( Urianger maintains his scholarly image well, however he can't deny a special fondness of gossip and shopping. He's eager to find out what manner of trinkets and tomes the city of Hayle has to offer: perhaps he could purchase a small, decorative something for his affectionately cluttered kitchen — which has been doubling as a workspace since his return from the wretched hole that was the pit. A souvenir for Himeka too, perhaps, and one for Thancred if something suitable catches his eye—

And some robes for the gala, he reminds himself, lest he have to attend in his more comfortable day wear.

He stands out in the boutique he finds that caters to formal occasionas. At 6'7" he is at least a head taller (often more) than the majority of the other patrons, and finding something that will fit his long frame proves ... difficult, to say the least. He ends up settling on a garment in black and another in a deep, eye-catching red; he's never worn red before — not like this, anyway — and his hesitance is plain on his features as he glances around for a second opinion. )

A moment of thy time, if I may.

( He curls one hand beneath his chin as he gestures to the elegant robes — gowns? — hanging before him. )

Dost thou prefer the black, or the red?

( Urianger has heard tell of Hayle — has read about it in a handful of tomes borrowed from Castle Thorne's library — but to witness the crystalline city in person? The descriptions could never do it justice. In many ways the place reminds him of the Pixie Kingdom of Il Mheg: the crystal structures, the glint of rainbows as light catches the whimsical architecture ...

Ah, how he misses his small, winged friends. Perhaps he ought to devote more time to their faithful recreation within the depths of his Horizon — however those are thoughts for another time.

While he'd assumed the University would be his major location of interest he finds himself drawn in by pervasive sense of culture that permeates every ilm of the place, and so when he wakes on his first full day in the city he spends the morning simply taking in the sights. By the afternoon, however, he's managed to identify what it is that he'd like to see the most. It's hard to ignore the fact that there seems to be some kind of city-wide exhibition in full swing, mostly to do with Abracan tarot and rare decks that speak to the history of the art.

Perhaps it's unsurprising that said exhibits become Urianger's top priority. He can be found throught the city moving from exhibit to exhibit with the eye of a scholar in his element, however he'll occasionally pause for a cup of tea or spot of light refreshment to mull over which deck he'd like to purchase. )

( To contribute to an event in such a manner is a new experience for Urianger. The Elezen has always preferred to opt for a more "behind the scenes" role in such matters: he leaves the attention-grabbing showmanship to those better suited to such roles, however following the disaster in the pit he's of a mind to try and finds ways to enjoy what time he has here between bouts of study. As such, when the opportunity to offer something towards the evening arose, Urianger signed himself up to put on a demonstration for the Summoned of Abraxas.

He looks every inch the ageless sorcerer in his sweeping crimson gown, the starlight bouncing off the adornments in his hair, but in truth? There isn't a great deal of arcane complexity to the show he puts on. The magicks he pulls on are celestial, yes, drawn from the astral bodies of Abraxas's plane of existence and channelled through the Arcanum, but he knows all too well the dangers of letting divinination magic run rampant among those who aren't prepared for it. Instead his offering is more of a glittering light show cum seminar on the Heavens, however those who approach him in search of a horoscope?

Well. Urianger allows one of his newer abilities to reach out to such persons, sensing their emotions* and offering an appropriate word or two to help them with their evening. )

( It might come as a surprise to those who know him that Urianger is a very good dancer. Might, as the Elezen of Eorzea are known for their natural limber grace, however his proclivity towards sequestering himself away under a hood with a pile of books could very have successfully thrown his companions off the scent. There's also the fact that he's made a habit of turning down any kind of activity that might draw attention to himself—

But that was then, and this is now. Urianger has come close enough to death enough times of late that he's willing to try and experience things he might have otherwise missed — to let himself live a little, as a dear friend of his once hoped he might.

The deep red silk of his gown swirls around his body as the dance comes to an end, the tips of long, pointed ears flushed ever so slightly pink with pleasure as he offers a bow of the head to his partner. With their turn about the dancefloor finished they move on with a bow and a warm smile, leaving him to stand there awkwardly for a moment before falling back into his usual habits.

Urianger can't remember the last time he danced, nor the last time he truly enjoyed doing so, and while he drifts to the edge of the ballroom he can't help but find himself looking for another partner! )

( Or let's go with something else! Feel free to DM me to hash something out, hit up my plotting post here, or ping me on Plurk at scry to discuss ideas more in depth!

*If you'd like to do something with Urianger's horoscopes / sense emotion trick please leave a little ooc note in your tag, just letting me know what they're feeling etc. so I can come up with something pertinent for him to advise! Otherwise I will just assume they're just watching the pretty sparkles and listening to him talk about the stars 8) )