REXANNA
paint my spirit gold
He asks why she changed, and it’s a moment where she has to decide just how honest she’s going to be with him. But he’s young, and she’s lived here for a whole year, and while she’s not sure what he’s been through, she imagines he needs to know what kind of world he’s walked into. “Because I wanted to be stronger and better.” She pauses, a small frown forming on her lips. “Magic users are called Abandoned, because we’ve been abandoned by the old gods. And I came through the portal with magic, already abandoned to begin with.” A small tilt of her head as she gazes at him. “And our previous Queen was a family of magic users, and her rules were strict. My husband, at the time, had been imprisoned, and I went to go set him free by bargaining with her. So I had to work for her, from that. And after, she tried to arrange a marriage between me and one of the family members when I was already in a relationship. So I told her no, and she locked me in the room. I broke out through the bathroom, grabbed Bastien, and he took me to the Voice where I asked to Ascend.” She says softly.Because nobody would mess with her now, she’s made certain of that.
Her eyes drift from him to inspect her hand, the rings adorned on her finger. “He Ascended previously, almost a year ago now. And we weren’t even sure it would work… I was Abandoned. The only other ones were Accepted, the normal humans. But it did, and I’m here as both.” Her eyes lift to look at him with a small smile. “I guess you could say I’m very disliked by the old gods.” Despite not having even gone to see what they thought of it. She’s sure she’ll be smited on sight. “But the Voice welcomed me. And in order to Ascend, I had to give up all my ties back to home. So this,” she pauses to gesture to the world around them, not just the room, “is my home now.” There’s a brief moment where she contemplates the next question, uncertain the reason why herself. “Well, our insides aren’t the same as they used to be. You won’t need to use the bathroom, or eat, or drink. Instead, I imagine we just… burn off what fluid we have within. Though I’m not really sure how it works.” She shrugs.
But he comments on Wessex being Queen, and she smiles. The Wraith is a lot like what he’s likely imagining, and it causes a bright smile to cross her face. “You’ll meet her, I’m sure.” She hums thoughtfully. “People call her the Wraith.” She adds, if it helps his imagination. She doesn’t know what people call her, that they call her the Penumbra. Nobody has said it to her face, yet.
But soon enough, she watches as he begins to grow aware of it all, as she tells him they are outnumbered and disliked, and despite the sorrow to his voice she snorts. “No, Clemente, it’s fine. You can stay as long as you like.” It’s an honest answer. “I have friends in high places, and people know me around here. Nobody’s going to come for me, for us.” She tells him, bright, cheerful, all smiles. Because she knows that if they do, with ill intent, they will pay for it. Much like Wessex had done for her, accepting her with open arms into the little band of Ascendeds, she's doing the same. With a bit more of a motherly touch.
