Staring at the sea.

Noah couldn't decide which he liked more about beaches on cold days like this - the stark contrast of snow-crusted sands against the crashing waves, or the fact that everyone else was inside sipping on some hot tea or some other winter beverage meant for warming the spirit or whatever. He had been wandering around for a half hour or so, and he had yet to see anyone else on the beach - indeed, the winds had blown so fiercely the past few days that only a few fresh sets of footprints dotted the beach here and there.

He was following a pair of such, the maker of which seemingly skipping along, toes squishing into the sand so cold he didn't know how they could stand it. They had to be either brave or stupid, and he was betting on the latter as he couldn't see how anyone would be furthering any cause by dancing barefoot on a freezing cold beach.

He looked back at his own footprints, laughing quietly at how odd they looked - one deep impression, one light, painful one, and a small hole poked into the ground next to it, left by his cane. If anyone happened to come across them before the wind, what would they think? He laughed again, turning and continuing along the beach, still following the other track of footprints. They'd think that a cripple of some sort was walking along the beach, of course. Nothing mysterious or thought provoking about simple footprints, at least not to anyone sane. He pulled up the collar of his coat with his right hand, wishing he had brought a scarf so he didn't have to look so stalkerish, long black trench coat and a dark red beanie his sister had knitted for him as a goodbye gift.

After another few minutes of silent limping, he paused, taking off his hat and letting the wind whip his hair around in front of his eyes. His foot was starting to ache, and the wind was doing its work on the footprints anyway. At the pace he was going, they would be erased before he could go much further. Besides, he was afraid there would be someone making the footprints, someone he would have to talk to and ruin the tiny mystery they provided. He stabbed his cane into the ground deep enough that it stayed upright, dropping down against an imposing black and white speckled stone that provided solace from the wind. He blew on his fingers to keep them warm; digging his boots into the sand although he knew it would mean endless hours of smacking the bottoms to get it all out. "S'a good day." He announced matter-of-factly to a lone seagull for some reason still hanging around, smiling at the truth to his words and turning back to the sea.


ooc: Sorry for the long post >_< Open to anyone cares to join

Solace leaned against the base of a cliff, her head thrown back, her eyes closed. Silence, something she daily strived for, was broken by the constant crash of waves against the sandy shore. But this noise, this sound of nature's phenomenon, soothed her deep inside, bringing her mind to a serene state. Her arms, which hung idly at her sides, began to swing back and forth, one arm catching on some plants that grew in the packed dirt.

She was dressed in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, her top covered by a light blue windbreaker. Her feet, which were now bare, dug a little cave for the toes to search for the lasting warmth. Fingers deftly clawed at her nest of hair, impatiently brushing away the loose strands that tickled her nose and chin.

A foreign sound reached her ears, something she hadn't been expecting: the presence of others. Cracking one eyelid open, her green pupil swiveling around, it landed on a limping figure that seemed to take joy in the image of his footprints marking the sand. A lazy smile crawled up her cheeks and she closed her eyes again. If she didn't bother him, he wouldn't bother her.

She grew restless as seconds ticked by, and Argentum, the silver snake, slithered away amongst some seaweed.

" 'Tis beautiful, no?" Her voice, rougher than that of other females, floated across the distance between her and the mystery boy.

Noah was surprised by the voice, wondering how he could have missed the girl - was it a girl? - sitting a short distance from him. Her clothing didn't exactly blend in with the rocks, and he supposed it was simple carelessness that he had failed to notice her, his attention so focused on something as trivial as marks in the sand. Without even thinking about it, his eyes darted down to her feet, but they were hidden in the sand and he decided he wouldn't want to know anyway.

He brushed back his hair, roughly shoving the hat back on and scanning the beach quickly for anyone else she might be talking to before looking back. "If you like that sort of thing." He nodded, pulling his cane out of the sand with a jerk and digging tiny holes in the sand with it. "And i do." He turned away, silent for a few more minutes before becoming curious and tilting his head to see the girl again, tucked away from his view normally by an outcropping. "Not many people come out here, day like this." He half asked, half announced. If she wanted any more to do with his business, she'd answer him. If not, he was perfectly fine with simply sitting, staring at the waves.

She perused his face as he looked at her and replied. Amongst all the males she had been, the one who stood in front of her now seemed the most reclusive, quiet. And she liked quiet. She liked this. Leaning down to pick the pair of sandals, she stretched back up and started walking towards him. She shivered at the first contact of cold sand, but quickly became used to it.

"Most people don't appreciate nature." She shrugged and stopped, leaving enough space between the two. Who knew what this person was capable of. She eyed the cane but kept silent. It wasn't her business to be nosy and ask what happened. Though curious, she diverted her attention back to his face. "Solace Amada." She gave a faint grin then turned to look out on the horizon, where air met water.

Noah slid his one free hand into the pocket of his coat, flexing the fingers of the other to keep them from stiffening. It was hard to believe in the warm dorm room that outside could be so cold, and he had forgotten to bring gloves along with him, a fact he regretted deeply. He smiled softly, nodding in agreement. "They don't understand it." He added, knowing it made him sound like a nature version of Dr. Dolittle, but not really caring.

He noticed her wary glance, remembered that at a place like this people could throw fireballs and the like - and a few would have no problem doing so, from the little he'd seen of them. He shook his head, holding his hand up and grinning softly. "Don't worry. Only things i can do, i've got to do with my hands. And i'm not about to jump ya." Not that she'd have any reason to believe him.. He kept his distance from the girl, in case she didn't.

