Northstar Vale fire in my bones quakes

the day has brought with it an inexplicable, mounting anxiety; the feeling drives her onward with no clear direction or goal beyond somehow outrunning it, or at least exhausting herself past the point of feeling. she can't remember the last time she'd had a proper meal, or a full night of sleep — but those are not her goals. they haven't been her goals for awhile now. how can the state of her frail, withering body truly matter when her mind shatters and fragments itself against every stone presented? how can she be healthy if she is not sane?
the setting sun triggers a new sort of frenzy within the girl, an anxiety rooted so deeply in her chest that she freezes the moment the sky starts to dim. no, no, no — the day is over and it's wasted, she's wasted another day, another week, another year down the drain and she'll never fix herself. self-loathing fills her lungs like thick oil until she can only manage short, shallow breaths — and then the tears start, and she realizes she's really doing this. she's really going to stand in the middle of nowhere and cry for no reason. perfect.

He had decided to stretch his legs that day, see a bit more of the area that surrounded his home. Although there was slight regret when the sun had begun to settle against the horizon. He had intended to head back by now but he was in a new place. A little lost and a lot alone.

It was on his way back home when he caught sight of her. She seemed....well, he couldn't put his paw on it. Sad? Surely for there were tears but this was no mournful weeping. At least it was not one he had ever experienced before. He-hello? He called out softly, a bit nervous.

she doesn't even notice the stranger until he calls out, and his voice startled her. the silvery girl flinches and turns a little too quickly to look at the source, tears ceasing momentarily. um, she says, staring blankly into blue eyes for a few beats. she feels too far away to answer him, as if her head has detached itself in favor of a journey toward the atmosphere.
hi, she manages after a brief, anxious silence. the shock of seeing a stranger has faded somewhat, prompting the tears to start their trek down her face once again. she turns her face away slightly, embarrassed but helpless to control the situation.

A frown etched into his features ever so slightly as the stranger turned to look away. I... The single word faded off into nothingness as he pensively considered his next words. There was plenty to say yet he could not say all of it. And he doubted there was much he could actually do for the stranger.

Are you okay? He regretted asking it the moment it escaped him and his ears pressed back against his skull. It was very obvious the stranger was not okay. He wouldn't blame them if they shooed him off for being so socially klutzy.

the stranger's silence goes unnoticed, lost as she is in a flood of renewed anxiety. now there is a witness to her meltdown, someone to watch her crumble to pieces simply because the world is so very large and she is so very alone. she must be such a broken thing, that these simple facts cut into her like glass shards; of course the world is large and she travels alone and if she cries in front of the strange man, the strange man will stare. but it hurts, it hurts, it hurts.
i don't know, she whispers, and for a moment she doesn't know why she has spoken at all. but, oh! — he'd asked her something, hadn't he? and surely she doesn't know the answer, she who is so naive and useless and frazzled by the world that she cannot —
who are you? it occurs to her that she does not know how this man got here, or where he came from; he could have risen up from the earth in front of her and she would not have noticed, she thinks. and perhaps he had — oh, he is cute, but demons always are, aren't they? she does wish she'd paid more attention to her lessons now.

"I don't know."

Oh.

Krarius was not aware of how he was supposed to respond to that. Should he leave then? Let her continue her crying without his undoubtedly annoying presence? It felt so cruel to leave her here all alone in the middle of nowhere and yet it felt even more cruel to stand and watch. Never before had Krarius been at such a crossroad. He had a rather good habit of knowing what to do and then doing it. The stranger was turning that on its head though.

I-I'm Krarius from B-Blacktail Deer Pl-Plateau. He informed the crying female in hushed tones. Perhaps if he stayed gentle and kind she wouldn't be prone to tears.

krarius. it sounds like the name of a demon, though she's never heard of anywhere called blacktail deer plateau, so she can't say for sure. her gaze lifts to krarius again, studying him quietly. his eyes are so blue, so soft. if he is a demon, she will just have to cope. oh, she whispers, quiet for a moment.
i'm ashari, she offers softly, tears beginning to dry as her focus turns to the conversation. but um, you can call me ash if you want. um... what is blacktail deer plateau? she really hopes she's not asking a stupid question, or bothering him — the last thing she wants is to make a bad impression, demon or no, and she's already gone and cried at him.