01 ❆

[needlebearer]

Who: Arya and YOU
Where: Around Gravity Falls
When: February 8-9th
Rating: G, though will update if this changes
Summary: Arya realises she's not in Westeros any more
The Story:

a) Forest
One minute she'd been on horseback, clinging to Sandor Clegane to stay mounted as they plodded toward the Eyrie. The next she found herself quite alone, in the middle of thick woodland. To say Arya was confused was an understatement, but she'd put that to one side for now as the relief and wariness of being on her own warred in her - she wasn't exactly sorry to be away from the Hound, but she couldn't be sure what was lurking in the trees. As if on cue a twig snaps loudly a little way away, and Arya missed having Needle at her side more than ever.

She makes her way over cautiously, expecting at worst a gang of raiders and at best a small animal she can kill and eat, and is bewildered instead to find a blond teen with the whitest teeth she's ever seen, frolicking about the forest floor like an oversized rabbit. She stares for a long moment, unsure if she's hallucinating, but then the boy locks eyes with her and gives a relaxed, friendly smile before calling to what Arya can only assume are the other members of his pack.

Soon Arya's storming through the trees at quite a speed, looking thoroughly irritated and casting looks over her shoulder to the boy band that's singing and clicking and bopping in time.

"I said stop following me!"


b) Gift Shop
When she comes across the oversized Mystery Shack, Arya darts inside and slams the door behind her, leaning back against the wall while she tries to get her breath back. As she does so, she glances around and takes in the assortment of oddities on display. A jar of eyes stare unblinkingly at her, and it takes her a moment to break her gaze from them, feeling a little unnerved. When she turns away she distracts herself with some of the other curios, turning over plastic tchotchkes in her hands, giggling as she pokes at a bobblehead and watches it wiggle about, staring in confusion at a fish nailed to the wall dressed in bright, odd clothes.

When she hears footsteps she jumps, throwing everything back on the shelf quickly, afraid she'll be accused of trying to steal them.

Comments

[villainously]

"I'm not sure why, you tell me." He can tell her posture is one of defense, and though he's an older figure he certainly does not suspect she's intent on mischief. If she was, he wouldn't exactly hold it against her... that might be the pirate in him speaking.

He knows she might not answer that, so he moves on quickly. "Killian Jones. Or Captain Hook. Whichever you like. You seem as if you're new to this place." Not the boy-bander place, but Wonderland itself. Apparently it was parr for the course for Neverland to navigate to new worlds, at least for a little while.

[needlebearer]

"Captain?" She'd felt herself let her guard down just a little, but she only connected the title to the guard - loyal Jory on the one hand, whom she'd never really had time to mourn with all the death that had come after him, and the Kingsguard looking for her on the other.

[villainously]

He could not be farther than a captain of a guard if he tried. No, he'd left that sort of life behind a long time ago, and these days he's less dastardly, he's still very much a pirate in spirit. Anti-establishment til the end, freedom first and foremost.

"Aye, of the Jolly Roger. She's... well, she's back in Wonderland, apparently." Hopefully the poor girl hadn't bloody followed them here, he'd not seen a proper place for her to port.

[needlebearer]

Arya relaxes again, looking suitably impressed. "I've never been on a boat, except a row boat across the lakes at Winterfell when they weren't frozen over." She's heard enough stories to capture her imagination, though, of pirates and sea monsters and the discovery of new lands.

It's then that she realises she still hasn't offered her own name. "I'm Arya."

[villainously]

"No affront to the lakes near Winterfell, but there's nothing akin to sailing on the ocean." Not that he's been able to sail lately, apparently he can only do metaphorical doughnuts in the parking lot before he comes back to shore. Apparently going too far out will result in death of him and his ship, so obviously he'd rather not.

"Arya. A pleasure." She's a tiny sprout of a thing but he offers a hand for a proper handshake in greeting. Being young doesn't mean much to him. One didn't need to be old to have lived a great deal.

[needlebearer]

She looks at his outstretched hand for a second before taking it, shaking firmly. "Likewise." At least, she hopes so, and that her success rate at forming lasting acquaintanceships was higher here than it had been back in Westeros.

[villainously]

Apparently there's no escaping Wonderland and people have been trapped for years, so, perhaps it could be a little bit better. To be fair he's not great at holding on to friends himself, so don't ask him. He shakes her hand and releases her shortly after.

"I'm not sure where is up in this place, but I don't suppose you've seen a woman by the name of Emma. Blonde hair. Or her boy, Henry."

[needlebearer]

Arya shakes her head, frowning a little. "The only people I've seen are a group of boys - I think they must be bards, though they sung strange music. They wouldn't stop following me, so I hid in here to get away from them."

[villainously]

Strange bards. Sounds like a nightmare. Though pirates weren't much better, when they decided to sing.

"That's all right. If they're here I'll find them in short order. And you, are you looking for someone?"

[needlebearer]

Arya hesitates, wondering if what remains of her family could be here, then shakes her head sadly. "No, no one. I just want a way out."

[villainously]

"Do you mean this place, or Wonderland entirely?" Because he can see wanting to escape both, but one holds his interest far more than the other. The place they truly need to be free of is Wonderland itself.

[needlebearer]

"Out of Wonderland, out of all of it." She waves her hands at the world outside the window to illustrate her point. "I have to get back to my own world. There are things I need to do."