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Harper Quinn
the Stalwart
Teacher

Age: 33 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Attuned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Nomadic
Level: 5 - Strg: 15 - Dext: 15 - Endr: 27 - Luck: 19 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
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Posts: 1,036 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#1
You've been all the way to broken
lost your sense of where to go
For such a beautiful day, even in the grips of autumn, Harper has far too much to ponder to enjoy it. He has been here almost a year and yet still feels as unmoored and directionless as his first day. No job to attend to every day, no team to train, no city to patrol. It is a lonely and admittedly boring existence. All that he has now is his own self-imposed task of exploring the lands available to him. And after reading about Maea's passing on the Notice Board, he has returned to Torchline to honor her memory however he can.

The legend of the pool is spoken freely, so pure and simple its origins are in comparison to other things, which makes the draw to it all the stronger. Harper fiddles with his chosen stone, staring off over the water as his mind churns and chafes. Oliver's confession, Phoebe's request, Kiada's shared secrets. They all weigh heavy on his mind. His heart aches with a loss he still has not properly coped with, no matter how aware he is that it's time to let go.

Sighing, he drops the rock into the pool, watching as it disappears beneath the surface and hoping for a change of mood. For how well he may wear his sorrow, it is not a cloak he willingly dons.
remember, pain is just an anchor
that you never had control of
HARPER
Kiada Njovu-Reyes
Hollowed Grounds Registrar

Age: 30 | Height: 5’7 | Race: Ancient | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 2 - Strg: 18 - Dext: 16 - Endr: 29 - Luck: 17 - Int:
Played by: Skylark Offline
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Posts: 1,674 | Total: 13,495
MP: 2712
#2
this is your sport
but she's not playing a game
Somehow, she finds Torchline to be too warm for her. So used to the tempered seasons of the Grounds, of the Basin prior to that… But in terms of vacations, it’s a fairly decent one. She’s taken Auni out on this excursion, makeshift little saddlebags on the Luxere as they stroll along through the beach, hearing and resonating with the roar of the crashing waves against the rocks. It’s beautiful, but it’s not home.

The more she thinks about it, though, she’s not exactly sure where home is anymore.

Still, there’s a pool she’s heard about… And the Harpy with her Luxere begin to trudge their way there, wearing little more than shorts and a tank top of sorts – all scars on display with her hair braided back and up – a sheen of sweat across her brow. Her gaze remains downcast along the shadows her and Auni create, squinting against the sun and not paying too much attention – until, of course, Auni bolts in excitement, hooves clicking and clacking against the stone and sand.

And when she lifts her gaze, she spots Harper there. Though the air is melancholy and down, she can’t help but to approach slowly as Auni bleats their arrival. “You look like you could use a dance.” She calls out to him, a small smile of greeting as she follows her companion to greet him.
do not think you are safe because you love her
do not think she won't stain her mouth red with your blood too
KIADA
Kiada has a large X scar on the right side of her neck.
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Kiada, without killing her <3
Harper Quinn
the Stalwart
Teacher

Age: 33 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Attuned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Nomadic
Level: 5 - Strg: 15 - Dext: 15 - Endr: 27 - Luck: 19 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,036 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#3
You've been all the way to broken
lost your sense of where to go
Hooves against stone and sand draw his attention first, shoulders habitually rising defensively as blue eyes cast over his shoulder to discern the cause. All tension melts away at the appearance of Auni rocketing down the beach towards him, and a weak laugh leaves him as the Luxere sprays sand up against his legs, bleating like a happy sheep. Harper throws his arms around Auni's neck to give a joyous squeeze, parting only to pet and stroke the lovable creature as his bonded approaches.

