the regular ol’ “the weather is lovely here” type of small talk, but Najuma admires Tish for being so friendly and welcoming. She’s, like, one of the few people who always greet them and check out what they have whenever they are in town.

It wasn’t long until Hodari comes back with some two picks and his own. “Now, considering that I have never seen you two ever hold a pick, do you folks know where to mine?” he asks.

Najuma sighs in relief that it wasn’t very long that she had to keep a conversation up.

“Nope,” Reth answers, popping the ‘p.’ “Just kinda figured, as long as we hit a rock, it would give us something, right? That’s what Sweet Tooth’s tells me at least.”

In other words, they have no idea what they are doing at all.

Najuma recognizes the opportunity and stands up from her seat and exclaims, “I can show them around Bahari Bay!” This is her chance to check out the mines.

“No can do,” Hodari immediately denies.

But, those two don’t even know what they’re doing! she wanted to yell, but that would be embarrassing to argue with her dad in front of someone. She certainly doesn’t want to drag them into it either.

Tish raises a hand and suggests, “Maybe, she can come with us?”

Reth nods his head. “You’ll be with us too, aren’t you?” he asks, glancing at the three picks. “I figured you would show us a spot with that question.”

Hodari glances at the two siblings before he sighs. He didn’t plan on taking the two into any dangerous mining spots, so it would also be safe for Najuma to also come along. Plus, as long as he is with them, he can keep an eye out on Najuma.

He looks at Najuma. Her eyes were sparkling with hope. She already knew the answer after the first sigh.

“As long as you stay outside the area,” he grumbles, crossing his arms. “I don’t want you to be getting into any accidents.”

They were around Hideaway Bluffs, it’s not a cave but it’s a safe place to mine. There were always ores around the cliffs so it’s no wonder why her dad picked this place out. Najuma kicks her prosthetic leg as she watches Hodari teach Tish how to hold a pickaxe. Her dad swings the pickaxe at the ore, then tells Tish to copy after him. Reth was a bit in the back and watched the two closely.

What’s strange though was him suspiciously inching closer each time they hit the ore.

“Do you need something?” Najuma asks hesitantly.

Reth pulled out a notebook with a pen in his hand and asked in a hushed tone, “Say, Najuma, do you know anything about Hodari and Tish?”

“Do I know anything about my dad... and Tish?” Najuma asked back flabbergasted. She squints her eyes. A question worded like that could be misinterpreted in such a way. “Are you trying to imply something here? And,” her eyes dart to the notebook, “and, what’s with the notebook?”

“It’s a book of notes,” Reth answers plainly.

He wasn’t wrong there.

Najuma fidgets around with her hands. What else more can she say? There’s still that first question that needs to be answered but the only answer she has was that she’s only seen her dad and Tish only have small talk. She respects Tish. The young woman has always made an effort to welcome everyone.

“Well, she would make a great... business partner?” Najuma answers hesitantly. “Though, I think she wouldn’t be as interested since it’s more... mechanical stuff. She has great ideas though.” Her hands try to grasp at something. Being around the mines for the first time in a long while, she feels empty without a pick in her hands. “May I ask why are you asking?”

Reth pulls out a sheet of paper and answers, “There was a letter I found with no names except T and H.” He passes the paper to Najuma. At least her hands are less empty. She doesn’t know what to do with them. “I was wondering if you know anything about it.”

Najuma skims through the letter. The letter was so romantic and so... sad. She’s glad it wasn’t advice on like “do you think I wrote this letter good” or “how should I respond to this?” She was never good with her words, so giving emotional advice really wasn’t her forte. Especially when it comes to the sappy stuff.

Najuma replies slowly, “You think... my dad and Tish were dating at some point?” So, that’s the whole reason why they’re here in Bahari Bay. And, Tish doesn’t know anything about this.

Reth nods his head dumbfoundedly.

She giggles a bit at the idea. “I think you got the wrong people. My dad can’t write words like that. Plus, they really are nothing more than acquaintances, like everyone else.” Najuma passes the letter back to Reth. “Are you sure, though, that it’s to Tish?”

“Positively,” Reth answers and folds the letter back in his pocket. “There’s no one else who’s name that I know that starts with a T. Well, maybe a few. But, it’s most definitely Tish.”

