The Lost Lantern [COMPLETE]

Two days had passed since Merida's unceremonious induction into the world of Radiant Garden.

First off, she'd been living with Rikku ever since the first day she got here, bless that girl's heart. The first night was difficult, granted, but she'd been feeling much better since then - much more light on her feet, as though a great weight had lifted off her heart. It was nice to know that in this strange place she was slowly growing acquainted with that she would be taken care of. Even if she despised being mollycoddled, it's not like Rikku was suffocating her. Rather, she was providing the redhead much desired assistance... as well as a friend.

Yes, she'd grown fond of Rikku indeed.

Now, for the first time, Merida was wandering the city without guidance. She had been given, as Rikku had said, free reign of the city. Thanks to Rikku's tour, Merida had remembered locations - but stumbled across a few that were less than satisfactory, leading to some of her first real encounters with Heartless. Thank goodness that her arrows didn't vanish when the Heartless did, or else she'd be awfully low on her supply.

She'd been out to get groceries and toiletries, anyways; both of the roommate's lack of cooking experience led to the desire for easily-made items... like sandwiches. However, they were going to try tackling some bigger dishes soon and, thus, the grocery run. She'd also been eager to explore, as she always is; an adventurous spirit cannot keep to herself for long, and the depression she'd felt the first day had slowly changed into a resolve to restore her world and get the mysterious "motivators."

Yes, Merida still felt sad sometimes. But she had somebody that she felt she could count on, somebody that she was warming up to. Somebody that was becoming something awfully close to a friend.

She turned a corner, and waited for the feel of her dress swishing about her ankles - but it didn't come. She was so used to having on a long skirt of some kind that the changes that "pants" gave her were hard to fathom. But her dress had been dirty, and honestly, pants were a lot better for traveling. She was wearing something called "skinny jeans," high-waisted and comfortably stretchy, with an easy button-down style to manage. She wore a loose, dark green shirt that reminded her of her old dress. Her brown boots she still wore, as those were comfortable and fine for her surroundings, and her quiver was still in the belt around her waist, and her bow slung over her back. Her hair was in her favorite position - loose and free, spilling down her back and occasionally getting in her face.

Merida continued walking, getting used to the feel of new clothes - until she realized she was getting closer to the outskirts of town. A wrong turn again. With a groan, she started to turn back around.

"EUGENE!"

An anguished shout startled her, and her hands immediately pulled her bow off. Within half a second, an arrow was notched, and she was ready for a battle. The scream had sounded like a scared human's shout - a shout for help, perhaps, from a mysteriously named "Eugene?"

Carefully, slowly, Merida stalked the empty street as though she were hunting a prey in the forest. She kept her ears wide open, listening for the sound of an attack; her breathing slowed and quieted until she became nearly soundless. Some small part of her was completely at ease; this was the closest she'd felt to her actual self since she'd wound up in this strange place. It was as though the city had disappeared and the woods of her homeland had surrounded her. Yet, she stayed alert, listening, listening...

No sounds of a scuffle came to her ears, but something that sounded an awful lot like crying did.

She relaxed her bow, but only slightly, and her walk became a little bit faster. She peered in through alleyways she passed, but most of them turned up empty... until, close to another one, she heard a loud gasp of surprise.

Merida slowly turned the corner into the alley and poked her head in. It seemed as though nothing was out of place - but, oh, what was that? A pair of eyes in the darkness, or a trick of the light? She called out just in case.

"Hello? Anyone back thare? Are ye all righ'?"

Cautious as ever, she gripped her bow - just in case there was a foe, not a friend, back there.

Of course, there may be nothing there at all... but Merida had pretty good instincts.

(OOC: sorry this got so long, and I hope you don't mind me joining this thread!)

For a moment, Merida stared into the darkness. Nothing moved, nothing shifted - just her quiet breath. Her grip tightened on her bow, but she kept it down, despite her survival instinct wanting her to be at the ready at all times. She didn't want to scare some poor person.

And then the girl stepped into the light, and despite what insanity in appearances she'd been seeing these last few days in Radiant Garden, her mouth opened slightly in a silent exclamation of surprise.

She was young - though probably a few years older than Merida yet, though not by much. Her dress was pink (and in a style that the redhead was a little familiar with) and several inches too small; Merida could see the ample ankle and the unnaturally short sleeves. Her eyes were a pretty green, wide and innocent, framed by dark lashes and eyebrows that didn't match her hair whatsoever.