For how new their bond may be, Kiada knows him well enough to read him like an open book. Any other soul may have been given an excuse, anything to distract from the reality of his emotions. Kiada is different. Harper knows there is little he could say to change how she sees him, and that knowledge is comforting. Her presence alone still manages to wrangle a smile on his face, though it is not nearly as bright as it may have been any other day. Chuckling slightly at her words - the irony of their swapped roles not escaping him - he turns to welcome her. "It would probably do me a world of good." If she is keen on allowing it, he leans down to press a kiss to her brow, chaste and unassuming. "What brings you to my moody shores?" A wry grin curls in the corner of his lips, happy to poke fun at himself if only to avoid the thoughts he actually needs to be entertaining.
remember, pain is just an anchor
that you never had control of
HARPER
Kiada Njovu-Reyes
Hollowed Grounds Registrar

Age: 30 | Height: 5’7 | Race: Ancient | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 2 - Strg: 18 - Dext: 16 - Endr: 29 - Luck: 17 - Int:
Played by: Skylark Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,674 | Total: 13,495
MP: 2712
#4
this is your sport
but she's not playing a game
Of course, Auni is more than happy to be moved around, pushed around into weird formations just to endure the way Harper latches onto him. He wiggles excitedly and bleats his happiness into the air at meeting a friend again before settling to sniff the area around. It gives Kiada plenty of time to air her comment, to follow the Luxere toward the man with a small smile crossing the edge of her lips. He turns to her, a chuckle at the shift of comments, and she takes the gentle kiss in greeting to her brow before her gaze scans over his face — wondering where he’s been, whats all happened as of late, everything.

She aims to take his hand then, a small wry smile growing on her face. “Maybe I wanted to enjoy a moody shore all to myself.” She raises her eyebrow to him, trying to keep her features neutral and failing at it as the corner of her lip quirks up. “Maybe I was simply exploring. It is my first time in Torchline, after all.” She muses, aiming to take his other hand and start a light, smooth dance. “What are you doing here?” A soft smile lingers instead, an avian tilt of her head.
do not think you are safe because you love her
do not think she won't stain her mouth red with your blood too
KIADA
Kiada has a large X scar on the right side of her neck.
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Kiada, without killing her <3
Harper Quinn
the Stalwart
Teacher

Age: 33 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Attuned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Nomadic
Level: 5 - Strg: 15 - Dext: 15 - Endr: 27 - Luck: 19 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,036 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#5
You've been all the way to broken
lost your sense of where to go
Perhaps Auni has stolen the power of a starwhale, for he always seems to inspire joy and peace in Harper's breast. Smiling more freely than he has in some time, Harper scratches and hugs as the Luxere demands. At least until his bonded partner demands the same, and Harper gives her the attention she so easily commands. Willing and content to wash away in the tide of her presence.

"Sorry to disappoint, but I've already staked my claim," he teases back, trying valiantly to summon the bubbliness that normally sustains him. To not reveal to her the depth of his confusion, his hurt. She is such a strong woman, it would almost feel shameful to be so weak in contrast. "Welcome to Torchline then!" Admittedly he has found himself loving the place, and perhaps she will too. Another friendly face, familiar and welcome, would not be amiss after moving to the new land so suddenly. Speaking of...

"I moved here, actually." A shoulder shrugs awkwardly, still uncertain how he feels about it. Harper has not felt any kind of connection to any of the lands yet, which is disheartening. "Phoebe closed the College and took over the Brothel in town. She asked me to work as a type of security for the workers there."
remember, pain is just an anchor
that you never had control of
HARPER
Kiada Njovu-Reyes
Hollowed Grounds Registrar

Age: 30 | Height: 5’7 | Race: Ancient | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 2 - Strg: 18 - Dext: 16 - Endr: 29 - Luck: 17 - Int:
Played by: Skylark Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,674 | Total: 13,495
MP: 2712
#6
this is your sport
but she's not playing a game
She can see how hard he’s working to try and bring that humor out into the open. And she understands what that’s like, though she doesn’t hide the fact that she tries to alleviate it for him as much as she can. Regardless, she settles, plays along with it, tries to make it all that much easier for him to pretend if that’s what he wanted to do. “Thank you.” She chimes instead, flashing him a bright grin at the thank you.

But she stills, some flicker of surprise crossing her face when he mentions that he’s moved here, her head tilting somewhat avian-like as she considers him and Auni continues to sit in harper’s space comfortably. “Oh.” She puts it simply, unsure what else to say with it to hide her surprise. She didn’t really know Phoebe, had attended the college twice - one for a learning event hosted by the dark haired man she hasn’t seen in quite some time, and the next when she’d accidentally ran into him last LongNight.

