Stone Circle leynille

@Reverie only for now <3

she brought the sun girl to leynille.

the hushed stream of the creek in the cold evening might do wonders. just the sound of it could be soothing — and she hoped that would be the effect bestowed upon her guest. she had found the remains of a rabbit for a meal to give.

now, as a pair, she encouraged the gold kissed girl to lay down so that they would need not wander any further.

kvarsheim would be a safe place.

The fog lifted slowly as they traveled, and at some point Reverie became aware of the way the wolf scents gathered and thickened in this place. It made her nervous. This place was different, and the scents of the wolves she'd met before were notably absent, but what if someone else appeared to drive her away? And it was awfully close to the place she had just fled. What if they noticed her here, and came for her again? They'd already made it quite clear that she wasn't meant to be in places like this.
She walked close to Bjarna, flinching at every unexpected noise along the way to the creek. She wanted to trust the strange girl. The first friend she had ever made who wasn't her sibling too. Maybe if those wolves came back, Bjarna would be able to send them away. This place smelled like her, after all.
She settled reluctantly, hesitating to accept the gift of a partially-eaten rabbit. She couldn't quite remember the last time she had a meal, but she wasn't hungry either.
Eventually the guilty prickle of her conscience prompted her to pick at the meat. Her heart wasn't in it, though. She peered at Bjarna over the rabbit. This is Kvarsheim? She asked quietly, casting another nervous glance around.

the girl picked at the meat.

bjarna wondered if she might need medicine. perhaps she was unwell in some ways. this, too, could be treated decided the young caregiver. perhaps it was more ambitious than she should be, but her path became clearer each day.

kvarsheim, ja. her head bobbed softly as she settled into a sphinx like position. truthfully exhausted from the travelling she did these days. at least the heat no longer roasted her every moment.

bjarna heim. she explained as her blue gaze looked around briefly. it was hushed. she imagined most had settled for the evening. attending the children or finish duties before they rested. the duo would not be disturbed unless bjarna willed it.

you. she said softly with a nudging of the rabbit. fully expecting the girl to eat it all. that way bjarna could figure what else might be wrong with her. perhaps some of gunnar's stocked plants may help.

The gentle lilt of Bjarna's voice had a soothing effect. Slowly, the girl in the reverie felt more like herself. She couldn't remember the last time she fully felt like herself. It must have been before Rose died, and those memories never stayed long.
She was lucid enough to feel ashamed now, at least. She knew by the concerned expression on the other girl's face that she had done it again. It — because she could never really explain what happened, even to herself. Neither could her parents. Even her father, who could cure anything and save anyone, hadn't been able to help her.
She ducked her head in shame, furious with herself for putting this burden on a young girl. Bjarna was older than she had thought, but she was still a child. I'm sorry, She said, her ears folding slowly like wilting flowers. Bjarna had indicated that she should eat, so she did, afraid of offending her — especially when she already had every reason to be offended and... somehow, wasn't. Bjarna could have just ignored her, like her parents did, but instead she was being kind. The girl didn't want to ruin that.

bjarna did not know the words, but the girl sounded much like a soft child. once more the young nornir saw herself in the gold girl.

someone who was alone and needed somebody to pick them up, tend to them, care for them.

her mother had done the same thing for her. now bjarna passed this on to gullsystir.

she watched in silence as the girl picked at the rabbit. some part of bjarna wondered if it was not to her tastes. yet they could figure such out later as long as the girl kept eating.

softly, she gestured to the creek they laid alongside. delicately reached for the edges of it with an oversized paw. vatn. she wondered if the girl wished to learn.

