001.st Step [action]

[blade_waltz]

[ It's a good nine o'clock into the evening of August 1st when a young woman shows up in Luceti's town square. Dressed in a white sundress of a new arrival and with her arms wrapped around the book pressed against her chest, she looks confused and only a few steps away from frightened. Her blood-red wings are tense and her eyes are wide open as she looks around, not sure what she is supposed to do.

Actually, what can she do? Lenalee may have traveled far and wide, but it's always been with someone from the Order. To pop up suddenly in an unfamiliar place, stripped of her uniform and with only her Innocence and a strange book nearby, is more than a little overwhelming.

The way she steps out of the woods is so cautious that it can as well be sneaking. Approaching a strange and unfamiliar settlement seems like a terrible idea and it takes all of her willpower to not unfurl the bracelets around her ankles into their true form. But then, it's better than being stuck in the woods and for all she knows, there might be answers here.

She only hopes that the first person she runs into isn't threatening or suspicious. She has enough on her plate as it is right now. ]

Comments

[savedtheworld]

[Maybe her wish comes true! Here's a friendly and unassuming teen monk, who quickly steps over when he spots, with a welcoming smile and a wave. That's a New Feather dress, alright. Sometimes new arrivals were spaced out.]

Hello there!

[blade_waltz]

[ He isn't threatening, but he's definitely suspicious! Why would someone approach a complete stranger as if nothing happened at all?

...nevermind that, what kind of person draws an arrow on their head? Yes, he is definitely suspicious and Lenalee stiffens as she pulls the book closer to her chest. ]

Ah... hello? [ Beat. ] My apologies, but I seem to have lost my way.

[savedtheworld]

[Because friendship?! There's similar arrows running down the back of his arms to his hands as well. But he tries to nod along.]

Well, I'll be glad to guide you! I know my way around this place. But do you... know where it is that you are?

[blade_waltz]

Not in the place where I went to sleep last night, for starters.

[ How could that happen? There was no way someone could simply break into the Order. ]

[savedtheworld]

About that.... You might not be in the same world you started in anymore...

[blade_waltz]

...not the same world?

[ ... ]

What do you mean by that?

[savedtheworld]

[He takes a breath and tries to explain calmly.]

What I mean is.... This is going to sound crazy, or impossible, but... it's true. The thing is, that none of us here in this village are from this world. Everyone gets pulled in somehow... from all kinds of different worlds! And we get stuck here. With wings. We don't know a lot about the how or the why, but... you're one of us now, too.

[rashness]

[Well, there's a boy with a tail and a bundle on his back which has a sword in it. And he's a demon but that's beside the point - he's on his way home from his last shift at Seventh Heaven and he's tired. He got up too early today - what do people have against sleeping ten hours, gosh?

But the result of the big yawn he's going on now he's liable to just walk... into her. Or at least come close to]

[blade_waltz]

Haaaa..!

[ Lenalee suddenly discovers that someone bumping into her from behind while she's tense sends all the pins and needles in her stomach to rush up her spine. She squeaks loudly and jumps away, the book now raised defensively. ]

S-stay away! I have a book and I know how to use it!

[rashness]

What would you even use a book for?!

[Is what he says after stumbling back and flailing both his arms and his tail a little. He'll apologize in a bit, but he didn't even get a look at her until after he caught himself. And he sees- someone he doesn't know and looks alarmed.]

[blade_waltz]

Self-defense, among other things!

[ She stumbles back and raises the diary until it's over her shoulder, as if preparing to smack someone with it. She doesn't attack yet, probably because she expects him to make the first move.

Though honestly, with her dressed covered in pine quills and her hair a mess after waking up in the forest, she looks about threatening as a bristling hedgehog. ]

[rashness]

What, are you gonna beat me with a book or something?!

[This girl looks like a mess. What... the hell. He narrows his eyes and frowns. ]

[blade_waltz]

If you try something, sure! [ Pause. ] I can add a few kicks for good measure!

[ Speaking of kicks, her ankles seem to be injured. There is no way she got those stigmata-like scars in the forest, though. ]

[Action]

[knightofratatosk]

[Fortunately, Emil is about as far from threatening or suspicious as they come as he heads home from an evening of work at the tea shop. She'll most likely spot the antenna bobbing along as he crosses the plaza, humming quietly to himself under his breath. It's clear his mind is elsewhere-- he doesn't even notice that she's there until he's just a few feet away, but when he does, he pauses and waves to her.]

