aterat | First 👑 Lost without Direction [Open]

Entry tags:

First 👑 Lost without Direction [Open]

Who; Princess Luna & You!!!
What; Trying to be brave.
Where; Around the city.
When; April 17th - 23rd.
Warnings; MAX CUTNESS

17th - House of Solace Orphanage

A small figure stood outside of the Orphanage with a steady frown pointed at the large building. She understood what it meant but denial crept through her little body like a snake. She wasn't an orphan. Her mother and father were alive but it didn't matter in this kingdom because her family wasn't here with her. She was alone and it was something that she wasn't able to get used to. It'd been two days since she'd first arrived and her loneliness only grew with each passing hour.

The nights were the worst. She didn't want to return to the orphanage where she was forced to try and sleep while unsettling thoughts plagued her. Perhaps she's cursed like her mother. She'd been told that this world wasn't a curse but what else could it be called.

Luna sighed softly before turning away from the Orphanage and walking down the street. When she grew hungry she'd have to return but for now, she was going to avoid the daunting building. Her shoes were a little too big, borrowed from Mono, and every few steps she tripped before regaining her footing once more.

She had no idea where to go or what to do.

20th - Nightime Storm

The nights were the worst and the sudden storm made it unbearable. Luna had hidden under her bed with a blanket over her head for the first hour but she could still hear the rumble and see the bright flashes of light through the nearby window. She cried silently making her throat ache for the voice that she'd lost. She wanted to call someone to come save her but no one could hear her cries.

She thought of her twin brother and knew that he'd have been there with her, holding her to protect her from the angry god that cried out for justice. Sole wasn't with her. It was time for her to be brave.

Luna gathered her blanket and wandered out into the rain. It was difficult to see but she'd been to Mono's home when he'd given her a pair of shoes and she was positive that she knew the way. The wind battered at her tiny form and if she'd been any taller then she would have blown away but she stood strong with her tiny fingers clinging desperately to the blanket wrapped around her shoulders.

Her steps stumbled to a stop when she spotted a figure in the distance. She couldn't make out what it was but stopped, falling to the ground as fear froze her tiny limbs.

23rd - Midday Songs

Her time in the city had been stressful and not without incident but there were calm moments too. In between the hours she found herself looking up at the sky with a thoughtful gaze. Was the storm truly over or was this a lull. Luna had never liked stormy weather and the castle she'd once lived in did nothing to define the noise. It was for this reason that she'd first begun to learn how to play the harp.

The small lyre that she'd been given from Llyewelln sat on her tiny legs as she carefully plucked the cords. The notes were a little different but the strings were the same.

Luna sat on a random street corner and began to gently pluck the lullaby that her mother used to sing to her. It wasn't overly complicated and even when she fumbled she was able to recover and recall the remainder of the song. It was far from perfect and she played one of the sets twice having forgotten what had come next but it was a lovely song. If it wasn't for the frown and slow draw of her fingers it might have sounded happy.

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

Why was Llewellyn Watts-Maresh out in this ungodly weather? Dumb luck, and all of it bad, honestly. It wasn’t like he had no common-sense whatsoever (debatable at times). Bad weather meant staying indoors. It meant battening down the hatches and curling up with a nice blanket with a book to read or something to fuss over some until it was time to go meet Rhy at his job to accompany him home to make sure he made it back alright.

Unfortunately, Pretzel had needed to be let out for a moment in the downpour to do his little dog business. They couldn’t expect him to stay in till the storm was over. At least… Llewellyn had presumed the frantic pawing at the door was for when he started whining. Llewellyn donned his hat and coat and took Pretzel out into the yard, trying to stay under the shelter provided by the balcony above. Pretzel, however, made a mad-dash for the gate. The hinge holding it shut had broken off in a particularly strong gust of wind that came in with the storm and off the hound went, letting out some loud barks as if expecting Llewellyn to follow.

Eyes comically wide, he took off at a dash, calling for the dog.

The figure Luna could see in the distance was decidedly tall and wearing a familiar hat. More familiar still was the hound that was much closer, rushing up to see the little girl who had quickly become one of his favourite people.

