Final Fantasy XIV 1. A Chance Encounter (Sarah)

**Meddling Guardians: A Chance Encounter**

Sarah walked carefully, trying very hard to look casual while roaming the streets of her new home but her focus was on the hyur that she had been sure had been following her. True she could be over suspicious at times but you didn't survive what she had lived through without being careful.

Arriving in Limsa Lominsa, she dared to feel a glimmer of hope; a fresh start. So far the people had been surprisingly friendly and she had found the Adventurer's Guild easily enough. Eager to get started, she immediately took up quests, mostly just delivery jobs, but she was eager for action and any quest would help her get better acquainted with what she hoped would become a permanent home.

It was while doing these quests that she had noticed this mysterious hyur. Sarah was having a bit of trouble understanding a rodent type creature that she had been instructed to pick up a package from. She took the package from him and stood back, mulling over the words she had heard, trying to pick out something that would resemble instructions. The hyur walked up confidently and spoke with the creature, apparently familiar with the creatures that she later would find out were called qiqirn. She had been well behind but during his interaction with the qiqirn he had looked up and looked her right in the eye. The qiqirn had continued speaking and eventually the hyur turned his attention back to the creature.

Sarah chose to move on at that moment. She had other instructions she could fulfill while trying to figure out what she was supposed to do with this package. Also, she had bigger plans. She had come to Limsa Lominsa to seek out training as a Marauder. No longer would she be a victim of what fate threw in her direction. Life had hardened her heart and now she sought out the training to hone her body to match her heart.

Along the way, she ran into a few more people who were looking for adventurers to help them deliver messages or parcels. She noticed the hyur come into the cooking guild behind her. He already seemed familiar with some of the apprentices, perhaps he was learning to be a cook himself? He had noticed her too and offered her a little smile. If someone had sent him to follow her he wasn't being subtle about it. Quickly she made her exit and headed directly for the Marauder's Guild. She would start her training immediately if possible.

She was pleased to find they had an open recruitment policy and quickly agreed to do the initial tasks they requested of her. Upon leaving, she saw the hyur speaking with the recruitment officer. She would NOT be hunted. She had come here for a fresh start. She didn't think her worth as a slave was so much they would send a bountyhunter after her but she wasn't taking the chance. Hiding herself among the crowd she waited for him to exit. She spotted him walking confidently through the crowd, hastily making his way towards a new destination. If he was searching for her it was not apparent.

Sarah chose to follow him then. She didn't want to be hunted but she would try being the hunter. She watched him comfortably interact with the people of Limsa Lominsa, asking questions and picking up parcels and documents. Many of these people seemed to be the same she had been instructed to meet. Could it be that this hyur was an adventurer as well, learning his way through the city as she had been? He had been much more familiar with the city than she and she was actually glad of having followed him since it made her quests much easier to complete.

She found herself just following and watching him for the enjoyment of it. He seemed a lighthearted fellow, interacting effortlessly with those around him. Suddenly, he stopped, alone at the center of a bridge. Sarah thought for sure that he was about to turn and catch her there. She too was alone at the start of the bridge, no one nearby, no excuse for her to be there.  
He didn't turn though. He stood there, putting his hands on his hips and tilting his head back letting the sun fall on his face. He looked relieved and perhaps just a little sad. She watched him take a deep breath, while she held her own waiting to be caught. And just like that, he snapped out of it and continued walking, disappearing behind a stone spire that led up to a place Sarah had never been.

Against her better judgment, she followed him up the spire and discovered a lovely vantage point with a statue dedicated to Llymlaen, the guardian deity of Limsa Lominsa. Near the ledge, her eyes found the hyur gazing out across the water, remnants of Bahamut's destruction littering the horizon. She stood there a while, just watching and thinking. She felt silly for coming all this way and feeling so suspicious. He was just a man, going about his life and for a short time their paths had coincided. She was about to turn and leave when he turned around, surprise widening his eyes for a moment. He quickly masked it and put a friendly smile on his face.

"I've been following you for sometime now," Sarah awkwardly blurted out, but she refused to let her embarrassment show.

He looked at her confused then laughed, "Well that makes you a very good stalker."

Then to her surprise, she laughed too. Before she knew what she was doing, she joined him out on the ledge and looked out over the water. She allowed herself a moment to enjoy being in a place where no one knew who she was. The silence went on for a while, a surprisingly comfortable silence as the both of them stood there, taking in the sea air. She heard him clear his throat and turned her head to look up at him.

"Would you like to dance?" He asked her out of nowhere.

Her first response was a definite shaking of her head no, but he just stood there his question asked in complete seriousness. She gasped when the wind tousled his hair and a faded angry scar of a dragon brand was revealed beneath on the side of his face.

"I suppose, just one," she answered quietly. It was a slow dance, to the sound of the waves lapping up on the shore so far beneath them. They held each other cautiously and formally, not even having been properly introduced yet. She watched over her shoulder concentrating on the statue of Llymlaen thinking about the oddness of what they were doing. Two strangers dancing, two survivors of slavery, stamped with the dragon, never to forget. She stopped and withdrew, suddenly very uncomfortable.

"I have to go," she said sternly, determined to extricate herself from the situation. She turned to leave abruptly.

"Thank you," he said to her back as she started to leave, "for the dance."

She hesitated then continued on.