What do you think about that?” She asks instead, drawing nearer to sit on a rock and give him all the attention she can – wondering if he’s happy with his decision or whether or not he plans to continue on in the hopes of finding somewhere else.
do not think you are safe because you love her
do not think she won't stain her mouth red with your blood too
KIADA
Kiada has a large X scar on the right side of her neck.
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Kiada, without killing her <3
Harper Quinn
the Stalwart
Teacher

Age: 33 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Attuned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Nomadic
Level: 5 - Strg: 15 - Dext: 15 - Endr: 27 - Luck: 19 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,036 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#7
You've been all the way to broken
lost your sense of where to go
Her bright, easy response is something to simultaneously revel in and cringe away from. Feeling unworthy of that simplistic response, that beautiful expression. Everything still feels raw and tainted, and Harper has no way of combatting it. Nowhere to go but down, deeper into this grief that has been drudged up so fully. Instead of responding verbally - he's not certain he even can - Harper merely smiles.

Harper loops an arm around Auni companionably, weathering Kiada's surprise with a vague, detached amusement on his face. Many had exhibited the same reaction, completely bogled that not only had Phoebe forsaken her life's work, but that the distressingly young woman had instead taken up the role of running a brothel. Harper isn't expecting her to ask his opinion though. Had anticipated fielding questions about Phoebe if she'd asked anything at all.

An uncomfortable shrug of his shoulders precludes his answer. Trying in vain to find...something. Anything in this cavernous pit inside him that speaks of an opinion, an emotion. But he feels nothing about having moved so suddenly. "It's her decision. The rest is just..." hand waving idly, aware it's not much of an answer, but there's a helplessness in his gaze. Harper doesn't have any other response, too numb to it all to care.
remember, pain is just an anchor
that you never had control of
HARPER
Kiada Njovu-Reyes
Hollowed Grounds Registrar

Age: 30 | Height: 5’7 | Race: Ancient | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 2 - Strg: 18 - Dext: 16 - Endr: 29 - Luck: 17 - Int:
Played by: Skylark Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,674 | Total: 13,495
MP: 2712
#8
this is your sport
but she's not playing a game
Oh, she can tell there’s something wrong with him. Where once he had held her within her bed in the Grounds and they’d talked all night, smiles and emotions, histories shared and listened to. He wasn’t that charming, happy Harper she knew, and it concerned her. So he speaks, and she settles on the rock, eventually letting her gaze drift from him to the ocean beyond and the quiet whistling chirps of strange birds she’s not yet used to, to the crashing waves that remind her of the cliffs edge of the World’s Edge.

But her question isn’t exactly answered. And she keeps her gaze away from him as she focuses on the sandy dunes and everything else aside from him. “What about you, Harper?” She asks quietly, head tilting a small amount in concern for her friend. “What do you want? To live here or keep exploring?” Her head tilts back toward him, a dark brow raised in her quiet question to see just what the Accepted might say.
do not think you are safe because you love her
do not think she won't stain her mouth red with your blood too
KIADA
Kiada has a large X scar on the right side of her neck.
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Kiada, without killing her <3
Harper Quinn
the Stalwart
Teacher

Age: 33 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Attuned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Nomadic
Level: 5 - Strg: 15 - Dext: 15 - Endr: 27 - Luck: 19 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,036 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#9
You've been all the way to broken
lost your sense of where to go
They share a quiet companionship, staring out across the sea. Having known her for such a short time, it feels as if he has known her forever despite that. Capable of removing every smiling facade and sinking into the truth of his own emotions that normally go well-concealed. So when she asks, he barks a hard laugh at her question, and tilts his head to rest upon Auni.