Najuma wasn’t sure what made Reth so confident, but she was convinced that it could really be Tish with the way he declared it. It never crossed her mind that maybe it could be the other two people that lived in Bahari Bay besides her and her dad.

“Do you know anyone else’s name that starts with H—”

Their short conversation ends when Tish finally manages to mine out an iron ore. “Look, Reth! I got sapphire! This is Jel’s starstone!” she cheers. “He’s gonna be so happy to see this.”

Reth smiles brightly. “That’s great!”

Najuma’s mouth agapes. “Do you guys know how rare that is?!”

They both were running up to her, Hodari yelling in the background, “Be careful!” to Najuma, as the previous topic was long forgotten.

It was nearing the end of the day. The skies were a pretty red-orange with some clouds in the sky. As they were heading back to Kilima Village, there were humans using their gliders and jumping off carelessly off the cliffs. Surprisingly, Tish was still pretty energetic compared to Reth and was carrying all their treasures that they earned today. Then again, she probably has carried heavier stuff than Reth ever had.

Tish was humming happily, her hands behind her back as she carried a small but heavy satchel of ores. Even Najuma said that they were pretty lucky today to be finding so much starstones. That’s all Tish’s luck, honestly.

Reth sighs tiredly, swinging his shoulder around to ease the pain.

“Today was nice, wasn’t it?” Tish cheers. “I’m so excited to use these ores. I can just feel the inspiration flowing right now.”

Reth laughs. “What do you plan on making out of them?” he asks.

“Well, for Jel, I was thinking with the sapphire I got, maybe a chair that has the jewel at the top...” Tish talks about all the ideas she could make. “..with the quartz I got for Najuma. Then, with this citrine, I think it would be nice to make a bracelet for you.” They stopped at the front of her store. She takes a small breath and glances at Reth. “You know, despite how strange today was, I had lots of fun.”

Reth scrunches his face. “Strange?! How was I acting strange today?” he asks dumbfoundedly.

“Well, for one, we went to a picnic—”

“We always have picnics when we hangout! Was it the change of scenery?”

“Yeah, no, yeah, but you invited Jina and Hekla to sit with us!” Tish answers quickly. “I had no problem hanging out with them. The more, the merrier after all. Then, we went mining which was a very, very outlandish idea.” She fiddles with her fingers as she was carrying her satchel. Her voice goes more quiet as she says, “It makes me worried, you know? It felt like you were checking out a bucket list with me. Trying to get me close to Hekla ‘cause she used to be a caretaker. Trying to mine because maybe that’s something that you always wanted to try before you... You’re not gonna disappear on me, are you?” At the end of her question, her voice shakes a little.

When their parents disappeared, Tish was really young where it was hard for her to remember their voices. Despite that, she was still affected by their disappearance. She only had Reth to rely on. Her shelter, her clothes, her meals, her medicine. As her older brother, Reth did everything, sacrificed everything for her to grow up well. He deviated from his path in order to get money and food on the table. Reth pretty much raised her.

“I’m not gonna disappear, I promise,” he says gently. “It’s just...”

This is going to sound stupid.

“There was this letter I found at Bahari Bay. To T, Love H.” Reth sucks in a deep break. “I thought it was meant for you and I tried to figure out who it was from.”

Tish furrows her brows. “What type of letter?”

Reth pulls out the letter from his pocket and unfolds it before he hands it to Tish.

“Oh my dragon, this is so sweet!” Tish exclaims. “Oh, I hope it works out for them, whoever they are. This is so romantic... But, this isn’t for me, you know. I would tell you if I was courting someone.” Tish lightly punches Reth on the shoulder. “I tell you and Jel everything! You guys are the closest family I have. Did you think I was dating Hekla or Hodari?”

Reth looks away. “No...?”

Tish laughs. “Of course not, silly!” She returns the letter back to Reth. “I think you should return it back to where you found it. I’m sure someone has put it there for that person to read it. Maybe it was their meeting spot, or something.”

“Yeah, you’re right,” Reth replies as he takes back the letter. “I probably should go do it now while I still have my day off.”