He returned the smile, a bit fainter, noticing her bare feet and deciding that if he had to meet the maker of the footprints, it was nice to have them be from someone like her. "Noah Silvlia." He withdrew his hand from his pocket for her to shake, quickly realizing there was too much distance between them and dropping it. "Solace." He frowned slightly, looking her up and down before nodding. "It fits you well."

"Don't worry. Only things i can do, i've got to do with my hands. And i'm not about to jump ya."

She chuckled and her smile grew wider. She was liking him already. Clapsing her hands behind her back, she nodded at the acknowledgment of his name. "Hi Noah." It came out surprisiningly bright, something she hadn't intentionally wanted. Wincing, she gave an embarrased cough and turned away. "You think?" Everyone she had met before had taken immediate humor with her name, ridiculing her parents for having come up with such a strange and unheard of name. "Thanks." She turned back to him and smiled.

Looking down to his hands, curiosity overcame her. Bluntly, though spoken carefully, she said, "So what can you do?"

Noah watched her, giving an unsure crinkling of the fingers in place of a wave when she greeted him.

"You think?"

"Wouldn't bother saying it if i didn't." Wait, wasn't that a hypothetical question? He sighed, leaning against the cliff to better take the weight off his foot.

"What can i do?" Noah frowned, blushing lightly at the simplicity of his 'powers'. "Nothing fancy. There's no magical fire sprouting from my fingers, i can't fly.. You can't even see anything i do." He shrugged, doubting she would really care. "I can heal, for starters. Nothing big, but i could probably fix a broken arm, get rid of your cold.." He paused for a moment, suddenly shaking his head and waving his cane as if to make a point. "I can't heal myself, or anything. It's not like i like going around.."

He smiled, embarrassed, waving the topic away and continuing a few minutes later.

"The second one is harder to explain. It's sort of like i can see with my hands." Noah shook his head, looking out to the ocean and trying to think of a way to describe it. "If i put my hands on your head, for example, i'd get a mental picture of your strongest thoughts, feel your emotions.. It coincides with my healing ability, i guess. I can't heal something until i can see it.. For internal injuries, i'd have to touch the hurt area, see what was wrong before i could fix it." He was babbling. He didn't like to babble. He blushed, looked over at Solace again. "Sorry.. I don't normally talk so much."
He was silent for a few minutes, and then "What about you?" he questioned, eyeing her curiously. "If you don't mind my asking."

"But that's so much! Having the ability to heal is almost like giving life to someone. You can do so much." A look a respect passed over her eyes and she bowed her head. She had always longed to be able to heal, ever since the incident years ago. She would do anything to get rid of the scar that now prolonged her constant nightmares. She was about to ask about his limp but her lips instead formed an 'o'. I can't heal myself, or anything. In a small whisper, barely audible, she said, "I'm sorry..."

Shaking herself back to reality, she caught his last words. "Your hands...are great wonders." She gave a small smile, then looked down at her own hands. A sliver of metal protruded from the middle of her palm. With a concentrated look on her face and a few quick motions of her fingers, the metal had been turned into a simple band. "A token of friendship." She offered it to him and smiled. "You've probably heard of mood rings and bracelets, but I swear this one is geniune." Solace chuckled and urged him to take it.

"I have living metal inside my body, thus am able to create and manipulate any type of metal." She blushed and bowed her head again. "If I had a choice, I would've been like you, someone who could heal. I hate...I hate being useless."

Noah looked away so she wouldn't see how red his face was, remaining that way for more then a few minutes. "Well.. I'd hardly call it that. It's so weak, i can't even.." He sighed, looked back at Solace and smiled softly. "But.. Thanks."

Sorry? For what? He frowned, confused. Her voice had been so soft, he wasn't even sure if he was supposed to hear it. He started to ask her, deciding to leave it alone at the last minute and falling silent.

He limped forward, careful not to brush her hand as he took the smooth, sleek bracelet and cupped it in his hand. The metal that had come from the girl drew up her mental image when he touched it, although thankfully none of her thoughts appeared as well. He could wear it without endangering her privacy - good. He smiled, thanking her. "This is.. Amazing. Your power is amazing."

"If I had a choice, I would've been like you, someone who could heal. I hate...I hate being useless."

Noah's head jerked up from where he was still admiring the bracelet, and he frowned, confused. "That's hardly true.. Your power allows you much more practical purposes then mine.. You're able to make gifts in an instant, and i can't give you anything." He sighed, sitting down on the ground to rest his leg. "I can hardly use my powers without hurting myself, or learning things i shouldn't know.." He looked back up at Solace, forgetting for a moment that he wasn't wearing his gloves and reaching up to touch her hand comfortingly, remembering at the last minute and dropping it into the sand. "You're hardly useless."

Her face brightened tenfold when he took the bracelet. "This is.. Amazing. Your power is amazing." She clasped her hands in back of her and shook her head. "It's nothing, really."

That's hardly true.. Your power allows you much more practical purposes then mine... About to protest, she snapped her mouth closed when he said he could hardly use his powers without hurting himself. Her eyes went to his nearing hand and grew confused when he dropped it. What...why? Could he not touch her? Her memory refreshed when she remembered his ability to 'see' with this hands. Must be the reason.

"You...healing..." The words that came from her mouth were non sequiter and made no sense. Clearing her throat she tried again. "You can't heal without hurting yourself." Her eyes went down to his leg and an image of him limping down the shore filled her head. Was that why he had the limp or was it another reason? "If...could you...is that why you have a limp?" Her eyes went to his cane, then up to his face.