"To live at all, is the question." Harper is not used to being depressed, has battled grief and trauma but has always been a rather happy, genuine person. So he clenches his fists to drive away the sardonic bitterness in his tone. Forcing himself to be honest instead of spiteful. "I was...informed...that I will never see my family when I die. That Mort is all-powerful, except when he isn't. That I will never see my parents, my family, or my lover ever again." He rubs a hand down Auni's fur to keep from reopening wounds on his palms with his nails. "I don't have a purpose or a drive right now. I can't care less about what I do or where I go. It doesn't matter."
remember, pain is just an anchor
that you never had control of
HARPER
Kiada Njovu-Reyes
Hollowed Grounds Registrar

Age: 30 | Height: 5’7 | Race: Ancient | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 2 - Strg: 18 - Dext: 16 - Endr: 29 - Luck: 17 - Int:
Played by: Skylark Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,674 | Total: 13,495
MP: 2712
#10
this is your sport
but she's not playing a game
She doesn’t expect the answer she gets – from someone who had been so optimistic that night they had spent in the Monster Hunter’s Guild – so excited to look forward to a life here and how things could change. She can only wonder what happened – and thankfully, the Harpy doesn’t have to ask, not as he elaborates and her gaze flicks back toward him, trying to capture the steel blue of his gaze. Auni curls around Harper a bit more, antlers glimmering in the light a bit more.

And Kiada takes a deep breath, trying to situate her thoughts as she keeps her gaze trained on him. “If it helps… I won’t see mine either.” She offers quietly, a small frown crossing her face. She won’t get to see her twin, her father, her parents, her siblings. Even Ru’in, whom had arrived here, still were in the clutches of the LongNight monster. His soul stuck out there for however long it took before Kiada had a chance to get it back.

But… It does matter, Harper. You matter to a lot of people. You matter.” She says, lifting her head a bit as if daring him to argue with her. And then she stands from the rock, slipping over toward him and reaching out a hand to him, to try and grasp onto the one tangled within Auni’s pale fur. “Little steps, okay? Find something that excites you. If that’s here then go for it. If it’s not, well… Keep searching. And don’t forget to stop and take in the good things. Like dancing beside the Oasis with a perfect stranger.” She offers, her lips quirking in a small smile.
do not think you are safe because you love her
do not think she won't stain her mouth red with your blood too
KIADA
Kiada has a large X scar on the right side of her neck.
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Kiada, without killing her <3
Harper Quinn
the Stalwart
Teacher

Age: 33 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Attuned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Nomadic
Level: 5 - Strg: 15 - Dext: 15 - Endr: 27 - Luck: 19 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,036 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#11
You've been all the way to broken
lost your sense of where to go
He shakes his head, hand aching as he tries not to clasp it tight. Harper hates his predisposition towards anger, hates giving into his trauma and PTSD. But every day it feels closer to the surface. Every day he wonders if it might just be easier to let go, to let that numbing haze of red take over as his captors had taught him to. But he won't, not when he knows that it will place Kiada at risk. And though she's more than capable of defending herself, of subduing him, the mere idea is enough to keep him from total capitulation.

"It both does and doesn't. It's an unfairness that I can't let go. A hate that I can't help but feel for The Voice. She has robbed me, robbed us, of everything." His free hand comes to cover his face, fingertips pressing hard into skin wherever they land. Ashamed of the words he knows he can't stop from falling off his lips. "At least you have family, Kiada. Mine, if they weren't already dead to begin with, have next to no chance of ending up somehwere like this." And a dark, awful part of him that he refuses to acknowledge hates and envies her for that.

As she approaches, Harper tenses and then immediately relaxes. Unable to help the instinctive response to her closeness. His hand grasps at hers like a lifeline, clinging tight as tears burn unfairly in his covered eyes. Only emerging when his breathing has settled and her words have sunk deep, looking to her for guidance. "It was so much easier, before. I don't...I don't know where to start. Everything is a mess. Phoebe wants to be with me, but I promised...I promised Tova I would never know ankoher, that we would meet on the other side. I already denied Oliver for the same reason. I don't know how to let go of her, how to...to feel that way again without betraying her." Perhaps not what she'd meant when recommending he finds something that makes him happy, but Harper desperately needs her input and advice.
remember, pain is just an anchor
that you never had control of
HARPER
Kiada Njovu-Reyes
Hollowed Grounds Registrar

Age: 30 | Height: 5’7 | Race: Ancient | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 2 - Strg: 18 - Dext: 16 - Endr: 29 - Luck: 17 - Int:
Played by: Skylark Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,674 | Total: 13,495
MP: 2712
#12
this is your sport
but she's not playing a game
This is where things differ – because for Kiada, it’s hard to talk about these things. She’d just as soon grab a blade and charge into the fight to right the wrongs as opposed to trying to talk about them. But she can offer her ear, her company, as Auni continues to remain spread nearby, antlers glimmering with an attempt to shower some of the light onto the other man. Kiada’s own iceberg gaze softens as she focuses on Harper – giving him all of her attention. “It was wrong for the Voice to steal us here, to trap us away from our loved ones.” She agrees quietly, a small frown forming on her face. “And the family that I have here is found. Even my own blood, my mother, won’t make it to Mort’s realm.” Her gaze levels on him before she’s taking a step toward him.

