Aurora's Tears, Tigress's Peace. On the southern
border of Luminara, deep in the lush paradise
of the Felora capital of Livorian, where beautiful
vines draped lazily over stone archways and the
air was fresh with flowing water from elegant
fountains, lay a quiet sanctuary, the Livorial,
or the Tigress's Peace. It was a favored retreat
for the Felora, a place of relaxation where warm
mineral pools reflected the vibrant hues of the
sky above. The pools carried a gentle floral
scent, and the sound of trickling water mixed
with soft conversation and the occasional playful
splash. Sheerith hesitated at the entrance, her
ears flickering and eyes wide as she observed
the scene before her. Okay, nothing to be nervous
about. It's just Tigress's piece. A bathhouse.
A public one. With lots of people that I don't
know. Who are all very comfortable here. Bathing.
In the biggest bathhouse on this side of the
Aurora. nor Biggie. Sheerith had been promising
her friends she would relax in the city for weeks
now. So, where better to relax than the most
lush sanctuary in the royal city? Great, she
hissed. Just great. I can hunt down ghost wolves,
sneak attack runaway bandits, or even dominate
any game of emerald spears on the lunar shores,
but can't have one casual bath. with strangers.
She inhaled sharply and stepped inside, practically
pushing herself forward. The warm air wrapped
around her instantly. Her glowing stripes pulsed
with surprise from the humid embrace. Several
philora lounged in the rainbow -colored pools,
their bioluminescent markings softly pulsing
as they chatted, stretched or simply rested in
peaceful silence. Sheerith quickly scanned for
an unoccupied spot, trying not to make eye contact
with anyone. The problem was, the felora had
naturally striking, glowing eyes, so avoiding
eye contact was like trying to ignore fireflies
in the dark. Sheerith! Haven't seen you here before!
Sharith recognized the voice and face from someone
she had met at the beach, but never grabbed his
name. Oh, um, yeah, first time. Just felt like,
you know, soaking in... Um, staff? Join us if
you like. The water is perfect. Aye, why, sure.
Like, um, sure, you know. A small group of Flora
chuckled, their glowing stripes shining with
mirth. Sharith could feel her own markings betraying
her embarrassment, pulsing a bit brighter than
she'd like. She sighed, giving in, and carefully
stepped into the water. The warmth immediately
seeped into her muscles, and despite her awkward
entrance and overly toothy grin to the other
patrons, she couldn't help but let out a quiet
sigh of satisfaction. Okay. Yeah. Yeah. Relaxation.
Boom. Take that. I can relax. Sure. Yeah. The
other Felora and the pool were all talking amongst
themselves in soft conversation. She didn't know
how anyone could hear anyone else with everyone
shattering at once. But honestly, everyone seemed
too focused on conversation to notice her. And
that, oddly enough, helped a lot. Sheerith looked
down at her bare figure in the water. Am I sitting
cool? Ach, dumb question, Sharith. Who thinks
about sitting cool? How can one sit cool anyway?
What would that even look like? She contorted
her hips and legs underwater, stealthfully trying
to sit cool. She suddenly heard a splash and
some soft cursing. Two Felora men were arm -wrestling
on the edge of the pool. One was the acquaintance
that had waved her over in the first place. The
other was really cute. He had dark obsidian fur,
soft amethyst glowing stripes, and striking deep
blue eyes. He had just won an arm wrestling match
and was lightly laughing at his now soaked opponent.
As the acquaintance came up for air, he let out
a loud laugh and noticed Sheerith from the corner
of his eye. Hey, Sheerith! Sheerith froze in horror.
Come show us up, you got this! Sheerith bared
her full awkward grin again. Arm wrestling. Well,
I can totally do that at least. She slowly glided
her way over to What's -His -Face and the cutie.
Oh, Sheerith! This is Zorith! Zorith! Sheerith!
Zorith closed his eyes and tipped his head down
towards her. Hi, I'm Sheerith. Her eyes grew wide
from embarrassment. Zorith cocked an eyebrow
and they both let out a light -hearted laugh.
So, the beautiful being named Zorith said, I
haven't seen you around the city before. He put
his arm out for an arm wrestle. Are you always
down by the docks? He asked with a smile. Sheerith
locked her eyes onto his hand and placed hers
in his, then shifted her gaze into his eyes.
Yeah, she said, slowly putting her weight into
his arm. You can always find me on the lunar
shores. I'm training. Training, Zorith smiled,
increasing his pressure. Oh, you're a soldier.
Scout, she grunted. You? Archivist, he winced.
I'm always in the observation districts or the
three moon ring archives. Sheerith's eyes widened.
A scholar, she thought. This divine, beautiful
being. Was a nerd? She tightened her grip and
focus. No way she's losing now. Her pride felt
somehow challenged in a playful way. Zorith smoothly
let out. You should join me one day up in the
Western Observatory. You'd love the view of the
beaches from there. It's glorious. Sheerith unexpectedly
became quite flushed. Um, I don't know. The towers
aren't really for me, you know. Ha! Same with
me, oddly enough, on the beaches. I much prefer
the beautiful view from the towers. The view
from the beach is nice too, though. If you were
there, I have no doubt. Sheerith flushed and her
stripes went aglow. Zorith looked off to the
side, obviously embarrassed. Sheerith noticed
something, though. His arm was growing weaker.
She took a breath and slammed his arm into the
water with an epic splash. They all laughed as
Zorith came up for air. You let me win. No, no,
you just distracted me with beach talk. No fair,
my lady, he laughed. Would you mind showing me
the beaches sometime? Sharith's jaw almost dropped.
Um, yep, sure, totally, no big deal, you know,
um, yeah. She found herself doing the way -too
-wide -grin thing again. He laughed softly. Well,
if you ever find yourself in the Western Observatory,
we can have a rematch in the library. Deal. Totally.
Zorath climbed up out of the water, every drop
off his back making Sheerith ever more flustered.
Zorith fist -bumped Watts' face and looked Sheerith
in her eyes. I need to take my leave till we
meet again, Sheerith. He smiled. Sheerith waved
goodbye to the majestic creature making his way
out. Whats His Face laughed and followed Zorith
out waving back to Sheerith. She found herself
alone in the pool, still grinning and waving
in the general direction of her two new companions.
Wow. Wow. Okay. Nice. Sheerith sunk into the lush
water of the pool. I... I... kinda like this
place, she thought to herself. This has been
Aurora's Tears. The story continues.