1. Seeking Shelter Marie was beginning to see why stomping out in a huff earlier had been such a terrible idea. Somewhere on the fringes of Lethevale, as the sun had begun its steady descent, the moon, only a small crescent, had risen, lending an eerie glow to the woods, and a fine drizzle had started. All fine! She could withstand a little rain.
Then the sky had seemingly opened up, releasing a deluge of water that thoroughly soaked her through to the bone. Her skirts were plastered to her legs like a second skin, making it difficult to walk back the way she’d come through the woods. And her boots, which had been clean and shiny when she’d started this journey, squelched in the mud which sucked at her feet and was more quicksand than damp dirt.
And, still, she didn’t think she quite wanted to return home yet — home which was, in fact, a patched up old tent.
Let the scoundrel (which was how she was going to think of Jack until she’d had ample time to be angry and stew, upon which he would likely revert back to her love or her darling dear) wonder if she’d drowned in a puddle, or worse, twisted her ankle and was now fending for herself in the wilderness with a stick. It would serve him right! Assuming he would wonder at all.
Which, of course, was not the train of thought she wanted to be having at the moment. Not when she was still in the middle of a very well-deserved temper tantrum.
Except that she naturally was completely turned around by the time she stepped out of the trees. The circus tents and cars were surely to the left, right? Though nothing to the left looked familiar and she decided to go right. Which led to a whole lot else that didn’t look familiar. All the while, the rain started falling heavier, in silvery sheets that, at times, Marie could barely see through. By the time she found a home [ooc note: cottage, creepy mansion, tavern, shack, whatever your character lives in/wherever your character currently is:) ], her carefully designed hair style had been weighed down with water, most of the waves pulled from their pins and stuck to her cheeks. The bottom inch of her dress had a thick layer of mud caked on it. And her shoes... well, forget about her shoes. If she’d been safe at home her father would have just bought her a new pair. Here, she imagined, she’d be expected to clean them off as though they weren’t ruined.
“Hello?” It was said with a knock at the front door. Between the rain and the barely moonlit sky, she wished she had a lantern. Even a lit candle. Something to provide at least a bit of light so this didn’t feel so foreboding.
Not that either would have done much good in this weather.
2. The Beast! The Terrible Beast!
It was truly amazing how easily she could find herself out in the dark, in questionable weather, in this place.
But it was only when Marie began to feel like she was being watched that she felt a chill slither down her spine. It was a cold, unsettling feeling that had her eyes darting from tree to tree, looking for something that would either confirm the feeling or the absence of anything that would tell her she was being silly.
Truthfully, there was an excellent chance she was just being silly. This town had given her an eerie, uncomfortable sensation since they’d arrived, which she’d mainly chalked up to the confusion over her current predicament. ie: being in a different country with a new husband who hadn’t been entirely forthright with her from the beginning. Never mind the fact that his circus wasn’t the cheery, brightly lit fantasy she’d been imagining. It was more than a little creepy and that environment had left her unsure of just about everything.
Her eyes caught a glimmer of something in the trees. Yellow and shimmery and bright. Then it was gone again.
It was followed by a rustle in the bushes. And then a large shape leaping in her direction, dark and menancing, that hit dead center and knocked her on her back.
Marie started to try to draw in a breath to scream and realized the fall had knocked all the air out of her.
Then she realized that the warm, wet feeling on her face was a result of whatever had jumped on her licking her cheeks. A woof soon followed and as she started to get her her breath back, she couldn’t help but start laughing.
A stray dog. She’d been terrified of a simple, friendly stray dog.
Marie Napier | Rogue/xmcu
Marie was beginning to see why stomping out in a huff earlier had been such a terrible idea. Somewhere on the fringes of Lethevale, as the sun had begun its steady descent, the moon, only a small crescent, had risen, lending an eerie glow to the woods, and a fine drizzle had started. All fine! She could withstand a little rain.
Then the sky had seemingly opened up, releasing a deluge of water that thoroughly soaked her through to the bone. Her skirts were plastered to her legs like a second skin, making it difficult to walk back the way she’d come through the woods. And her boots, which had been clean and shiny when she’d started this journey, squelched in the mud which sucked at her feet and was more quicksand than damp dirt.
And, still, she didn’t think she quite wanted to return home yet — home which was, in fact, a patched up old tent.
Let the scoundrel (which was how she was going to think of Jack until she’d had ample time to be angry and stew, upon which he would likely revert back to her love or her darling dear) wonder if she’d drowned in a puddle, or worse, twisted her ankle and was now fending for herself in the wilderness with a stick. It would serve him right! Assuming he would wonder at all.
Which, of course, was not the train of thought she wanted to be having at the moment. Not when she was still in the middle of a very well-deserved temper tantrum.
Except that she naturally was completely turned around by the time she stepped out of the trees. The circus tents and cars were surely to the left, right? Though nothing to the left looked familiar and she decided to go right. Which led to a whole lot else that didn’t look familiar. All the while, the rain started falling heavier, in silvery sheets that, at times, Marie could barely see through. By the time she found a home [ooc note: cottage, creepy mansion, tavern, shack, whatever your character lives in/wherever your character currently is:) ], her carefully designed hair style had been weighed down with water, most of the waves pulled from their pins and stuck to her cheeks. The bottom inch of her dress had a thick layer of mud caked on it. And her shoes... well, forget about her shoes. If she’d been safe at home her father would have just bought her a new pair. Here, she imagined, she’d be expected to clean them off as though they weren’t ruined.
“Hello?” It was said with a knock at the front door. Between the rain and the barely moonlit sky, she wished she had a lantern. Even a lit candle. Something to provide at least a bit of light so this didn’t feel so foreboding.
Not that either would have done much good in this weather.
2. The Beast! The Terrible Beast!
It was truly amazing how easily she could find herself out in the dark, in questionable weather, in this place.
But it was only when Marie began to feel like she was being watched that she felt a chill slither down her spine. It was a cold, unsettling feeling that had her eyes darting from tree to tree, looking for something that would either confirm the feeling or the absence of anything that would tell her she was being silly.
Truthfully, there was an excellent chance she was just being silly. This town had given her an eerie, uncomfortable sensation since they’d arrived, which she’d mainly chalked up to the confusion over her current predicament. ie: being in a different country with a new husband who hadn’t been entirely forthright with her from the beginning. Never mind the fact that his circus wasn’t the cheery, brightly lit fantasy she’d been imagining. It was more than a little creepy and that environment had left her unsure of just about everything.
Her eyes caught a glimmer of something in the trees. Yellow and shimmery and bright. Then it was gone again.
It was followed by a rustle in the bushes. And then a large shape leaping in her direction, dark and menancing, that hit dead center and knocked her on her back.
Marie started to try to draw in a breath to scream and realized the fall had knocked all the air out of her.
Then she realized that the warm, wet feeling on her face was a result of whatever had jumped on her licking her cheeks. A woof soon followed and as she started to get her her breath back, she couldn’t help but start laughing.
A stray dog. She’d been terrified of a simple, friendly stray dog.