The Pocket Plane
???, 334
Slavina
Gods only know where and when..... Daina's old bedroom? Day ????
Slavina meanders purposefully through the mist (never minding that purposeful and meandering are generally not paired), hurrying her way from one thing that catches her attention to the next. Sometimes is a feature of the landscape, sometimes a plant or rock, sometimes a pattern of swirls in the fog. Her skirts swirl around her ankles in a mockery of the mist, given body and weight by the moisture clinging to them. The same moisture beads like gems on Slavina's grass-and-moss garlands, on her hair, on the fringe of her shawl.
A light ahead catches her attention. She hones in on it, making as straight a path for the little-star as the way allows (while making allowances as neccessary for the spins and dips needed to appease the spirits surrounding her).
Fate
The mist swirls at her passing, and soon parts slightly in favor of a clearing which bears the same scrubby growth as the world not a week ago past. And in the clearing, a small hut, smaller than the bog-hut from before, though made of all the same material and with the same design structure. A blue witch-light floats on a sconce just outside the door, casting dim illumination.
Also there's a Nora, muttering to herself—or Brian, perhaps—just in front of the house, squatted down to examine the contents of a basket bearing food.
Like this, it's easy to notice how small of frame she is, how frail-looking. Even when she was being hefted over Kelly's shoulder she'd seemed bigger, as if she filled every hair of the space of her kicking and screaming had forged for her. But there is none of that now.
Slavina
Slavina doesn't slow down at all—in fact she lengthens her strides, dodging scrub and patches of sucking mud as she goes. She does stop at the edge of the circle of light (she has the presence of mind for that, just barely) and stands quivering with restrained energy. "Hello Nora!" she sings. "I brought some things for you!"
With a flourish and a deep Liudzi-style curtsey, Slavina thrusts a cloth-wrapped parcel towards Nora.
Fate
Nora snaps a look up to Slavina, eyes wide in startlement, face draining entirely of blood.
For a moment she's frozen. Then her eyes flick to the parcel and she stands up. 'Right,' she says. She doesn't move, just eyeing the package and standing there. 'What d'you want?'
Slavina
Slavina hesitates just a moment, lips making a little "o" as she gets this unexpected reaction. But it's only a moment and she forges ahead undeterred.
"To give this to you!" She jostles the parcel a little. "It's food, some warmer clothes, soap, and a present! Also to see how you're doing. You've been out here so long." Concern bleeds into her voice, her brows.
Fate
Nora stares at her a moment longer. 'But what do you want?' she asks again, slower, more enunciated, as if Slavina were impaired.
Slavina
Slavina rolls her eyes and makes a huge, dramatic shrug-fling-gesture with her arms. "What do you mean what do I want? I want you to be okay! I want to share this with you!" at this she jostles the parcel more insistently. "I want loads of other things that have nothing to do with you so I'm sticking with those two for now!"
Fate
A flash of anger crosses Nora. It strings her taut in its passing. She steps closer, not once moving to take her parcel. Then, staring Slavina straight in the face, she says, 'I. Don't. Want. It.'
At that, she turns around, ignoring the basket still on the ground, and enters her hut, closing the door with a note of finality.
But then, the door slams open again and Nora comes storming out, fury fully ablaze. 'No. You don't get to insult me by selling me nonsense and calling it a favor.' She tromps forth, one more ignoring the basket on the ground, but stops just outside Slavina's circle. 'What are you doing, paying me back for... for... whatever it was you did to me? You feel guilty? Issat it? Ashamed, maybe? Are you regrettin' it? Spare me!' Her brow furrows deeper, clefting dark shadows between them. 'I know you're a bloody liar and I know you're bloody good at it. I will not allow you to lie to me.' Her eyes flick to the parcel. 'And I will not allow you to use me ever again. So either square the fuck up when you're gabbin' at me or go and may the sidhe use your fuckin' spine as a fuckin' ladder for all the wet farts I give.'
Slavina
Slavina scarcely has time to start moving between dissapearance and reappearance. She doesn't flinch even a little at Nora's diatribe, words sliding off her like rain on a duck.
"Of all the the things that shame me you think using a stranger to save my family's lives would be even one line of one verse?" Slavina actually laughs a little at the thought. "You know me better than that now don't you?" She hums a little and tucks the package-strings into her belt to get her hands back. "Anyway we're not strangers now. I don't give a flying fuck about paying you back, but I take care of my family. You know that too."
Fate
She wasn't yelling.
More than that, she wasn't even fazed. And she was referencing... whatever it was had happened... without a flinch. Cutting straight to the truth of it.
Nora stares, at a complete loss, tight shoulders rising and falling with each breath.
'Yeah, well...' She casts about for something. 'You can fuck right off with that too. I'm not your... I'm not your bloody family!' The force of her anger is now more pushed forward rather than flowing naturally. 'A-and good thing, too. I don't need a fuckin' loony losing her shit and abandoning me once a season.' Nora eyes Slavina carefully, practically holding her breath for some kind of reaction. 'Or worse, tryin' to bloody drown me.'
Slavina
A tense moment of silence. Slavina's eyes widen into a picture of hurt at Nora's words and she covers her mouth with the end of her scarf. But then.....
"Fine. Whatever." It's all gone with a flick of her hand. Slavina shakes her head a little, sending droplets of water and bits of garland flying through the air. "But it's not like you have anyone else, do you?"
Fate
Nora tenses further, once more at a complete loss. The hurt, written so baldly on Slavina's face... she knows it, as truly as if the expression had been writ on her own face, born of her own hurt.
Like that, the heat of her anger is gone. Her gaze slides to the side. She doesn't respond, but is locked in place.
Slavina
Insight check: would nora be receptive to a non-threatening overture of friendship right now?
Fate
Well. That largely depends on the overture. But she's not going to cuss Slavina out again.
Slavina
I was thinking something along the lines of re-offering the food she brought, in the sense of "wanna share"? But the goal is not to do something that scares her.
Fate
Well. She's going to be scared regardless, because she's just really scared overall.
But it isn't going to chase her away.
Slavina
Since it looks like they're not going anywhere, Slavina sits down. It's a movement too graceful to really be called a plop, but it is most definitely a plop's more elegant cousin. She doesn't seem to mind that the ground is muddy.
In a few quick moves she's taken the parcel back out and unwrapped it, using the wrapping as a ground-cover to lay out the contents. Fruits mostly, and some little dumplings and cakes Daina made. A stoppered gourd full of tea. Slavina's cloak. The shrivled corpse of a two-headed squirrel they saved for later study.
Slavina waves one of the little cakes where she's sure Nora can see it. "These are really good. You should try some! I'm going to eat now because I'm supposed to, do you want to sit with me?"
Fate
Nora stares again, and even takes a step back as if she were going to turn back towards her hut.
But she doesn't. Instead she hesitates, and then wordlessly approaches, seats herself, and wordlessly starts in on the food, manner subdued as if she'd come fresh from the basement.