( open ) am i in my home or am i dying in the exact place i never thought i'd be?

[valardohaeris]

Who: arya stark and open open open!
What: around and about, exploring and being nosy and annoying
When: Days 411-413
Where: Everywhere! specific locations include
Rating: PG-13 for language maybe? that's all i can think of

[ GEFION PARK ; 411 ]

[ She's spent most of her time keeping an eye out for familiar faces - and been sorely disappointed - which is the main reason why Arya appears to be sulking so much when she wanders into the park for a bit of a break.

...Or, well - sulking more than usual at least. She walks along with her hands in her pockets and shoes scuffing along the floor, head only jerking up whenever movement catches her eye. Best not sneak up on her. She's got Needle strapped to her side, with no intention of letting the sword out of her sight, and she's more jumpy than usual these days. ]

[ THE ARENA ; 412 ]

[ Come on, as if I need to explain this one. She's training. By herself, with a wooden mock up sword at times or just throwing her fists at others, she works herself to the point of exhaustion - and then, she starts growing curious about this power of hers. Catch her fighting away, or perhaps being pestered by questions about the powers in her particular House - Arya's being Body control, one that really doesn't belong in the hands of a ten year old, to be honest. ]

[ A NEEDLE IN A HAYSTACK ; 413 ]

[ Stumbling upon this place is a direct result of sticking her nose in other people's business - in this case, by following someone who Arya decides looks a little on the shady side. She sticks around in the shop after the decidedly not shady stranger leaves, poking around at the odds and ends in the store and inspecting them closely.

She hasn't got any money that she can spend, of course, but that doesn't stop her from hanging around far beyond her welcome anyway. ]

[ CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE ]

[ want to run into arya somewhere else? got something that doesn't fit here? throw it at me anyway. ]

Comments

[arena]

[forthevillage]

[That lack of chakra, while aggravating, does at least allow for good practice. Though he'd trained without using his abilities on the occasion that he was blocked from using them in some form or another, being completely without his chakra and Sharingan had a whole different feel to it.

He hasn't spent much time in the arena, preferring to practice on his own more privately, but it does provide a nice open space to work with. After everything that's happened recently, he chooses to go there today because it will be easier for others to find him should something happen on a city-wide level again. He doesn't trust the occasional respites.

Silent footsteps bring him to a bench, where he takes a seat. Seeing Arya already present, the ninja decides to watch her for a time rather than start anything himself - mostly because she just looks so determined.

Untrained, but determined.

Clementine is younger than him also. He wonders if the gods here purposefully makes sure their youngest travellers are strong willed.

He speaks up as she tires.]

Your form could use some work.

[valardohaeris]

[ It has to be said that Arya isn't the best at taking criticism, so when the stranger addresses her the first reaction she has is to screw her face up into a frown. She has a smart response ready to go, on the tip of her tongue when she pauses.

He's not wrong, after all, she just doesn't like to admit it. ]

Can you help?

[ Her question is careful, measured. When she turns her gaze to him it's as wary as everything else about her. She takes even less likely to strangers than she does to criticism, but she does want to improve. To Arya, being able to defend herself is more important than anything else out here. ]

[forthevillage]

With your form? I am not a teacher.

[He's only helped his brother, and that less than he should have.]

And then there's the matter of what "form" you would want to use to begin with, as right now I see none. So what, exactly, would you want help with?

[It's a rather broad question in these circumstances.]

( ᴘᴀʀᴋ)

[considered]

[ the weather is a bit warmer and jamie moriarty does visit the park often. mostly it's to listen to conversation as people pass her by, sorting through the information, gathering names and details and storing them away with memories of faces. it's easy enough to do when most people are convinced she's merely painting. usually she can be found only with a sketchbook but today it's a small canvas and brushes and paints which create this. jamie moriarty is quite gifted when it comes to restorations (forgeries is a more accurate word but who really cares for those these days? )

she takes notice of the girl and almost dismisses her; and then she sees the sword. not much gets jamie moriarty curious but a girl-child wielding a sword. well.

when the girl's head jerks in her direction, she puts down the brush and eyes the sword. ]

there are no giants to slay here this morning.