Mono was on a little break from carrying messages around the city, his bag tucked carefully over his arm while he made his way to the market to buy some snacks to share with the other kids working with him that day. He’d had a raise recently, and he really didn’t know what else to do with the money aside from buying treats and things that might be useful. Today felt like a sharing day, and he is only a child… So. Apple turnovers for everyone!

At least that was the plan until he heard a beautiful sound coming from the street corner he was just passing. Mono couldn’t help but be reminded of similar tunes he had heard from music boxes before, which made him nostalgic.

Nostalgia went out the window, though, when he saw his newest friend playing some kind of instrument he hadn’t seen before. “Luna!” He called out from across the road to get her attention, not wanting to startle her, before he made his way across and stopped near her with a little wave. He knew she couldn’t talk, so he wasn’t expecting a traditional answer. He was used to Six not talking anyway, and nonverbal cues weren’t hard to figure out.

Rain mixed with the tears falling down her cheeks as she reached out to the familiar four-legged hero. She hadn't heard him over the howling winds but she'd felt the warm intent of someone moving closer and had made the decision to blindly trust in it. Luna needed someone to save her from the storm and a noble steed had come to rescue her.

Her arms wrapped around Pretzel's neck and her blanket whipped off her tiny body to be dragged into the darkness of the night. Her pink nightgown was soaked through and her shoes were weighted with water but she didn't care. She wasn't alone anymore. Her face pressed against Pretzel's fur as she fought to keep them both on the ground.

It wasn't until Llewellyn was right next to them that she noticed that they weren't alone. It made sense. As far as Luna knew, Pretzel was always with Lleweylln. If there was one then the other was there too. She didn't realize the warm puppy but looked up at Llewellyn with tears in her eyes. Her lips moved but no sound came out when she spoke.

'Non voglio essere solo'

[translation: I don't want to be alone.]

Her head rose while her fingers slowly came to a stop. There were only two people in the city who knew her name and they were both very nice people.

Her gaze found Mono's and a small shy smile met his approach. She placed the small harp to her side and rose to her feet to greet Mono properly. Her position as a princess wasn't important in the city but she'd been taught how to act since she had started walking and the habit had been ingrained into every moment. She grabbed her skirts and curtsied before reaching for Mono's hand.

Luna wasn't able to speak but she could write well enough to communicate and without paper, Mono's hand acted as a substitute.

Her finger carefully traced each letter slowly, making sure to spell out his name just as he'd called her by name. 'Hello Mono' She was happy to see him after being unable to find him a few nights prior but she didn't know how to tell him how relieved she was to meet him again.

Pretzel licked at her face despite the constantly falling rain, ears flapping around his face as he tried to curl around the curl protectively. Tiny humans shouldn’t be out in such weather! No one should be!! There was something very wrong with this storm and it had set the little hound’s senses on edge.

He let out a few more barks to get Llewellyn’s attention, expecting the man had followed behind him when he escaped the yard. This was what his training was for, wasn’t it? To find kids who were out and lost when they shouldn’t be??

Llewellyn, holding his hat down in one hand and squinting as the rain poured down around him, tried to spot where the barks were coming from. When he did finally catch sight of his companion, a new worry gripped him. Was that a child?? He picked up the pace, not stopping now until he was next to Pretzel and the child’s side. Closer now, he recognized the small form as the little girl he’d recently happened upon on her first day here. The one who’d wanted an instrument and been unkindly chased away from the storefront.

“Luna???” He uttered, his own voice muffled by the weather, anyway. Pretzel had finally settled down enough to settle for staying tucked in the kid’s arms. Llewellyn knew she was trying to say something. For all that he knew she couldn’t, but the shadows of the night made lip-reading a little more difficult. It didn’t matter, though. It wasn’t hard to tell that she was alone and miserable in this weather. “Come here, let me and Pretzel help you.” He responded in her own language.

His Italian was still a little rusty, but he’d been brushing up since he met her… And it was easy enough to understand him as he crouched down in front of her to be on eye level. He popped the hat off his head and sat it on hers to help block some of the weather now that her blanket was gone, shrugging off his overcoat as well. They needed to get her in out of the storm before she caught a damn pneumonia.