	2. A Fresh Start (Rayen)

**Meddling Guardians: A Fresh Start**

Following a peddler onto the deck, Rayen caught a glimpse of his new home; Limsa Lominsa. After everything he escaped from, it was a sight for his sore eyes. Normally he wouldn't believe in things like fate, but escaping the slavery clutches of the Lambs of Dalamud gave him a new look on life.

Moments later the ship had docked and let the passengers out. Rayen set his first steps onto new soil and took a deep breath before walking down the pier and markets where a roegadyn guard addressed the hyuran man. The yellowjacket, as these guards were called, examined Rayen from his brown hair with red highlights down to his weathered boots. Without giving him a moment to respond that he wasn't an adventurer, the roegadyn suggested he took the elevator to the adventurer's guild to speak with the owner, and returned to his duty.

Arriving upstairs he was met with a big meeting area, with people walking in and out with leve quests or catching up with their friends around a table with some ale. A middle-aged man motioned at Rayen from behind the counter and welcomed him to the Drowning Wench, an inn with a guild for adventurers. The man introduced himself as Baderon and was well versed in what went on in this city. Baderon also enjoyed a high level of influence, something Rayen noticed when he covered for his ass by telling the passing yellowjackets Rayen was his distant relative's son from his mother's side. After that, he helped Rayen on his way to get to know his new home town with some small duties. He was hesitant to becoming an adventurer and would have settled as a dock worker, but Baderon made it seem like a great thing to do with so much enthusiasm that Rayen decided to give it go.

Stepping outside the Wench, Rayen caught his first glimpse of the entire city up close. The view was stunning under the blue sky and emerald ocean. This place looked and felt lively with freedom and opportunities. So different from the Golden Bazaar at Thanalan, where he had to endure heavy labor and beatings for the welfare of a dark organization that would sell out their slaves to the Amal'jaa whenever they felt like it. Rayen psyched himself up and set on his first duty.

After attuning to the city's aetheryte and several quests across the city, Rayen was surprised how friendly everybody was. Even the toughest marauder had a sense of decency. Looking up his quest list, his next delivery job was picking up a package from a qiqirn at the markets ward. He gulped down his orange juice and set out to meet with this rodent type creature.

When he spotted the qiqirn, a blonde hyuran woman was having an upsetting conversation with the critter. Not wanting to get between them, the qiqirn had spotted his delivery boy and waved at him. Rayen walked up with confidence and spoke with the qiqirn about his package. Silly as their talk was, Rayen had enough experience with them back home to understand their heavy accent. While the creature continued speaking, Rayen briefly looked at the woman and met with her eyes before she ran off. As she turned, Rayen caught a glimpse of a familiar brand hidden under her tuft. Touching his own dragon brand scar on his left cheek, he turned his attention back to the qiqirn who was far from finished talking.

His delivery jobs eventually led him back to the cooking guild again. During his last visit to the guild, he was taken in by the view of the bay, where all kinds of ships were docked. He could look at that for hours, but it felt crowded at the cooking guild. The receptionist of the guild was giving him a warm welcome again, and had a little conversation with him before Rayen went back to delivering more packages and documents.

After a while, he stopped in the center of a bridge. With the people of Limsa Lominsa being so nice, it was easy for him to interact with them. Putting his hands on his hips, he tilted his head backwards and felt sad. If La Noscea had one thing, it was freedom, and Rayen decided to use this freedom to find a way to help those he left behind in Thanalan.

He snapped out of it and continued walking. He had noticed a statue behind a rock pillar when he visited Fisherman's bottom and was curious to find out what that was. He met with the statue dedicated to the nation's guardian deity and a lovely vantage point overlooking the entire harbor of Limsa Lominsa and what he learned was the Mizzenmast, a huge pillar building build in the center of this city. Standing on the ledge, he briefly took in the view.

Considering his delivery break over, Rayen turned around and was surprised to find the blonde woman behind him who was about to leave. Witnessing her startled expression, he turned his to a smile.

"I've been following you for some time now," the woman blurted out.

Feeling awkward by what she said, Rayen instinctively laughed. "Well, that makes you a very good stalker."

Surprisingly she joined him in laughter as well. It wasn't for long that they found themselves standing on the ledge together, looking out over the water. Remnants of Bahamut's destruction could be found across the bay. Destruction that was now five years past, and the city had begun with a fresh start, just like Rayen himself, and possibly the woman he was with too.

Having the urge to commemorate their new beginning, Rayen cleared his throat and turned his head to look at her. "Would you like to dance?"

She shook her head, but he didn't take no for an answer and just stood there completely serious. She gasped when a gust of wind tousled their hair, revealing his own scar of the dragon brand.

"I suppose, just one," she answered quietly and took his hand.

Guided by the sound of the waves lapping up on the shore beneath them, the two strangers, survivors of slavery and forever branded, danced cautious and formal without a care for time. Rayen watched over her shoulder, wondering what brought her to this nation. The fate of women with the dragon brand was much worse than that of the men, especially for those well endowed as she was. Feeling sorry for what she had gone through, he pulled her in tighter to console her. But the moment he did, she withdrew.

"I have to go," She said sternly and turned to leave abruptly.

"Thank you for the dance," Rayen said to her back as she began to leave. For a moment she seemed to hesitate, but continued on eventually.

Rayen felt he went a little too far during that dance, but couldn't blame her for her discomfort around men. With the sun setting low, he stretched out and headed back to the Drowning Wench.


End file.