[ the small sound of the 'a' speaks of an American accent that feels foreign to jamie but at the same time, it sounds as if she was born speaking it. ]

[valardohaeris]

[ she's never taken much interest in the sea. winterfell has no rivers or lakes, she only barely knows of the trident in the riverlands. she prefers solid grounds to water, but she knows fear - and she knows that she's about to get on a boat at home, to take her away from all that she knows dear.

(or more accurately, what once was all she held dear. can a home really be home if there is no one left in there she calls a friend?) ]

I don't slay giants, [ the answer comes frankly, even a little petulant as she inspects the painting closely. they have art like this in some of the castles she's visited with her family, but seeing one in the process of being painted is somewhat new to her. ] but there's always something to fight.

[ Trust issues? What trust issues. ]

[considered]

[ little girls are something common and jamie feels nothing for them. she had several killed, several kidnapped. she gave birth to one but could never feel too much for the child as she could not feel too much in regards to most people.

this girl, however. there;s always something to fight, like a little street child with a stolen gun but at the same time, there is potential there and Jamie leans back in her seat and watches her. ]

What will you fight here?

[ there is 0 mockery there, only keen interest. ]

( ᴀʀᴇɴᴀ )

[conquering]

[ Morgana watches her with keen interest. She reminds her of herself, in a way, a young girl who insists to learn the sword; though something in the way she moves tells morgana she hadn't began practicing this art in asgard. most women would sigh sadly, to see a child dragged into war and perhaps morgana is the same in that manner, perhaps she feels it is unjust. but at the same time, she doesn't let it show; such talk can only really annoy a child. so she watches her. ]

would you care for someone to practice against?

[ she doesn't look like a warrior. not morgana in her pale skin and red lips and emerald silks but she picks a wooden sword all the same. ]

[valardohaeris]

[ she doesn't look like a warrior at all, but then again, arya doesn't either. perhaps more so now than she had a year back, but she's still scrawny, short for her age. she's still a girl, no matter how short she cuts her hair or muddies her face or spits at the ground of anyone who tells her she can't do something.

so morgana may not be a warrior, but then neither is arya, so she shrugs. ]

Don't go easy on me. I can fight.

[ which isn't strictly a lie. mostly self-taught, but with some legitimate lessons spliced in here and there. not to mention, the hands on practice she'd received ever since her father had been arrested.

actually using a sword to kill people is a bit different from throwing a wooden stick around, but if she doesn't focus too much then she won't think about the way the boy in the inn had whimpered. ]

...Are you a Lady?

[ she asks, emphasis on the 'Lady' the way a proper highborn girl should. ]

[conquering]

I wouldn't have gone easy on you even if you couldn't. If you were bright, you would have learned from it.

[ said with a small grin as she picks up the sword and at Arya's question, she curtsies low and pretty. ]

A Lady, yes. The Lady of Camelot. But if you wish to ask if all I do all day is brush my hair and hide behind my knights, the answer would be that I can beat them all in swordplay.

( park )

[doveprincess]

[Sansa has taken Princess out for a walk in Geffion Park, when Sansa spots a short girl looking like a boy. But upon a closer look, she realizes it's her sister Arya.]

Arya?

[valardohaeris]

[ Excuse you Sansa, she- ...totally looks like a boy still so that's a very fair statement, not to mention she's made no effort to clean her day to day appearance up. She's less grimy than before, but that's about it. ]

Sansa? [ She actually smiles when she sees her sister (gods, what a far cry from just a few years ago that is) and stops in her determined walk through the park. ] Are you here to look for f- others too?

[ nope not father that's not what she was going to say shut up sansa ]

[doveprincess]

[Arya pls, or Sansa will be forced to introduce you to Kimberly.]

It's you! [She can't help it, and wraps her long arms around her small sister.] I'm glad you're here!

Actually, I know where Robb, Jon, Bran and mother can be found. Father and Rickon... They're not here... [Her face turns just slightly sad for a moment.]

Arena

[tinypink_crane]

[Kim's shows up at the arena herself for two reasons-one of them having to do with the bow and arrows strapped to her back, the other has to do with her being dressed in grey sweat pants and a pink, floral leotard.

