last_kallig | OOM: AU Child! Ibani

OOM: AU Child! Ibani

The last few months have been even harder than usual, after the death of her mother figure. Perhaps grief made her weaker, more vulnerable to sickness, because she knows she's dangerously ill. She hadn't meant to wind up here, wherever here is, but it has shown up in the nick of time.

Ibani shivers against one of the walls of Milliways, her body wracked with fever and hunger both. She's somewhere between seven and ten, clothed in fabric with far too many holes in it, and wearing a slave shock collar around her neck. Her bones stand out too sharply against her skin, and her eyes are fever bright and darting around the room.

She's not sure if this is some dying hallucination, if she's gone mad, or if she truly HAS wound up somewhere utterly strange. Whatever this is, instinct and her body DEMAND food, fuel to fight the sickness that is killing her. Untrained in the Force, she's grasping on instinct for any energy it can give her.

Maybe, maybe if she gets close enough to one of the tables she can steal some food without anyone noticing. Yes, yes that's a good plan

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"I will admit to you, I am not very good at it either - measuring my own worth," his smile turns equally wry. "It may be a learning curve for us both, but you are right - what you were 'worth' before does not matter. Your value is not based on the work that you can do, how many rocks or crystals you can dig up from underground...that is not how a person's worth is measured."

She leans into him. "We will learn together," she affirms. "We're worth more than we've been told we are."

Skellig appreciates the contact as she leans into him - she will be able to sense it in his energy, his Light reserves gaining a hint of extra energy from her positive affirmations.

"As much as these horses would like to see us all day," he says. "There is more to explore."

They bid the livestock goodbye (for now) and then head around the stables; there are gardens here, raised beds, trellises for vines, an orchard of fruit trees half of which he does not even recognize. Skellig does not know who keeps them, or tends to them, but there is a small stand with a "FREE" sign on it, and some crops that have been gathered are laid out in bundles for the taking.

Ibani just STARES at all the plants. It takes her a little while to notice the sign. "People give food away?" she blurts out, looking back and forth rapidly between Skellig and the sign.

"It is usually stocked with a few things...depends on how the seasons are cooperating."

What with the weather in faux!Scotland plus who knows what magical abilities have been laid upon these crops. He looks closer at what is there - a few pears in a basket (at least they look like pears, but their skin is...glittering slightly?), a bundle of carrots. A few small bags of various herbs, some other root vegetables that he has absolutely no idea of...

He picks up two of the pears, hands one to her. "They feel ripe, like one should," he says. "I do not know if they may taste different because they are...sparkly."

She 'listens' for a moment. "They don't feel like they would be dangerous for you or me to eat." She carefully stows the pear away in a pocket.

"Some species can eat things others cant. I got sick one time. because a Rodian boy shared some mushrooms with me. HE could eat them, and he thought I could too, but..."

"You are smart to be careful," he says. "Thank you for checking them over for us."

Skellig stows his away in a small bag that he is carrying with them ~~that was totally there the whole time~~ on their explorations. If her pockets get too full, he will offer to hold hers as well.

"So your connection..." he asks, as they walk - slowly moving through the gardens, continuing on the path that will eventually lead them past the lake and then onwards to the inlet. (If she starts to seem tired, he will carry her on his shoulders.) "It is with everything living?"

She's quite pleased, happy, when he thanks her for checking over the fruit and tells her she is smart to be careful!

She sighs. "I don't know," she tells him. "I could feel the crystals, in the mines. Sometimes sense rocks were going to fall before they fell."

"That is interesting. I wonder if it was somehow your mind working to help keep you protected, keep you safe, using your senses to allow you to react faster."

He glances over at her as they walk.

"And you don't have to know, yet. You are still young, and still learning." A pause. "Also...you do not have to answer any questions that I might ask you, if it bothers you to talk about things. You are allowed privacy. I am just trying to better understand so I can help."

"Maybe," she tells him. "Used to make the others jealous sometimes, angry, that I could always find crystals, that I was good at avoiding the guards."

"They called me a freak, most of the time, when they would speak to me at all."

She leans into him when he says he wants to understand.

Protectively, he brings his arm around her shoulders and keeps her close to his side.

"Gonna be honest with you," he sighs. "Once you grow up, you're probably still gonna get called a freak. And probably worse."

He shrugs slightly. "I get called a freak too. And some other things, that aren't very nice. People are...a lot of people are cruel and uncaring. But you will learn to ignore them...learn to harness that emotion that rises up in your chest, and turn it into something good."

"Makes sense, that it wouldn't change," she tells him. "I learned not to pay them back in kind when I kept losing fights," she admits.