Edited 2022-04-18 01:59 (UTC)

Mono watched as she got to her feet, while she reminded Mono of Six because of how quiet she was… Luna was far more elegant and delicate. Like a princess out of the story books, he sometimes leafed through when he was hiding in the school back in his world. It made him feel rather protective, really. Not that he hadn’t felt protective of Six, too… He was desperate to go home and save her, but she was also more… ~~feral~~ strong than most kids he met over the years. When she wasn’t in the hands of one of the terrible things in their world, or outnumbered, he’d seen her handle things quite well.

Luna just seemed like someone who should never be in situations like the one he’d been in. She should be protected.

His clumsy little grin beamed as she spelled out her greeting. He kept his own tone lower, a hint of a whisper. It was just nice to not need to be as loud as people in this world were used to, this was a little more comfortable, really. He wondered if he could teach her some of the silent gestures he and Six used to use, or if they could develop their own. But for now, he wanted to know about what his friend had been doing. That song had been so beautiful! “That was a pretty song you were playing. What was it?”

Edited 2022-04-18 02:01 (UTC)

Well, here he was, striding through the city to the end of the work day. It was an earlier one and he was more than ready to get back to work sorting out the house a bit. New homes needed so much care and attention.

What stopped him was the music. Stopped him and brought him close as the girl played. He considered her music for a while before stepping forward at a good break in the song.

"A lovely song for so sad a face."

Terra had been out wandering around. This place was familiar and so he had to find a way to make whatever they called their currency here. Munny was what he called it, but he wasn't sure anyone understood what he'd meant when he used the term.

So he knew he needed to head back to the gnome lady and see if he could get his old position back, but for now he wanted to see what he could do. However, on his travels what he didn't expect to find was a little girl who looked pretty lost.

The keyblade wielder stopped a few feet in front of her, trying to figure out if he should help or not. Finally when she got closer he nodded and kneeled down slowly. "Are you okay?"

Luna took a step back as the man knelt in front of her, suddenly uncertain of his arrival. She didn't know many in the city and while everyone had been pleasant thus far, it was impossible for her to ignore the trauma of her previous life. It was difficult for her to trust anyone.

His voice was deep and smooth. It was calming and he reminded her of the knights that she'd read about in stories. After a moment she took a step forward as if to engage in conversation but something was wrong. Her lips moved but try as she might no sound came out.

Luna rose her arms and tried to spell out the words in the air but she knew that it didn't work. After that failure she shook her head from left to right, hoping to communicate in whatever way she could.

She was far too young to be on her own but she was determined to be strong, like her brother and Mono. Luna rose her chin and looked like the princess that she was as she schooled her expression into place. It was a practiced motion and while she didn't look sad, she didn't look happy either.

After a brief pause, she lifted a small purple hat that she'd gotten from the orphanage to him and mouthed the words that she couldn't voice. 'please?'

It was strange to be asking for money like this but she was wearing the dress that she'd arrived in and it was nothing more than a rag that the palace cook had been able to find for her. The orphanage had clothing and food for the children but Luna didn't feel like she belonged there. She wasn't an orphan.

Luna leaned closer and listened. The walls had ears but when it was just the two of them she could pretend that they were in their own safe sphere. If they spoke like this then no one would find them or try to eat them.

Lovely dark eyes looked up at Mono before turning to look back at the small harp that she'd been given as a gift. She knew the song by heart after practicing it daily but the name escaped her. It was easier to read music than it was to read the written word.

Her attention turned back to Mono and she slowly spelled out two words on his hand.

'Mother'

'Lullaby'

After a brief pause, she added another short sentence, pausing when the words split and divided. 'Play for you?' Her head tilted to the side, asking if she wanted him to play him a song just for him.

Luna looked up as Llewellyn approached but she refused to let go of her puppy savior. It felt as if the both of them would blow away the moment she released him from her clumsy grasp. Her lips parted and she tried to speak, to say anything that might help but she couldn't will her voice to sound.

The storm was too strong or maybe she was just too weak. Luna wasn't a fighter like her brother was, she wasn't able to weather the storms that life had thrown her way. She had tried but had ended up stuck on the sidewalk with nowhere to go.