Oh, hello! Are you a New Feather, or did you just get returned from a kidnapping?

[blade_waltz]

[ What a question to break the ice with. Lenalee is so confused that she freezes where she is, eyebrows furrowed and her lips tense in concentration. For a moment, she even forgets to brandish that book like a makeshift leafy weapon the way she's been doing since she arrived. ]

I'm not sure what a New Feather is. [ She finally admits. ] But kidnapped is what I certainly am.

[knightofratatosk]

[Emil just tilts his head, as if he can somehow ascertain by looking which of the two she is. Although when she speaks...]

You must be a New Feather if you don't know what one is, unless they messed with your memories when they brought you back. But I'm pretty sure I haven't seen you around here before...

[blade_waltz]

That would be because I've never been here before!

[ She is getting defensive now, not to mention frustrated. It feels like everyone here knows something she doesn't. Something she won't even a little bit happy about finding out. ]

Look, all I want to know is how to get to London. I have work and a family to take care of...

[knightofratatosk]

[Now he raises his hands in a placating gesture, trying to show that he's only attempting to help. Not that he's surprised by this response, as the reactions of New Feathers usually tend to default to somewhere along the spectrum between anger and disbelief.]

I'm really sorry, but you can't go home. Not until this world decides to send you back.

[blade_waltz]

This world..?

[ Well, now that sounds strange. Not to mention suspicious, which this boy seems to be right now. ]

That sounds like nonsense. It's not like the earth will swallow me down if I attempt to board a train, is it?

[inventings]

{ When Addie is walking back to the community building after spending most of the day sketching and reading about fashion, needing to keep her cover of a designer up somehow, she spots the new girl. She is quite recognizable from that sundress of hers.

Addie blinks. Looks up at the sky to be sure to be sure of the time before looking back at the girl. Did she really come here at this hour? Well. Might as well be a Good Samaritan. Raising her hand that held her bright blue sketchpad, she tries to grab the girl's attention with a wave and calls out just in case her wave wasn't enough. } Hello! I take it that you're new here?

[blade_waltz]

[ Oh, there's a friendly face. Thank goodness for that. Lenalee breathes a sigh of relief as she... steps? At this point, more like stumbles toward the other girl. ]

Hello. It so happens that I am. [ A very faint smile crawls onto her face. ] Would you know the way from here to London, by any chance?

[inventings]

{ There is now a look of sympathy on Addie's face for her when that question is asked. It helps that happens to be a place that she has somewhat fond memories of. }

I'm so sorry but I must tell you that London from here is far away. { She wants to gesture to her wings but remembers she has them covered up in a cloak thanks to the chilliness of the night. Maybe later. One step at a time, girl. } Very far away. We are... How to say this delicately?

In a completely different world. { There is no way for her to say this delicately. Sigh. } I'm sure you have a lot of questions! I'll try to answer them the best I can but I must tell you now-- I myself have only been here for a few months.

[blade_waltz]

[ This is frustrating because much as Lenalee would like to respond, the words don't seem to come together in her head. It's like everything this girl says is noise that refuses to make a lick of sense. A completely different world? Several months? Is any of it possible? Can she...

Those two words stick out in her mind like a sore. It takes some effort, but she finally utters them out. ]

A few months? Were you kidnapped?

[inventings]

More or less. I passed out when on the streets of Germany and here I am. This is certainly not where I am supposed to be. { No point in sugarcoating her answer to that question.

She does look briefly bitter at how long she's been here. God knows what it is going down back where she's from. Then she sighs and she is all smiles again except there is a shade of apology in her expression. Perhaps for her brief mood swing there. } It is how all of us here in Luceti are brought here in the first place.

It has been happening for a long time and I do not believe it will be stopping anytime soon.

[blade_waltz]

[ It's frustrating that the more answers there are, the more questions seem to pop up in her head. If this has been happening for a long time, the Order would have known about it... or would they? They certainly do not seem to know more than General Cross. But then, they would be the kind to try and hide from their Exorcists that there are suspicious kidnappings going on and the one responsible is elusive enough to break into the headquarters.

...does it mean her friends back home are in danger? Hopefully, she can figure out what is going on here soon. ]

But then... [ The thought that she might investigate if she wants her friends and loved ones to avoid the situation she's in steels Lenalee's mind. She straightens up her back, fixes her hold on the book and cautiously speaks up. ] I'm sorry. Would you mind explaining things in order?