Tish does a shooing motion with her hand. “Go, go! Stay safe, Reth! I had fun today!”

Reth waves back and makes sure that Tish entered Jel’s store before he walks all the way back to Bahari Bay again.

Reth was in a bad situation.

A very bad, bad, bad situation.

Maybe what Tish was worried about earlier, him disappearing, might come true.

Reth was walking back to Bahari Bay and accidentally dropped the letter. It so happened to fall in front of a certain plumehound. As he was about to pick it up, someone’s shoes were in front of him.

Hassian sharply glares at him as he snatches the paper out of Reth’s hands. “Where the hell did you get this from?!” he asks angrily. The paper crinkles in his tight grip. “You didn’t read this, did you?”

Well, what’s the right answer to this? Yes, how else would he figure out the names, then Hassian gets angry at him for reading it. No, he’s never read it, then Hassian gets angry at him for lying. Then, Reth will get—

Will get what? Punched, slapped, choked? Reth knows Hassian isn’t like that.

Reth swallows dryly and as he stood up straight. He knows what the right answer is. “I... I did read your letter and I’m sorry.” He rubs the back of his neck and kicks his foot. “I found it in the ground at Bahari Bay. I didn’t realize it was you who wrote the letter.”

Hassian was still staring at him, eyebrows furrowed. Tau, which also starts with a T, was standing between them, his tail tucked between his legs as he worriedly looks at his partner.

Reth takes a deep breath. “Listen, I’m not going to question who’s it for or anything about it. I just want you to know that I don’t have any bad intentions with it.”

“... Did anyone else saw it?” Hassian asks, voice low and deep.

Reth shakes his head immediately, pauses, then nods. “Only three people. Jel, Najuma, and Tish. They don’t know that it was you though and I was only asking for help to figure out who it belonged to.” He’s definitely going to leave out the part where he thought it was meant for Tish, before he learned that it wasn’t meant for Tish. “I was planning on returning it back to where I found it since I figured that whoever wrote it, or you, have purposefully left it there or something...”

Imagine if he learnt that it was Hassian before Tish told him it wasn’t for her — he could only imagine how many ways it could’ve went and how all those ways will result in embarrassment. Reth is grateful the world didn’t set him up for that. How Reth didn’t think it was Hassian in the first place however was one heck of a wonder though. It’s an open secret about Hassian’s interest in romance stories, so it’s no wonder his writing is on par of one.

“I apologize for raising my voice,” Hassian calmly says, resorting back to his usual stance. He coughs before he stands up straight and crosses his arms. “It’s... a sensitive issue for me. I appreciate that you will not bother me further about it. Thank you for returning it to me. I will take my leave now.” He waves his hand at Tau and the two started continuing their walk back to Bahari Bay.

Well, Reth didn’t exactly returned it to him, but he didn’t have the chance to say that.

Reth steps out of his storeroom and enters the Underground. There was already a bunch of humans all surrounding themselves at the tables. One certain table has soup spilling out all over as the group were yelling at each other and laughing loudly. Some of their friends surrounded them, arms hung over each other’s shoulders as they were cheering.

Great. Now, he’s gotta stay longer after his shift to clean up the mess.

Reth ties his apron around his waist as he makes his way to the bar. As he enters the hallway, a door creaks open. Zeki steps out of the office and adjusts his suit. His four ears perks up as he spot the familiar business associate.

“Hey, kid. I haven’t seen you all day!” the ginger cat exclaims with a sharp smile that closes his eyes. It turns into a threatening grimace when he asks, “Have you finished your little cake delivery to Tamala, yet?”

Right. The package. The “cake delivery.” The whole reason why he was in Bahari Bay the first place yesterday. Reth groans, sliding a hand down his face. “I’m really sorry, Zeki. You see I was already delivering the package to Tamala when—”

Reth pauses.

Tamala... T... Bahari.

Oh.

Author's Note: There are were some things I wanted to include and fix with this fic, but it's been so long that I have wrote something properly that I feel a little rusty. I appreciate constructive criticism. I still hope that you enjoyed this fic!

#palia #palia fanfic #palia reth #palia tish #palia hekla #palia jina #palia hodari #palia najuma #palia hassian #palia zeki

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