Pretzel was smaller than Luna and while she didn't have the strength to carry him, she could cling to him with all her might. It was important to never let him go.

The hat was placed on her head and if she hadn't bowed her body forward it would have blown away. At first, it didn't help but with the addition of Llewellyn's coat, her limbs began to tremble with cold. She hadn't noticed how cold she'd been or how much the torrent had stolen from her. Her limbs felt weak and the last tendrils of strength faded as her body fell limp against Pretzel's protective form.

At least Pretzel wasn’t intending to go anywhere. He’d found who he’d been looking for, after all. Now he was going to stick by her patiently until he knew she was going to be safe, which was why he was pleased to see his father had followed him out. If Llewellyn would get a move on and get them back to their cozy, warm home, that would be great.

Llewellyn, though, was busy making sure the coat was secure over her shoulders as he knelt on the cobblestones. The detective continued to squint in the evening shadows as he looked for any sign that there was something wrong (other than her being cold and drenched by the storm). The way she was clinging to Pretzel made things a tad awkward, even if the dog was still on the smaller side, he had to wrap the coat around her and the hound in order to make sure she was as covered up as he could manage.

That, in turn, made the next step a little more awkward. Llewellyn needed to get her inside out of this, but it didn’t look like she could move an inch further. The fact that she’d made it all this way was surprising to begin with… Pretzel seemed content to let her cling to him, so Llewellyn had to very carefully scoop both of them up with a slight wobble before he was sure they were both secure in his arms.

“There now, just hang on. We’ll have you in and out of this storm in no time.” He commented in as reassuring a tone as he could manage as he turned back in the direction of the house and began hurrying up the street. His mind was racing all the while, wanting answers to questions he didn’t really have the luxury of asking right now. Those could wait till later once she was inside and warm.

For the moment, he found himself glad that the catch to the gate had broken in the wind and was still swinging lightly. Easy to pass through, easier than the doorknob was going to be. With an awkward little lean as he made it to the doorway, he caught the knob without putting the girl down. It took a couple of tries, but once he got it to turn, he pushed the door open and swept them inside, shutting the door behind him with his foot.

The faint light of the lamps cast a warm and cozy glow as he finally put her down in the entrance hall. Llewellyn absentmindedly mused that three of them probably looked a sight, like a trio of half-drowned rats, probably. Water pooled on the floor around them as he finally lifted his hat from her head to get a better look, ignoring the water dripping from his hair into his eyes. “You alright, Luna? Are you hurt, or just soaked and cold?”

He’d need to take care of that too, but first he needed to get a better idea of if he’d missed anything more serious.

Mono knew both of those words, and it wasn’t hard for him to figure out what she was saying. It was a lullaby her mother had probably sung or taught her. That was the kind of thing nice mothers did, right? He heard other kids in this world talk about their parents sometimes, after all.

“It’s a really pretty lullaby. I never heard one like it before.” He responded, tone still quiet, just between them as people passed them by. “I only know songs from music boxes or on television.” The former was always pretty, the later strange and… not something he’d want to share with Luna. She should hear pretty things… Maybe he could show her the music box that Mr. Rhy helped him buy. That might be nice-

But the boy’s attention shifted again as she started spelling out a short sentence to again. “For me?” He tilted his head a little, curious about what other songs she knew and what she might want to play. “I guess, if you want to. I’d like to hear?” Though he glanced around at the people wandering up and down the street. “How about we go somewhere nicer first, though?” That way, they wouldn’t risk being tripped over or stepped on by busy adults. They might not be watching where they were going. Especially not expecting a couple of kids to be hanging around the streets like this, so it would be safer, he thought.

Once upon a time Illyana had been a young girl in a strange world that was much more dangerous than this one. It was a memory that still clung to every corner of her mind despite her best efforts to forget about it all. Her penchant for avoiding thoughts like that happened to be what lead her out on this particularly stormy night. When she had been small storms had terrified her. Truthfully, the entire world had terrified her when she had been small. Back then she had always thought that her elder brother would protect her. Limbo taught her the foolishness of that line of thinking quickly enough though. Nobody would protect her from the terrors of the world.

