I'M A CREATURE of a culture that I create It hadn't been that long since her arrival in Black Rose. It had been about a week or so since both her and her brother had joined the guild of bounty hunters, and even in that short amount of time she had already managed to wear herself out. At first it had been thanks to Kaisto, the talkative mage who offered to show them around town. Though at the beginning he was quite informative and helpful, eventually he managed to get off topic, dragging them in every store in every part of the town, rambling on about savings and historical events she could have cared less about at the time. She had already started to fall asleep on the train on their way here. Standing in the middle of the plaza, listening to some guy moan on about irrelevant stuff for hours on end didn't help her lack of sleep. On top of that she had tried her best to look as awake and alive as possible, giving him lively and forced nods whenever he'd turn back to look at them right before her head started to nod once he turned back to what he was doing. She was pretty sure at some points she had actually managed to fall asleep standing up, though Lucius managed to snap her out of it quickly with a small pat on the head. The next event, had to have been the blood drive. Her first job. After having a few days to get recovered from her move, Astrid had pulled off her first job. Rose Garden had their annual blood drive, and they needed people to help look after the donors. Seeing how it was one of the more easier jobs upon the board at the time, she had taken it. It was quite a nice day. She had only once or twice felt nervous. Once when she saw how many people were actually at the drive. And once more when she started playing her violin for them. She couldn't seem to refuse despite the large crowd and her tendency to freeze up when she was suddenly the center of attention. It was just... Something in that little girl's eyes when she tugged on the bottom of her skirt, asking her to play a song for her. It reminded her too much of herself, the shine in those small, round orbs. They were full of admiration. In the end she had played the entire time, bringing calming music to the staff and patients that seemed to make the once agitated atmosphere brighter. The last event, had been the worst. Getting her passport. It would have been fine, if she had gone by herself. Even if it was packed to the brim, she would have waited. Despite the headache, despite the uneasiness she felt being crammed into a room with other people like a can of sardines, she would have waited like a good citizen and gotten her passport. But she had made one mistake. One very big mistake. She had brought Lucius with her. Anyone who was around the boy for some time would understand quickly he wasn't good around crowds, much like Astrid herself. Though they were two very different people with different methods of dealing with stuff. Where Astrid shuts her mouth and grins through her discomfort, Lucius comforts it directly. This... caused him to cut the line, scare the people there half to death, and practically force them to give them their passports. And even if Astrid had been grateful to get out of there as soon as possible, she hated having to do it that way. She didn't want to become known as a line cutter or an agitator. That would ruin the reputation she was trying to create. It would damage her chances of helping people. The silver haired musician sighed, leaning back into her chair at the guild hall and closing her eyes in thought. Thinking about the past week and all she did was exhausting, almost like she could sleep for a couple of years to forget about the humiliating things that had happened. But there was one thing she hadn't done yet. One thing that was the biggest reason for her coming to this guild in the first place. She hadn't found the one person she was looking for. Whenever she had the time, Astrid had walked around the town in search of him, but with no luck. Asking some of the locals, they had told her he was probably out on a mission and no one knew when he's be back. No one knew. What if it was going to be weeks? Months? Years even before he came back? Who knew how long those higher ranking jobs took to do. If he never came back, what was she going to do? Leaning forward Astrid rested her elbows upon the table, allowing the palms of her hands to cradle her face as she stared at the wall, studying the cracks in the structure. She was already good at music... Sure... But how could she ever be like him if she never learned from him? It was her dream to play music like him. Would waiting for him just be a waste of time? Time she could spend practicing and getting better? No, he had to come back. It wouldn't make sense if he just felt and never came back. This was his guild after all, you don't just leave for a long time only to never return. Maybe if she wished for it. Maybe. Just maybe, he would walk through that door. TAG , Notes , other cool stuff |
credit to nat of adoxography.