Frivolous Flowers

Evie wipes her hands on her apron, pausing when the word breaks the quiet symphony of birds and wind through the trees that hsd previously kept them company. She keeps the distance she has claimed, turning to gaze upon Zariah as the deposed Queen stands and speaks. Unease prickles at her shoulders, but there's nothing she can do about it now. Whatever curiosity she has inspired in the woman will not die until she answers. "I was born here, it's as much home to me as it is to them, bigots included." Her bright blue gaze turns to scan the horizon, shrugging slightly. "I know I can't change how they think, or their prejudice, so I let them think I'm Accepted even if it means hiding. As more Outsiders arrive, tolerance rises, and there's less need for me to pretend." Precisely why she had begun doing these small acts, even though they still make her stomach clench with habitual fear. "But I would never let them chase me away into a place I've never been either. I have as much right to the Grounds as anyone, whether they know what I am or not." Stubbornness had been a defining trait of hers from birth. This will always be her home, no matter how the other Naturals would treat her if they knew. evie Please don't ever become a stranger whose laugh I could recognize anywhere