When Koda came back from his hunt he peeked in on Lyria and she was in the middle of mixing something. He leaned against the wall and watched as she moved without much strain. She was concentrating very hard and never noticed Koda watching her. Curiosity got the best of him, and he got closer to see what she was doing.
He saw a lot of chipped purple pieces beside her and when he looked over, she was turning a handle that was mixing the sand and the purple river rocks. How was she doing that?
"If you're curious just ask, I won't hide anything from my savior," Lyria utters without turning to look at him.
"I'm just observing right now. You can learn a lot from just watching."
"Yes, I'm aware. I do a lot more watching than you think. Part of studying and collecting data is observing. Sometimes I have to wait for days to get the results of something and on worse days, do a project repeatedly till I get better results. So, it takes a lot of patience. I've been doing these kinds of studies since I was around five and am still learning and exploring new things."
"Knowing there's still something new I have yet to discover only makes me want to dig for more. It excites me and keeps me on my feet. But the best feeling is when others are able to use what I uncover. Passing down MY knowledge makes all the pains and aches worth it." Lyria finally looks up at Koda with a bright smile. The entire time she spoke you can hear the enthusiasm in her voice. This is her passion and Koda will get to watch her firsthand.
"I don't believe I've ever heard a female who is so passionate about something like you are Lyria. But what are you trying to achieve by doing all this?"
"Females are weak. I want to be able to take care of myself. I've only heard the whispers around the valley about all the terrors that can happen. I want to be ready for when I finally decide to leave the valley."
"After thinking about it, I want a partner. Someone I know I can lean on and who will support me, but I also want to be there for my mates as well. I want to be something more to them than just their babymaker. I want them to find comfort in my arms as much as they would between my legs. When they get hurt, I want them to come to me and let me help them or when they have something on their mind. I want to be there with an open mind and listen to them, so they can come to me with no fear. I want a respectful relationship." Lyria's eyes widened as if she just realized she was babbling her thoughts out. Koda's eyes never left Lyria's as he let every single word sink deep into his memory.
Lyria lowers her head embarrassed. "Sorry. I didn't mean to say all that. Besides, that's a hard dream to accomplish."
"Why are you apologizing? I thought it was very insightful." Koda sounds like he wants to laugh. Lyria's face goes a deeper red in greater embarrassment.
"I would like to say I think it's great, your way of thinking and yes it really sounds too good to be true."
Lyria looks up a little, curious as to what else he'd say.
"You'll have to find someone who's also open-minded and start by communicating. From what I see, the females run everything and the males keep to themselves but are also secretly fighting with each other. You'll have to put in more effort if you want it to work your way. Also, how many spouses do you plan on having?" Koda heard Lyria saying 'them' a lot and couldn't help but ask.
"Five." Lyria gets straight to the answer with no hesitation, it caught Koda off guard. She went back to turning the sand and rocks.
"What?" The word came out a whisper, not intending to be said aloud, but Lyria heard anyways.
"Guess you wouldn't know but here in the valley it's a village law that every female needs to have at least five spouses, so I'll only have five." She explained.
"I thought you were leaving to do things your own way," Koda smirked, feeling better with her reply.
"Well, yes that's true. Guess I'm still stuck on the laws of the village for now. I hope things will change when I am on my own, but I won't know till it happens."
"You know, priests often travel to other temples to broaden their knowledge. What if you come with me to Feline City and study at our temple for a bit then say you want to travel for your studies as a healer?"
Lyria looked back at Koda with intense eyes, "Really, can I really go with you? Do you really think they'll let me go with you? I can leave this valley just like that?" She spoke quickly.
"Huh...now you act like a child, it's amusing." Koda thought out loud again. It's just too easy to speak his mind with her.
Lyria tried to get serious but just doesn't have it in her to do so.
"Just because I get excited doesn't mean it's childish." She tried to defend herself.
"True but you made the cutest face just then." Koda kept teasing her.