She reaches out her hand, feeling him grasp it after tensing, and she aims to pull him into a tight hug. She lets her words wash over him in whatever way it needs to be done, giving his hand a gentle squeeze before pulling away when his gaze searches for her own. “I’m so sorry, Harper.” She says softly, a small frown finding her face, but understanding what that feeling was like. After all, Ru’in had asked her to marry her in his dying wish. Was it wrong of her to move on? Perhaps. Perhaps not.

You’re not ready, and that’s fine. Perhaps you never will be, and that’s fine too.” She says, trying to offer him a softer smile. “But you can always honor her memory even if you find a new love. You don’t have to let her go. Gods know, I’ll probably never let Ru’in go.” Her shoulders rise and fall in a small shrug. “You just need to find someone who understands that. That you’re not ready and that you need to take things slow. If they’re worth sticking around with, they’ll understand.
do not think you are safe because you love her
do not think she won't stain her mouth red with your blood too
KIADA
Kiada has a large X scar on the right side of her neck.
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Kiada, without killing her <3
Harper Quinn
the Stalwart
Teacher

Age: 33 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Attuned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Nomadic
Level: 5 - Strg: 15 - Dext: 15 - Endr: 27 - Luck: 19 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,036 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#13
You've been all the way to broken
lost your sense of where to go
His head bows beneath the weight of her honesty, and he knows it's wrong of him to envy her when she has lost so much as well. He struggles to swallow down the bitter jealousy all the same, because there should be no competition between their pain. There's nothing he can say, because it's true. It's unfair. But what can truly be done about it? There's nothing he can do to change this fate, and that's why the permanence of it all is destroying him. He falls into her embrace like man into his grave, clinging to those last shreds of sunlight before the earth swallows him whole.

Just as it had been from the day they met, her smile is what keeps him standing. Perhaps her reticence is what makes each one so valuable, but he clings to her words and her body alike as she says everything he needed to hear. Everything Delphia hadn't said, the allowance of his own grief. The potential that he may never heal at all. "There are fewer fish in the sea here than I'm used to," he tries to joke, instinctive more than anything as the heart is clearly missing from it. But it's true - part of him wonders if he'll ever find someone who understands. If he even wants someone to.
remember, pain is just an anchor
that you never had control of
HARPER
Kiada Njovu-Reyes
Hollowed Grounds Registrar

Age: 30 | Height: 5’7 | Race: Ancient | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 2 - Strg: 18 - Dext: 16 - Endr: 29 - Luck: 17 - Int:
Played by: Skylark Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,674 | Total: 13,495
MP: 2712
#14
this is your sport
but she's not playing a game
She can’t give him anything else other than her honesty, her support. And that’s exactly what she does. She’s there for him when he needs her to be, at least whenever she can. When closed portals don’t block them. And all she can do in this moment as well is hold onto him as he sags into her arms, hers growing tighter around him, as if she might be able to tape his pieces back together just as she had melded and morphed her own into some sort of walking Frankenstein of parts and pieces, stitched together with only the best intentions in mind even if it falls apart in other places.

Ah, but there’s fish here still. And then” She pauses, pulling away a bit to give him a slight, small grin. “Always a few more that drop in.” She shrugs, flashing a small grin his way in the attempts to sooth him, hands moving along his shoulders to his arms, to rub back and forth gently, softly. She’ll stay with him however long he needs her to, to be an ear and whatever other comfort she can give with soothing words.

- FIN
do not think you are safe because you love her
do not think she won't stain her mouth red with your blood too
KIADA
Kiada has a large X scar on the right side of her neck.
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Kiada, without killing her <3


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