No, she would have to protect herself. Which meant braving things that seemed out of the ordinary. This storm certainly fit that description. It'd seemingly come out of nowhere and there was something about it that worried her. What would the storm bring when it was over? Some change to this place, that much she was certain of. What dangerous change would it be this time though?

Her thoughts were caught up in that as she wandered through the rain. Before she left she'd cast a simple spell over herself that made it bounce off, keeping her dry despite the sheets that came down. It also made it considerably easier to see as she moved through it. That was when she saw the little figure and she froze for a moment just as the little girl did. Her own frozen body almost mimicked the little girl's frozen limbs, just with her own more adult sized limbs.

"What are you doing out here?" she asked with a quiet but clearly perplexed tone.

Oh dear, that was horrid. The child needing to ask of him like this. This was not something he could really accept.

“I think I would much rather buy you a good meal. Is there something I can buy for you?”

He waited and remained still as the little girl seemed to try to decide what to do. But then it seemed as if she wanted to speak, but no words came out. The raising of her arms was different and he wondered if she was going to cast a spell, but nothing happened. His blue eyes blinked as she shook her head and he had to ask.

"So..you're not okay?"

Terra continued to be as still as he could, not being sure if his standing up would disturb her or not.

"Can I help?"

Luna was wet and tired, too weak to argue with Llewellyn or help him while he struggled to lift both her and Pretzel. She wanted to help. She could feel the strong protective arms around her, carrying her towards safety. Her head leaned forward and she rested against Llewellyn's shoulder as his steps rocked her into a light sleep.

In a blink, they were stepping into the warm interior of Llewellyn's home. Luna rose her head and tried to look around but everything was foggy. Her arms were stiff and her fingers trembled from the cold biting at her skin. She looked up at her savior and then down at the puppy that was still curled against her front. At some point, she had released Pretzel but the noble creature had remained curled against her, keeping her warm.

Her lips opened and then closed, as uncertainty gripped tightly within her tiny chest. This was a stranger's home. This man had helped her but was it safe here? Was she still running and hiding? All of her worries and fears fled the moment the thunder cracked in the sky. Anything was better than being alone or outside.

A weak whine managed to escape Luna's throat as she shakily reached for Llewellyn's hand, spelling out the words she knew as well as her fingers would let her. 'Cold. Sky noise scary. Scared. Dark. Alone.'

Luna bobbed her head in an energetic nod before turning to fetch the small harp that she'd placed on the stone walkway. It was a little large in her arms but she'd tied a string to both of its sides so that she could hang it over her shoulder. It wasn't a perfect system but it allowed her to run while holding the instrument safely on her back.

With everything in place she reached for Mono's hand, trusting him to guide her to a place where it would only be the two of them. She had chosen the crowds to try and request money from those passing by but if she was going to play for Mono, she wanted the song to be only for him.

Luna light squeezed Mono's hand and offered him a small smile to let him know that she was ready.

Luna prayed for her twin brother to appear and save her from the dark torments of the storm but everywhere she looked was another empty street. She was utterly lost and couldn't have walked back to where she had come from even if she wanted to return to her lonely room in the orphanage.

She wanted to be strong but she could feel her strength being pulled out by the harsh winds.

The figure offered a glimmer of hope in the darkness around her but Luna didn't know if it was a friend or foe. There were countless people who wanted to hurt her and her brother and she didn't know if the city was truly safe from them. A woman's voice called to her and Luna felt a small knot of hope grow at the implied worry that sounded in the woman's question.

Her mouth opened but at that moment the thunder echoed behind her and she jumped, only a squeek plucking from her sore throat.

Luna quickly shook her head. There was food at the orphanage if she absolutely needed to eat, as awkward as it was, she wasn't going to starve herself. This money was for something special and it would be more special if she was able to gather the money on her own.

She looked around her on the ground before looking back up at the strange man. There was nothing for her to write on so she tried to move her arms around to indicate that she was saving up the money.

Halfway through the frantic hand motions, her stomach grumbled. She might have skipped lunch today.

Luna looked down at her feet before raising her chin to face the man in front of her. She was taught not to slouch or lower her stature, even when she was scared or nervous. It was difficult to meet his gaze when she struggled to communicate but she was going to try her best.