Just because Billy has gone home doesn't mean she could slack off in training. If anything, it's now seen as a welcome distraction. Regardless of who came and went to asgard, there was always gymnastics.

She does recognize the girl at the punching bag, recognized her from when she first arrived. She would almost say she's too young to be training with the fortitude that she is, but then she was fourteen when she became a ranger, so who was she to judge.]

You need to work on your form. You'll end up breaking your knuckles against a real target. [She doesn't look it, but she has grown better in martial arts in those three years-with Jason and then Tommy taking over leadership, she was determined to pull her weight as part of the team. Even with them gone, she's tried to keep up with training, even signing up for mixed martial arts classes.]

[valardohaeris]

I've hit people before.

[ The stubborn remark comes out before she actually looks to see who is talking to her, and when she sees that it's actually someone she semi-recognises. She gets a look on her face that is almost - almost- apologetic, but she doesn't take it back, just shrugs and looks down at her fists. ]

I don't think I'll be fighting many with these. [ She pauses for a moment, then glances up. ] Where did you get those?

[ Said while looking directly at that bow on Kim's back. ]

[tinypink_crane]

Hitting's not the same as punching. A slap could be a hit, but punching means going full on trying to knock them out. [Several years of training under Jason and Tommy have taught her this the hard way. Her lessons with Ms. Blade weren't letting up either.]

[She automatically looked behind her.] The bow I got from the alter infront of the welcome hall, the arrows are from the shops. [She did get some from the alter as well, but the first battle she was in had damaged most, so she needed to get them replaced.] My power is energy transfer, but that usually means getting down and dirty to get energy to transfer with.

[Hence the need for protection.]

[2cool4guardian]

[Jack spends time in the park every now and then. Not only to play with the children, but to have some alone moments too. He's always been a free spirit (pun not intended) and sometimes being surrounded by people and/or staying inside for long could be annoying as hell

He's resting on a tree branch when he spots Arya - wow, that's one jumpy, sulking kid. And with a sword no less. He hates it, but he's training himself not to complain (much) about it. They're in the middle of war, so better if these kids can defend themselves.

That doesn't mean he can't try to cheer her up, though. Using his Telekinesis, he forms a puppy with the fallen leaves in front of her. Cute, right?]

don't even front jack that pun is totally intended

[valardohaeris]

[ She's honestly not trying to sulk. As far as it goes, she's actually quite lucky to have ended up in Asgard. Her brothers are here and alive, her mother too. Even her sister is a welcome sight after all this time, and yet-

...of course the good luck had to run out. She should know not to hope for anything by now. She has so much, surely it's selfish to hope for any more, but she's spent the day waiting by the palace for her father to appear all the same.

A puppy made of leaves is a pretty large (and welcome) distraction. Arya actually cracks a smile, already a rare sight to most, and she reaches a hand out to try and catch it. If he's really lucky, she might even laugh. ]

[park]

[allpurposescarf]

[There's not usually any sort of pattern to his wanderings. But the park is a good enough place to visit, even if he isn't really meaning to run into people. But meaning to or not, he isn't about to let someone sulk by themselves. Not without doing his part.

Either way, he's very good at catching people's attention without meaning to, mostly thanks to that scarf of his.]

Lovely day for a stroll, isn't it?

[valardohaeris]

[ It does an excellent job of attracting her attention. Honestly, she's never seen anything like it, and Arya doesn't even realise that she's staring until the man speaks directly to her.

She pauses, caught between embarrassment and an entirely unnecessary knee-jerk tendency towards defiance, but finally settles for a small nod. ]

It's nice, [ and she stops again, just for a breath before adding with a shrug, ] but I like it colder.

( ᴄʟᴏsᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ sɪʀɪᴜs )

[valardohaeris]

[ Arya isn't sure what draws her to the shadows. Habit, maybe, or insomnia. It's hard to sleep when you're used to your nightmares being kept at bay by becoming a wolf every night, you know.

So basically, she's lurking around in places where she can get some gossip, simply because she can't figure out how to sleep through the night. It's easy enough, security isn't that much better here than in Westeros, and if anyone has caught her so far they haven't said anything.

