the crooked kind

R E X A N N A golden child, lion girl — tell me what it’s like to conquer. Perhaps she had caught him in surprise at remembering his name, perhaps she had been lucky to assume. But for a brief moment, before he confirmed, she worried that perhaps she had remembered the wrong name – how could you make friends if you got everything backwards? The worry vanished quickly once he didn’t correct her, and instead answered her greeting with his own, her name slipping from his lips in a very intricate way she hadn’t heard it said before. It caused a smile to bloom across her features as he continued, shrugging his shoulders and helping to inform her of what he knew. She nodded in agreement, at least knowing that there wasn’t some kind of curfew to being out at night or certain places quarantined. She glanced around the glade once more, as the man before her contemplated and she offered a casual shrug of her shoulders as well. “I suppose it’s hard to say. I arrived just a few days ago and haven’t ventured out much. I wasn’t sure how dangerous it could be.” She added, flashing him a quick smile. “Ive been in a bit of danger before falling into this, so forgive me if I’m a bit hesitant.” She paused, drawing in breath to continue speaking before the ground began to shake. It was little at first, and she stepped back briefly trying to focus on whether or not it was a real thing and not just a strange feeling for a strange land. But it grew, and grew, and grew, and she found herself doe eyed before she couldn’t keep her balance. The earth beneath her shifted, tossing her to the ground in a heap of pale arms and dark hair – remaining as still as she could for fear of something falling down straight on top of her. Her arms covered her head, hopeful that they’d take the brunt of whatever it was that came raining down on top of her. And then, it seemed, as quickly as it started, it stopped. She uncovered her head, her body covered in dirt and debris and found her sapphire gaze looking for Remi before spotting the shrine – yet she still didn’t move, afraid that perhaps if she were to stand, the ground would buckle beneath her. "Remi?" She called out, hoping to get an answer. First order of a to-do list, make sure she was okay, make sure Remi was okay, make sure the ground wasn’t going to split beneath them, and finally, investigate the shrine. She checked herself to see how well she faired, and aside from the dirt and dust, and a few scrapes and bruises, she managed to come out okay. Then, she needed to make sure Remi was okay. fearless child, broken girl — tell me what it’s like to burn.