allow me to paint you a picture
you're at a family gathering, the first big reunion you're old enough for people to actually treat you like a sentient being and you start actually getting to know all of the sides of your relatives' personalities, not just the kid-friendly ones
then you glance over to the corner of the room and you see a guy
you think he's your uncle but you're not really sure. you don't know is name, and as you ask around, everyone just refers to him as "THAT one" or "oh, HIM." you don't think anyone actually knows his name, but somehow he's managed to piss them all off.
you've seen him around a few times before - he always seems to show up to important events, like weddings, baby showers, family funerals, and the occasional seasonal party - but he's often in the background so you've never thought to go speak to him.
you sidle over to him and drop a little "hey...?"
as he looks up, you notice his eyes are kinda unfocused.
you also notice his hair (which you thought was black) has a dye which is running slightly, and it's actually... white? he doesn't look THAT old...?
you spy the drink in his hand and take it away to try and goad him into a conversation. he makes eye contact again, and you see such a... depth in his eyes. as if he's seen things wilder and more heartbreaking and funnier and crazier than you could EVER imagine.
he mumbles something along the lines of "a letter... how could i have expected anything else from that storming woman..."
you ask him about it, and he tells you off for prying. his business is his business.
you begin to turn around and he calls you back by name. you never introduced yourself.
he gives you a wink, and drops a nugget of metal into your hand, telling you to... eat it??? huh???
he says his work is done, and you manage to ask his name and what that nugget of metal was.
he says you can call him Ceph, and that the metal is all that's left of an old friend of his... some guy called Leras?
he then turns around and walks out the door, and he almost gets shorter as he does. you hear a slight humming coming from his shirt as he leaves the room, and he chuckles and mumbles something back to it.
those names he gave sounded very weird, and you manage to force the metal down. you go back to his spot and see a slip of paper:
Iron filings are pretty tasty by the way. See you around, do stop by Scadrial sometime and say hi to your old 'uncle'! - Hoid
who the fuck is Hoid, what the fuck is a Scadrial and why is he invading the function
