[OPEN] i will be your true companion

[wheretheferngrows]

WHO: Fern + various starters, and OPEN
WHAT: Life keeps going, even when you lose someone you care about.
WHEN: Early through mid-January.
WHERE: The Gallows, Kirkwall
NOTES: None currently, will update as necessary.

I. HERB GARDEN (OPEN)


This was not how Fern had ever hoped to take on the mantle of Head Gardener--but with Sina gone and no one else in the base operations project possessing the same skill set, she steps into the role without complaint. Besides, some part of her cherishes the opportunity to familiarize herself with what would have been Sina's old routine.

She's bundled up against the cold one early morning, eyes still a little heavy from recent sleep and her expression tired and neutral, and is at work clearing out some of the remaining bits of dead brush that weren't gathered before the snow and ice storm arrived. Some of the brush is set aside to be used for kindling or mulch later.

It's simple work, tedious, but it helps to keep the lingering grief at bay.



II. BELETH & SORREL


Fern is cautious to approach them at first, even with Sina's promise in the back of her mind. The burial and funeral are over, and it would of course make sense for the two of them to put their own families and the needs of their clan ahead of some silly farm girl who may not realize she's overstepping their boundaries.

Eventually, she summons up her courage and seeks them out in the garden... waiting for the right time, of course, so as to not interrupt them in the middle of a private conversation.

She clears her throat and peers into their peripheral vision, hoping to catch Beleth's eye, or Sorrel's. "Um," she starts gracefully, "hello. I don't... know if you remember me--"

Sorrel surely does. Beleth may not.



III. MESS HALL (NELL)


It has been a bit easier for Fern to focus on her spellcasting since returning from the Plains--a bit, at any rate. Gaining closure in one respect doesn't mean she has a solution to her other most recent problem, namely Finch's arrival and all that that entails. Still, she's desperately afraid of disappointing Nell, and so perhaps tries too hard to focus on the lessons as they are described to her. Too much concentration means burnout, which means more mistakes.

She's trying not to dwell on them while they sit in the mess hall together eating lunch, but it's difficult not to get discouraged. And in the back of her mind, she's toying with another thought, one that Anders brought up to her when he reached out to her with a message the other evening.

In spite of whatever else it is they're discussing, when there's a pause, Fern looks across the table at Nell and asks, "Do you know Anders very well?"



IV. ELVEN ARTIFACTS OFFICE (PEL)


It's a bit of an adventure for Fern to find her way to the Elven Artifacts research offices, just because she spends very little of her day in this part of the Gallows--but find it she does. After a moment spent straightening out her shirt and tucking some loose strands of hair behind her ears, she knocks on the door and waits.

Comments

[wheretheferngrows]

"We might need a bigger garden," she answers and gives him another quick smile over her shoulder. Reaching the store room door, she fishes out her keys and unlocks it, steps inside, and nudges the door open with her foot so Colin can follow.

"Oh I can't wait for spring," she sighs, "it's always so dark in here." She steps over to the candlesticks positioned on one corner of the work table and runs her fingers across it, lighting the wicks.

(See, Colin, you're not the only apostate here.)

1/2

[keenly]

2/2

[keenly]

"I could probably find you a good oil lamp to hang at the door instead of stumbling about in the dark till you reach the table."

Her magic, like his own, is ignored. Does he think she's being reckless? Yes. But it's not his business.

[wheretheferngrows]

"Who's stumbling?" she asks him almost teasingly. Didn't he see her light that candle wick with her hands? She's certainly not in danger of the dark.

His discomfort is missed for the time being. "Here, put the seeds on this table. I can sort them out in a bit."

[keenly]

Colin sets the box down, still a little disquieted. "I do a little dabbling in herbs and potions," he says distractedly. "What else have you got growing?"

He may or may not hear her answer. Her demonstration, the casual use of her power, brings his secrets to near-critical mass. He doesn't know if he can keep living like this, when the people he's growing closer to have no idea about that one half of his life that he has so neatly compartmentalized.