She couldn't tell if Bjarna understood or not. Sometimes it seemed like she did, but not every time. And sometimes it was just ambiguous. All of it was so stressful — being in this place she understood to mean danger, unable to understand what was said to her. Unable to communicate her own thoughts. Worse, never knowing for sure how many of her words flew over Bjarna's head.
These moments of tension and uncertainty had always defined her. Before, she had been the level head; the pillar of stability in a sea of chaos. Like her father. From a young age, nothing had shocked her or made her forget herself.
Then she became this. Lost in her own head, unable or maybe just unwilling to pull herself out of it long enough to be normal. To think about someone other than herself for more than a moment. She had been so selfish, ever since Rose died. That was why she hadn't tried to go back.
She tried to focus on Bjarna. Her eyes followed the motion of the girl's paw, but it took her a few seconds to realize what she was getting at. Vatn was... creek. Or water? She would have to find out.
Vatn, She paused her reluctant meal to parrot the word, but it felt like she was pronouncing it wrong. She frowned. Vatn. That felt closer, but still not quite right. She was normally such a quick study...

she lifted up her paw, so it might hover in the air.

cold droplets fell from it. vatn the girl had said. not yet refined, but a good start. better than any had attempted so far for bjarna.

vatn. she repeated again before she allowed herself to drink from the creek for a moment. when she came away with wet muzzle, it was also with curious eyes. wondering if she could get the girl to learn more.

drekka vatn?

She was pretty sure she had it down, but then Bjarna added another gesture to the mix. It only confused her at first. Had she been wrong? Did vatn mean drink? But then another word was added, and it clicked. Drekka had to be drink — it even had a similar sound. Sort of. So vatn must mean water.
Drekka vatn, She echoed, this time with a stronger grasp on the sounds she was meant to make. Drink water. She added; now that she was certain she knew what it meant, maybe Bjarna could benefit from this lesson too. It was kind of fun, actually. Simple and lighthearted in a way she hadn't experienced in a long time. It reminded her again that the other girl was only a child.
They both were, in a way. As much as she aspired to the maturity that her age should have lent her, there was a part of her that hadn't aged a single day since Rose died. Maybe it never would.

their words met in the middle.

the girl understood, bjarna knew such a tone. so her limp tail began to thump against the earth once more. ja. her head bobbed and she could feel herself latch upon the girl emotionally. unwilling to let this one disappear.

kvarsheim, she said again. tentative. you...kvarsheim?

Ja. Was that affirmation? She wasn't used to relying so heavily on tone, but she was quickly getting the hang of it in Bjarna's company.
The next words the pale girl spoke caught her completely off-guard, however. Her, Kvarsheim? She thought of the wolves under the trees. Bjarna was asking her to be like them; attached to one piece of land, protective over it, tethered to it. And there were others here, wolves she didn't know. It seemed so weird to her. How could she just... stay in one place, with all these others she didn't know?
Home had never been so small. Home was an endless sea of grass, home was all of the rivers and all of the hills, home was the earth wherever her feet settled for the night. But that was dangerous here. Her experience with the wolves who owned the trees had taught her that. Maybe she needed to learn to be like them, in order to survive here.
She couldn't go back to The Gilded Sea, after all.
She thought for a moment. Ja, She tried out finally, and then smiled because she couldn't help it — because she felt a little silly and a little breathless and a little overjoyed. She didn't know the first thing about this way of life, and hadn't met anyone here except Bjarna. She didn't even speak the language. Who knew if they would really accept her?
It didn't matter, though. Someone wanted her, even after seeing the worst she had to offer and none of her best.

wrap and get something new? <3

she could have wept!

she felt proud and overwhelmed with it. that she had brought this golden girl to kvarsheim and she had decided she would stay. bjarna's limp tail tapped carefully at the earth behind her, unable to hide the smiley bashful look upon her face.

hvíldu þig núna.

her voice became soft encouragement now. her head dropped down onto her damp paws proper, tail lazily sweeping across the ground behind her.

Yesss! I'm hoping Reverie can bring Lestan to meet Bjarna so it will have to wait until that thread is concluded, but I will tag you in one ASAP <3

Such strange words, but they were soothing. Bjarna's delight lit her face in a way that reminded her again of Rose; she couldn't help but smile back. In that moment, the disfigured girl was almost beautiful. The initial shock of her appearance had worn off, but she still thought of her companion as someone who, like her, had experienced a life-changing event. A kind of damage that would last forever. She would have been horrified at herself, to know how wrong she was.
Instead she felt kinship. She followed Bjarna's lead, settling down to contemplate the past days and maybe doze for awhile. Real sleep never came easily, but resting was almost as good. Especially in the company of someone safe, which was something she had lacked for too long.