"Will be easier, from now on. I could leave, if people were being mean. And, and I'm not alone."

"You are not alone, and it will be easier. You can always walk away."

A slight smirk pulls at one corner of his mouth.

"Though once you have healed up a bit better and put some muscle on, I will teach you how to fight. I know you obviously can defend yourself, but when you get stronger, that will be easier, too."

Ibani perks up at the thought of learning how to fight. "Mostly I run away," she confesses. "It would be good not to HAVE to run away, though."

She huffs. "And some people need to be punched in the face, they just DO."

"Yes. Some people do just need to be punched in the face." A beat. "Or kicked in the face, but punching is usually easier."

He rustles her hair.

"But until you are strong enough to make sure they won't hurt you, running away is a perfectly good defense. But I will be with you, or nearby...so you run to me, and then we will teach them a lesson together."

"You make good plans," Ibani tells him, grinning.

She puts an arm around him. "I never knew there were so many colors," she tells him, looking at all the flowers.

"That makes sense, if you were underground. All of these plants...they need sunlight to help them grow. It feeds them, like food feeds us. Sunlight, and water, and nutrients from the dirt."

The air is slightly warmer as they near the inlet, a change in the breeze and the foliage; thick Scottish forest begins to mingle and mix with sparse Caribbean palm trees, and the grass changes beneath the bare feet, occasional patches of sand here and there. There is a small hill to climb that blocks the view of the inlet, the sand, and the sea - but it is a gentle slope.

A colorful bird flits by - some kind of wild parrot - blues and yellows and reds flashing brilliantly on its feathers as it squawks excitedly at them.

Ibani nods. "I saw a flower, once," she tells him. "There was the tiniest bit of sunlight, reflected down from somewhere I couldn't see by the crystals. The plant was so small," she holds her fingers about an inch apart. "But it was the most colorful thing I had ever seen. Three curly green leaves and a bright orange flower with ten petals in a circle around a yellow center." There is remembered wonder, awe, in her voice.

Her smile twists, wry and bitter for a moment. "Got caught staring at it instead of working." Skellig....can probably guess what happened after that.

The parrot startles her, makes her laugh. "I am NOT an intruder!" she tells it.

Skellig can absolutely guess what happened after that, with the way her smile twists to something pained and hurt.

"That sounds like the most beautiful flower. I hope one day I get to see one just like it. Maybe we can ask Bar for some seeds, and grow some of them on the balcony outside."

He is grateful for the bird's interruption as it swoops by them.

"Just visitors," he 'reassures' the bird, as they begin the walk up the slope. "Explorers, even!"

"Could we? I hope it's not too warm here." She sounds excited at the prospect of being able to show it to him.

"Exploring the unknown to me!" Ibani adds. She's guessing Skellig has been here before.

They reach the top of the slope and she sees the Lake/Sea. She stares in wonder. "I didn't know there could be that much water in one place."

"The weather outside tends to be pretty comfortable, it does rain quite a bit but there is enough sun for things to grow well."

(Skellig does not mind cloudy days or rain, even if they make his bones ache - it is easier to wear his coat without getting second guessed. He has learned to deal with the pain to avoid being stared at by those who would question why he's wearing a coat when it is a beautiful day outside.)

"We can go down over by the edge," he motions at the area of the lake where the sea clearly joins it - just how that works is Milliways Magic at play. "The water is warmer there, and the sand is soft."

And there is less chance of slimy rocks and mud to step on - the beach area is a big selling point, even with the sand in his feathers being a bit of a pain in the ass.

Ibani would happily help get sand out of his feathers.

Ibani runs down to the edge of the water, stops. "There's something BIG in the water, but it's not hungry right now."

She catches sight of a Sand Dollar near her feet, bends down to pick it up. "What are you?" she asks it, almost as if expecting an answer.

There is a large driftwood log that has washed up at some point, and is weathered enough to be smooth to sit on without risk of splinters. Skellig makes a quick 'hop' over to it and takes a seat, perching himself lightly on it as he watches her explore. He appreciates the warmer temperature here, and allows his wings to spread freely, stretching them out.

"I do not know the name of that one," he says. "But there are shells here, among the sand. Sometimes interesting rocks, and bits of glass that has been worn smooth by the water and washed ashore."

Ibani puts the sand dollar in her pocket. "A good place to find pretty things," she decides.

She looks at his wings. "Can you fly with them, your wings?"

"I can."

Spotting a few errant feathers on the leading edge of his right wing, he brings it around a bit, taking advantage of this time to preen a bit and work them back into place.

"And you are light enough I could carry you in my arms, take you up a bit."

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