eachdraidh | one | voice | seelie & unseelie

Entry tags:

one | voice | seelie & unseelie

It's been a few days since we arrived, hasn't it? That's right, I was wondering how many of us have gotten nice and cozy in our new homes! But it's a reeeal shame for the less adventurous. After all, setting foot outside with all this magic flying around seems a little scary, don't you all think?

[Kano gives a small laugh.] Ah, but staying safe inside is real dull, too! So, so, until my friends pick me up, let's play a small game, okay? The rules are veeeeeery simple. I'll give you my name and two facts about my world. You'll give me yours and we'll both try to figure out who's lying.

[He chose to leave it open to both sides--after all, looking at a broader sample wouldn't hurt much.]

I'll even start off, just to make it easy. My name's Maru! I come from a place that's always summer--and crawling with monsters!

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Me? Maybe. But I lived in the city, where it isn't an immediate concern for most of us. [That, at least, was a truth.]

My last summer was a long summer -- [ thoughtful. ] But not unending; it certainly has ended, now.

Long, huh? How long was it?

Hmm. Ten years? Yes. Ten.

[ she barely remembers the last winter before this one, after all. ]

Ten? That's... [He remembers that he shouldn't act surprised by it, so he backtracks quickly.] ... an awfully short time. Ah, but I think it's nicer that way, to have the seasons change up every now and then.

[ the nicer the summer -- the harsher the winter. or so the stories went. she bites her lip and thinks of something kinder to say. ]

Have you ever seen winter, though?

... sometimes. In books and television, sure. I always thought to myself, 'Ah, it's such a pretty sight. I'd like play in the snow once in a while.'

[He'll give her a bit of truth to go with his lie.] Winter seems more like my season than summer.

The snow is beautiful -- [ she allows, and some soft affection suffuses her voice. ] And it always feels fresh.

[A second of quiet. Then:]

Is winter a favorite season of yours, too?

It's...[ her silence betrays a non-verbal panic. like she's caught between two answers. maybe even three. it's hard, really. remembering that she doesn't have to be alayne stone any longer.

she's free to be sansa. if she wishes. ] Winter is inevitable -- for some of us, at least. We should do our best to embrace it.

[ winter is coming. ]

[Despite the curious pause, Kano doesn't pursue it. The answer to the question, after all, doesn't matter to him. Though, the way she answered it...]

I see. That's a rather fatalistic way to view it.

[ oh. that's bad, isn't it? she huffs a sigh and reconsiders her stance. she doesn't want to appear fatalistic. she also doesn't want to come out loud and clear that her family name has as good as built itself around the season. ]

I do like winter. I like falling back in the snow and making snow-dragons.

[He laughs a little.] Snow-dragons? Wow, but those sound impressive! Snowmen just aren't good enough, are they?

They take their time to make, but they're worth it. Even though they only last until the next snowfall.

I see, I see... well, if I ever see snow, a fort's what I would build first.

Perhaps winter comes here, as well. You may see it yet. [ ... ] Not that I wish for you to be separated from your home for so long.

[He laughs a little at that.] This place isn't as bad as people are making it out to be. Well, so far, at least.

A little vacation never hurt anyone.

A...vacation?

I guess that's too carefree of a word. 'Taking a leave' might be a better way to put it.

Leave from what? Is your life very busy -- [ a pause as she tries to remember what he'd introduced himself by ] -- Maru?

Maru... yup, that's right! Though, I don't remember your name, miss.

[He won't elaborate it to a stranger, certainly not a public network where Kido or Mary could stumble upon this. If they picked up that something had been wrong back home...

It's better to play the fool.] And you could say that. I was always running aaall over the place. I rarely got a break. It was horrible.

Alayne. [ she plays her own sort of fool -- though she uses her real name in face-to-face interactions, she is not so keen to announce it on the lockets. ] Alayne Stone.

That sure is an easy name to remember. You mind if I just call you Stone, then?

[ a soft hum of disappointment. she would mind; she'd mind very much. for stone is not a family name -- it's something else entirely. ]

I'm only one of many, many Stones. [ careful. she doesn't want to be so bold as to actually request that it not be used. ]

[The reply makes him laugh.] I see, I see. Then I'll stick to Alayne! It's a pleasure to meet you.