Tonight's another one of those nights, and she's sitting on the floor at the edge of the bar, listening to two travelers drunkenly ramble at each other. She's zoning out slightly though, turning a coin between her fingers instead of paying attention to information that really, probably isn't that interesting to begin with. ]

[doggedly]

[The girl's back, Sirius notices, absently, one slow night at the pub. He swipes his rag against the bartop as he gives her a sidelong glance--or, rather, her shirtsleeve, because she's sitting on the floor, nearly tucked out of sight. No one's noticed her except for him, so far as he can tell, all these nights. And there have been a few, like she's a stray cat that's been fed once and comes back for more scraps whenever she deigns to be in the area.

Only she doesn't beg, and she doesn't steal, she just... sits there. Just like she's doing now (as far as he can tell, given that she's mostly hidden, even to him).

Sirius--neither proficient enough a bartender to be trusted alone at the bar, not yet, but just proficient enough that he's still hireable and useful--swipes his rag against the bartop again and leans his elbows on it, watching that shirtsleeve of hers. It's a slow night. There's only a few customers, most of them regulars, easy enough to serve and shoo on. Any girls around have been flirted with; you have to give them a cool-down period, so he's waiting that one out. He draws a line in a bit of moisture not caught by his rag, drawing his finger through it and tracing it along the wood of the bartop.

And then he heaves himself back and wanders down to the end that the girl is sitting by, leaning over the bar so he can look at her, upside down.]

What's your poison, miss?

[Like he's actually going to serve alcohol to her. Actually, he might.]

[Needle in a Haystack]

[womanfromacre]

[Maria has been in and out of the shop most of the day, toing and froing and ordering idle novizi about as she does so when she comes to realise that the scruffy looking child who has been lurking and snooping has been there for quite some time and not once reached into their pockets to produce coin to order anything.

A customer interrupts her thoughts and she retreats to the back room to bring some incense, and after bidding the paying customer well she turns her attention to the urchin.]

Do you plan on eyeing up everything in the shop all day, or do you seek to buy something?

[valardohaeris]

[ Arya likes to think of herself as quite subtle, honestly, but there's a reason they called her 'Arya Underfoot' in Winterfell. Maybe she's gotten better at creeping around quietly since then, but there's 'hiding in the woods' good, and then there's Assassin good - and frankly by comparison, Arya sucks.

She has the decency to at least look mildly embarrassed when Maria addresses her (or maybe it's just frustration, it's hard to tell) but she's lost as to what angle to take. Should she go in strong and defiant, chin held high, or beg off and plead for a reprieve. It is cold outside, and she certainly looks scruffy enough that she could surely claim homelessness. Finally though, she just tilts her head a little and steps back slightly. ]

I've no coin to buy anything with. [ Honesty is the best policy, right? She huffs out a little exhale, then glances at the door. Okay, so maybe she's playing up the sad little child act a little more than is strictly accurate, but she really doesn't want to go back to Hel yet. It's so dull, and too many people from her world that she'd rather dead live there. ]

[emergingspirit]

[The stranger in question was, in fact, a local looking to buy some tea. They're shortly followed by Connor, who drops in briefly to retrieve a package before he's gone again on a few deliveries. He wouldn't pay much attention to Arya except that she's still there every time he drops in and the only people who spend that much time at the shop are Assassins, which Arya is not.

Still, he's gentle enough about confronting her regarding her overstaying her welcome.]

If you are lost, there are maps available.

[valardohaeris]

[ Uh, rude.

She isn't very good with dealing with people. At least, not when it comes to dealing with people using anything other than rude retorts or aggressive responses. She learned pleasantries as befitting of a highborn lady such as herself, but it's pretty clear that Arya left behind those sensibilities quite a while back. It's not who she is. So she's caught for a minute, looking at Connor with an almost confused expression as she tries to work out how to talk her way out of being kicked out of a shop.

Finally she shrugs, shaking her head. ]

I'm not lost. [ She pauses for a moment, then shoves her hands into her pockets. She hasn't got any money yet, but she might have something in there worth trading. ] I just want some water.