She shook her head to indicate that 'no' she wasn't okay.

At his next question, she frowned. Luna wasn't sure if there was a way to help or if she'd be lost in this city forever. She wanted her brother but he was likely too far away to help her.

After an awkward pause, she lifted her hand as if to ask Terra to hold hands with her.

Llewellyn tried to wait patiently as she began spelling things out on his hand again, though he was worried and it made the waiting a little more difficult. At least as she finished, his nerves started to settle a little… Her not being hurt was a rather huge relief, and it wasn’t hard to put the pieces together from her choice of words. Plenty of kids were afraid of noisy storms, and this was a horrible one… Plus, being alone in the dark? Well… Llewellyn could understand that fear himself, a little too well.

So he offered her a sympathetic expression, nodding quickly. “Noisy storms are frightening, and being on your own makes it worse. Though one shouldn’t be out in it either, it can be quite dangerous… I’m glad I found you, Luna.” He added, not wanting to think of the poor thing being out in this weather on her own all night… He’d seen far too many bad things happen to children who were neglected and out in the elements.

But if she wasn’t feeling safe or comfortable at the orphanage… Llewellyn felt his heart tug again, the poor thing deserved to be somewhere she felt comfortable. The new addition of an orphanage to this world had left him with a rather complicated feeling… He probably would have done the same as Luna, if he hadn’t been lucky enough to have been taken in by Mrs. Young. It was important for children to have a place to go… But he’d seen bad things happen in places like that.

“Well, I… Can’t really do much about the scary noises and the rain… But! I can do something about your being alone, and the cold.” He responded finally, the responsible side of him used to caring for those who were younger than him kicking in. His movements animated and light, something to set her nerves at ease… And really, Llewellyn was just an animated person. It was a little comical looking, really, especially since he was still crouched at eye level, not wanting to tower over her while they spoke. “First, we need to get you into something warm and dry. Mm… Let’s see.” He looked around. It wasn’t like he had anything that was child-sized… But one of his older shirts would do, right? They were a nice soft material, and would practically float on her…. So at least it would be dry and warm. “I think I should have something upstairs, so why don’t you keep Pretzel company and I’ll be right back, okay?”

He did pause to see what she thought, though, just to make sure she was comfortable before he left. At least Pretzel seemed to be good company for her, and she seemed to feel better with him there… So he at least knew that she would be in good company. The little hound already seemed to adore her too, so he would keep an eye on her.

Mono’s mouth popped open in an ‘O’ at the sight. The string was clever!! Made it easier to carry it around, which was good since they had a small walk ahead of them.

Once she had gathered her things up, Mono held out his hand and wiggled his fingers a bit so she could take it and they wouldn’t lose each other as they walked through the city. He heard from another kid once that holding hands was weird, but Mono thought it was just practical. You wouldn’t want to get separated, after all, and there was a security in it. He used to hold Six’s hand a lot…

But once she squeezed his hand to let him know she was ready, off they went! He took her down quieter side streets sometimes, making sure that it was quick and a little less overwhelming, but eventually they came out to an open green area full of trees and a pond with ducks. The park. One of Mono’s favourite places to visit in this world, since it was so colourful and full of life.

Plus, it was quieter than most places. Sure, there were still people, and festivals made it busier... But right now? It was perfect, a relaxing and quiet place they could sit down and not worry about adults bumping into them or stepping on them. “I think here’s good! This is the park. It’s really pretty, right? And there’s not as many people, so you kinda get to do what you want without worrying about people bumping into ya.” He explained, turning to give Luna an attempt at a smile as he let go of her hand.

Ah, he believes he understands.

"What if I give you coin now, and then go to gets a meal for your clearly hungry stomach," Rhy offered. And perhaps he would fetch back paper as well, to see if she could write in a language he knew.

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

Page 1 of 5

First 👑 Lost without Direction [Open]

20th - Nightime Storm

23rd - Midday Songs

20th - Nightime Storm

23rd - Midday Songs

no subject

no subject

23rd

17th

17th

23rd

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

20th - Storm

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

20th - Storm

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject