It was a nice little town. Far nicer than where she lived, that was for sure— it was more than just the amount of work that had gone into keeping the area clean and orderly, swept free of snow and alive with the colors of springtime flowers, though that certainly played a role. It was in the history of the place. As she walked through the streets of Pines’ Isle, she could almost begin to imagine all the years it had stood, the seasons of stoic existence, each building holding an unstated grandeur. An ancientness that she could see in the age of the building style, but more than that.
It was evident in every part of the town. The streets were paved with flagstones that must have at one point fit together pristinely, yet now— by age and repairs and so many different things over the years, had sunk in some places and been pushed up in others, cracking and giving way for little weeds pushing up between the cracks. That was with what was no doubt a great deal of care from the townsfolk— the age of something, to get in such a state despite constant maintenance.
The buildings were in an old style, built foremost for functionality in a world so distinct from the one they now lived in, outliving their creators by so many eons— unless one of them had become a cultivator. It was entirely possible— she liked to imagine that the Bloody Saffron sect was impartial in who it chose to join them, but there was no way that the wealthy townsfolk who lived here didn’t have it easier than the people of the 32nd precinct. Their slanted roofs, high-arched eaves, the way each building came together with perfect precision…
She smiled, softly. It wasn’t her purpose to come gawk at the old architecture, but passing bamboo groves and little shrines, and small restaurants, and all the various trappings of civilization, still standing despite the long years, she couldn’t not. There was something uniquely beautiful about the connection of it all.
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She’d have to bring Avyr here one day, if she could. It was just a nice place. Maybe over summer, when they had a little bit free? Unless they were too busy studying for university, which was… probably, if she wasn’t deluding herself—
Then, she was there.
She checked her dataslate and glanced up at the street sign, engraved into a little metal post stuck against the wall at the intersection, then back at the building in front of her. The address checked out. It was a nice little manor— or townhouse? Probably more towards a townhouse, but she couldn’t help but call it a manor in her mind. It was so nice compared to anything in the 32nd Precinct. Constructed of a rich wood and the same smooth stone as the islands beneath them, it stood imposingly over the street— unremarkable alongside the other buildings beside it, but nice all the same.
A small grove of bamboo across the street cast long shadows over the front of the house, turning and swaying with the wind. A small shrine tucked away beneath the bamboo stalks only added to the atmosphere, a nondescript pavilion shading it from the vicissitudes of the weather. It didn’t lack the trappings of modern life entirely; a few cars dotted the road’s edge, parked and silent; a pay phone leaned against a wall even further down, but ignoring them…A faintly floral scent hung on the still air, sheltered from the wind by the tall buildings on either side of the way. It was calm.
A subdued and subtle but none the less for it magnificent beauty. Taking a deep breath, she pressed her eyes shut for a split second and then— nothing ventured, nothing gained. She stepped forward, ascending two steps to the front door, and knocked loudly.
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