oh sunshine in an empty place ( ota )

[persequor]

Who: arya and you!!
What: arrival + wandering
Where: emerald sanctum + silverglen retreat
When: pre-kidnappings and post

a. emerald sanctum

[ for having been recently abducted to an entirely different world, arya stark is handling it remarkably well. joy had replaced her fear when she found nymeria returned to her. the direwolf is no longer a pup and had bowled her over, licking her neck and face while arya laughed and hugged her.

following the reunion, girl and wolf had taken to exploring. arya had tried climbing a tree, but the canopy was up too high and nymeria worried. after so long separated, she is loath to leave her wolf’s side. but there is plenty to see on the ground too. strange broad-leafed plants their green so dark and rich and beautiful flowers the like of which arya has never seen.

and the dragons!

she drew to a stop when she saw the first one — only for a moment before it vanished again among the green. her mouth dropped open into a perfect little o, her eyes wide and unblinking. dragons! real, living dragons!

even faced with such beasts, her fear feels like a distant thing. there are no guards and she has needle and nymeria and a thousand places to hide. she wanders in a state of half-curiosity, half-awe. giggling, she grabs a branch and swings herself back and forth. ]

b. silverglen retreat

[ she was warned of the dangers outside. still, arya awakes one morning and sets off after she and nymeria have eaten to the town. she has both her swords at her hip, needle gleaming and sharp and syrios’ heavy wooden blade, and a quiver of arrows and a bow at her back. she debated long moments whether to take a crossbow; she finally settled for the promise that she would practice with it when she returned.

on the way she practiced shooting at nearby targets. arya would grin after the arrows hit and run off to recover them. at the town, she and nymeria both got their fair share of looks, but nothing compared to how arya stared at the night elves.

they’re purple. it was all she could think and she made the mistake of voicing her observation. she apologized profusely and tried not to stare at anyone else once she was allowed in but—

they’re purple.

it has to be dye. but arya doesn’t ask. she wanders the streets, trying to keep her eyes on the houses, the shops, the wares. whenever her eyes slide over another elf, she drops them quickly to the floor. nymeria remains at her shoulder, growling at any that strays too close. ]

c. forests around silverglen retreat

[ make your own adventure! or ask me for a starter :') ]

Comments

[wilder]

Huh? - Oh! You mean the fire?

[he shrugs] Magic, I guess.

[persequor]

You know magic?

[ she does not doubt the existence of magic. disregarding the circumstances of her arrival, the presence of dragons alone means there is magic — and a lot of it — here.

but it's still incredible to her how easily people make use of it. she abandons her task to trail closer to the fire. ]

Gods above, [ she gasps under her breath. a quick laugh falls from her lips. ] What else can you do?

[wilder]

[Wow she's actually...happy he can light things on fire with his mind. That's a rather uncommong reaction. Surprise, awe, confusion- worry were the ones he was more used to]

[Oh well, he could get used to a happy reaction]

Heh...I can only do fire right now, I'm afraid. I think it's because I'm a Redsworn.

[persequor]

[ she giggles. ]

Did you get Red because of your hair?

[wilder]

[He makes an amused sound]

Maybe. There's a lot of people with red hair there.

[persequor]

[ so as not to waste any more time, arya returns to her task. she talks as she cuts. ]

They said I'm Greensworn, [ she chatters amicably. ] I can't set anything on fire.

Do you know any of them? Of the Green?

[wilder]

Greensworn, huh?

Only one, really. And I don't know her that well. I think her name's Rose?

[persequor]

[ arya nods. ]

She's—kind.

[ like the concept of it is strange. she half-expects those she has met to turn on her.

so far she has successfully avoided giving out her name. the fear that lannister guards will come after her if she were to speak it is too deeply rooted. ]

[wilder]

Yeah, she seems so.

[He's noticed the lack of name, but he doesn't remark on it just yet. He already knows her name, he's not in any rush to find out to see if this might be a problem]

Almost done with the meat?

[persequor]

[ she grabs the pieces she managed to separate and carries them toward zelos. when nymeria goes after the rest, arya doesn't stop her; she's a direwolf and growing still and she has to eat plenty.

with nothing else around, arya wipes her hands clean as well as she's able on grass. the knife too before she returns it with a quiet murmur. she sits a short distance from zelos, close enough that it doesn't seem like she's avoiding him, far enough that she can get up and run if she must. ]

Have you lived here a long time?

[wilder]

[Once she brings it over, he'll take the meat and lodge them onto sticks to put them into the fire. The knife gets set next to him. He'll wash it up later]

Not really, I got here about a month and a half ago. What about you?

[persequor]

A few days, I think? The forest is too thick. There's no sky to be seen anywhere. I tried climbing, but the trees are too high.

[wilder]

That's probably for the best. It makes it harder to be spotted by flying demons.

[Optimism, Zelos excels at it]

But welcome to this world, I guess.

[persequor]

[ arya nods again. demons here and gold-and-red cloaked bastards in king's landing. her father is imprisoned and her sister captured and her mother and brothers far, far away. she sniffs.

I'm a Stark of Winterfell, she tells herself sternly before she can start crying, and a direwolf and I will not cry. especially not in front of a stranger.

she wears a fierce look when she tilts her head up. ]

Have you fought any of them?

[wilder]

[Yeah he can't...really blame a kid for being upset about this situation. Even one that can be as pragmatic and cold as Cat once was.]

Just a few, really. Where I come from, most of them got sealed away ages ago.

[persequor]

How do you fight them?

[wilder]

Well for the lesser demons- it's the same way you fight anything else, really.

If someone has light-based magic or blessed weapons, that helps a lot. But it isn't necessary for the lesser ones.

[persequor]

[ run from the others, she understands. ]

How can you tell the difference? Between the lesser and the--others?

[wilder]

Well...for one thing, they're usually a lot bigger. And I've heard even a human can feel their power.

[He gives a shrug] Though I'll admit, I've only seen one. And it was from a distance.

[persequor]

[ she eyes him critically. ]

You're a swordsman.

[ though stated, it's framed as a question. ]

[wilder]

Uh...yeah?

So?

[persequor]

So could you fight them too before you got here?

[wilder]

If there were any around, maybe.

[Better than he could now, but he won't mention that]

[persequor]

[ arya nods. she turns her head to the fire, chewing her lip. when nymeria comes up behind her, she doesn't start. the wolf's mouth is red, but arya makes no complaint when nymeria pillows her head on the girl's lap. she catches arya's arm between her teeth. despite the ease with which she had torn into the stag, she's almost gentle with arya as she plays. arya plants a kiss to the top of the direwolf's grey head and lets her do as she will. ]

[wilder]

[He watches that scene. It seems familiar, but more watching Cat and other people with pets than himself. Though it does make him think of Curry. He imagines she's still wherever Sheena was. Hopefully, that meant she was okay]

[He's quiet for a few minutes more before he finally pulls the stag meat out of the fire]

Food's ready.