divinity says "destiny can't be earned"

[castitas]

Who: Kate Marsh + You!
What: Kate returns to Milton from her seaside getaway to Silverpoint. Beargate happens.
When: Early June.
Where: Milton Outskirts/Wilds; Milton, various.

Content Warnings: animal death; bear attacks; supernatural ailments; mental manipulation; altered physiological states.

Comments

if I implore you, could I be your lamb? — open, post-what lies beneath / try honesty

[castitas]

— one

[ The bear has to be left behind. Of course it does, there's no way she's going to be able to lug that thing back all by herself: it's a bear. No matter how close it is to town. Hopefully the animal will remain undisturbed by any roaming predators before she has a chance to get back to it.

She's unsteady on her feet by the time she reaches town. Shaken and pale and the now unloaded flare gun still in her hand. She hit Tim, too. But she can't focus on that right now, she can't let herself. That bear— it's food.

The colour aura around is a bright and fizzling pale colours of white and yellow. She smells like flare-shell discharge and damp air and sweat. She's dazed and overwhelmed and exhausted. Merry trots at her side, tail between his legs: wary and cowed. ]

Hey, I uh— I need... help.

— two

[ When the bear's finally brought back to Milton, she heads to the Community Hall. It's only then that she really allows herself to breathe: she legit killed a bear and hit Tim. Like hit him. In the face. She's never raised her hand to anyone before but she just— she just got the maddest she'd ever been in her life, saw red and just—

she doesn't know. It's really put a damper on the whole 'coming back home' thing.

Silverpoint had been good for her, at least. But now she's— she doesn't know what happened out there in the woods.

She makes a bee-line for the fire and collapses into a nearby chair to warm herself. Merry flops down at her feet, sullen. The colours around her still remain pale of her shock and stun, but there's darker colours fading in: mournful purples and dark blues. Bringing home the bear-bacon doesn't feel at all like it's chalked up to be. ]

two

[solitarysoul]

[Levi had returned from Silverpoint before Kate did, so he's already getting back into the swing of things in Milton by then. Which includes spending a good amount of time by the fire in the hall after one of many patrols or hunting trips or whatever.

He doesn't have a colorful aura, but his skin is covered in cuts, scrapes and bruises. Nothing too bad is visible on his face/neck or hands.]

K-kate? Are you alright? Do you want me to bring you something?

[castitas]

[ She's exhausted, cold from the journey. Unsure if she's coming down from some sort of adrenaline crash or— or whatever it was that happened out there. Her hands are still shaking, but she curls them into fists to stop them.

She's slow to register Levi, not really sure how to answer. She stares at him for a long moment, taking him in. No, nothing too bad but he looks a little worse for wear, she guesses. Maybe he's been on another long trip? Or is he still tired from Silverpoint? ]

I, uh— I dunno. Um. [ She's still dazed. ] ... Are you okay?

[solitarysoul]

Huh? Oh, yeah. The bruises...they're all old. They don't hurt. They showed up after that weird dream.

[castitas]

[ Kate swallows, slow to react and stares. Her brain takes her a minute to catch up. It's not the first time she's come across this. There was an Interloper in Silverpoint who'd had something like this, too. ]

Wait, you— you mean the one with Enola? And the three stones?

[solitarysoul]

Yeah...I don't know what was up with that but that's when it happened. Its...

[He looks at a bruise on the back of his hand.]

I don't know. Weird.

[He's not sure if this or the weird glowing Kate and a few others were doing was worse.]

one

[dies_irate]

[ John happens to be gathering up pine needles for tea when he spots her, and the fact that she looks dazed and fucked up has him pausing in his work and putting bucket he'd been collecting in down... but he doesn't approach. He knows what he looks like. ]

I-I could help?

[castitas]

[ She hears the voice and turns, inhaling sharply as she voice's owner and taking a step back. Her expression frozen in a balance of exhaustion and fear at the sight of— she doesn't know. The being sounds like a man. But—

She doesn't have the energy left to scream. She doesn't have the energy to lift the flare gun in her hand — not that it would do anything, it's empty.

Her voice is hushed, shifting up in pitch. ]

Oh, God.

[ And they're offering to help?! She's lost it. She's official lost her shit. ]

[dies_irate]

John.

[ He holds up both hands, making sure to keep the one 'together' so that it looks like a hand and not a set of five tentacles coiled together. And while his mask-like face doesn't have a (visible) mouth, the eyes are all empathy. ]

I-I'm a friend of Arthur. Arthur? Have you met Arthur? O-or Noel. I'm not-

[ Beat. ]

A-are you hurt? Or just- [ A little frustrated but still not moving ] Please. Can I help you?

[castitas]

[ She doesn't know exactly what she's looking at. It's like a mask but it's real like a face and she doesn't get how a mask can be a face. Her voice doesn't manage to come down from it's higher pitch but one of the names mentioned does cause a flicker of recognition in her face. ]

You're... you're Arthur's friend? Arthur Lester? [ Arthur, who told her once there's magic and gods in his world. Although it makes her wonder: ] Are you a god?

[ Is she hurt? She... doesn't know how to answer the question. There's no blood on her, no visible injuries at least other than fingers that're growing redder from frostnip — sore and swollen from beating on the bear's downed body. ]

There— there was a bear. In the woods.

[dies_irate]

Shit.

[ Bears are serious fucking business. If there's one thing he's learned already, it's that. He almost moves forward, but he pauses, thinking to answer her before he tries to do anything. ]

Yes! Arthur Lester. I'm- [ He falters a little more. ] I was. Part of one, anyway. Here, I'm like everyone else. [ Beat. ] ...with some obvious exceptions.

[ The thing about John is that he's huge. And that means he's not so much wearing hand-me-down clothes as he's sort of draped a few sets of clothes on top of himself to make a laundry pile of an outfit that keeps him warm. He searches for a moment before he finds a sweater piece that seems large enough and he pulls it off without a thought. He'll offer it to her. ]

H-here, here! Y-you should wrap your fingers. They're getting red. That's bad. Is-

[ He glances back from where she came from. ]

Is the bear dead?

[castitas]

.... Oh. [ A little whistle of a sound, like someone still stuck in their stun who's just been told that apparently the weather's going to be wonderful tomorrow and there'll be a bake-sale in the town square. Sure, he's a god. Or was a god. Part of one? How can you be part of a god? ] Yeah. Yeah, I think that— that probably explains... um, a lot.

[ Like, she doesn't know exactly what gods are supposed to look like. But, well— some people think the Darkwalker might be a god and while he— John— he doesn't look exactly like the Darkwalker, there's— okay, yeah. He's kind of... scary...

And he's offering her a piece of sweater for her hands and Kate's stunned for a long moment before she accepts it. ]

... Thank you.

[ She follows the way he looks. ]

... Yeah. I, uh— [ She raises her hand, turns her wrist to show him the flare gun. ] Kinda just— um, in the face?

I... I left it. I can't, uh— move it?

[dies_irate]

Oh.

[ After a moment, he adds- ]

Good for you. A-about the- [ And he mimes a gun with his hand. ] I could help you move it if you want. I'm- [ the word doesn't seem descriptive enough but- ] I'm strong. Are you sure you don't need-

[ He pauses. ]

Do you think it won't be there in a couple of hours?