But her hair. It was a blinding shade of blond, and very silky and natural-looking; but the farther the girl stepped into the light, the more Merida could see just how long it was. It surpassed her own hair, for heaven's sake - and at least by several metres. Longer, even. Hair didn't grow like that... not where Merida was from.

As she spoke, however - in high, girlish tones - Merida had the sense to close her mouth and seem somewhat normal. The last thing this girl probably wanted was to hear how strange her hair was to somebody else. She either got that all the time, or never, depending on the rarity of super long hair on her world. For, by this point, Merida was almost certain that the girl was no local; even without hiding in dark alleys, she stuck out like a sore thumb, similar to how Merida looked out of place the first day she had arrived, as well. And the words out of the mysterious girl's mouths proved it.

"Uh, excuse me Ms.? Do you happen to know where the Kingdom of Corona is?"

Oh.

Oh boy.

Merida slung her bow on her back again, buying herself time to think. "No," she answered honestly... but paused, an awkward silence hanging.

She really, really wasn't good with talking to people. Or talking. Or people. She just wasn't good with social interactions in general. And now... now this girl needed somebody like a Rikku, somebody to explain this whole mess and... and be there for her if she was upset, and... and...

Bile rose in Merida's throat. She was not cut out for comforter work. She didn't even know this girl; why should she help her? Surely she'd be smart enough to figure things out herself.

Wha' if Rikku 'ad though' tha', hmm? Whare'd ye be now, Ah wonder?

Still lost, alone, and confused - that much was nearly certain.

She'd been through tougher than this, darn it. A little interaction with an unknown person wouldn't kill her. She'd figure out what to say... eventually... somehow... without hurting anybody's feelings.

Well, she was going to try, anyways.

Merida steeled her resolve and stood a little straighter. She forced a smile to her lips - her usual half-smile, the impish one. Once it was there, it didn't feel so unnatural. She'd be okay; she'd help this girl, even though back in her old kingdom she wouldn't be caught dead helping somebody she didn't know. (Maybe this was all for the better then.)

"No, Ah 'aven't seen this... Corona. It's probably no' aroond these pairts." She grimaced. "Long story. Any'ow, lass... Ah'm Merida. O' DunBroch."

The redhead held out her hand, inviting the blond to step farther out of the shadows - take her first few steps in this new world, as it were. She smiled again, and it came easier this time.

"Wha' aboo' ye? Wha's yer name?"

'Rapunzel,' hmm? The novelty of the name wore off quickly on Merida; though it was, by all means, a strange name to her still. Plus it was kind of long and hard to pronounce. This aggravated her slightly; she was still having problems with the locals understanding her accent, but she didn't know how to give it up (nor did she want to). Hard words to pronounce would only make it harder for people to understand her. It was an irritation.

At her next quesiton, Merida was surprised. She was already coming to the conclusion that people randomly arrived in this place? What had led her to think that? Maybe the act of one's world disappearing and leading them here was enough to rouse suspicion... Still, Merida hadn't come the conclusion until it was told to her (though some part of her had started guessing once she'd glimpsed the colorful populace).

"Uhh... this plaice is nae DunBroch. I's called Radiant Gairden, lass - er, Rapoonzel." She grimaced a bit before admitting the next part. "An' aye, Ah'm... wha' ye migh' say... as lost."

Merida was about to suggest taking Rapunzel to town and maybe giving her a tour, but then the girl collapsed to her knees, her face in her hands. The redhead froze, hearing unmistakable sobs coming from the blond girl.

Oh no. She groaned, bringing her own hand to her face and rubbing her forehead. She didn't know how to handle a crying girl! Whenever the triplets would get upset, Merida would let Elinor handle them, and edge away to her own room - or the woods, if she could. Never had she felt so responsible for another person. She shirked away from the feeling, not liking it at all.

But she had to do something. She couldn't just stand here awkwardly, gawking at this depressed girl. After all, Merida had been helped by a selfless person when arriving; who's to say how rare that was? If she left, would Rapunzel be left to her own devices, possibly to be slain by a passing Heartless? She'd never forgive herself if that happened.

She sighed, a huffy one through her nose, not believing what she was about to do.

Awkwardly, the redhead crouched down by the blond. "Listen," she said quietly, and was struck by inspiration. "Yer... yer frien' - Eugene ye called ou' was i'? - le's go look fer 'im. 'e maigh' be aroon' 'ere somewhare.

"C'mon, oop ye go, lass, thare's a good girl." Merida reached out to gently grasp one of Rapunzel's hands, even though guilt flooded through her. Way to make promises she couldn't keep!; "Eugene" probably was nowhere near here, not even on the same world... or maybe not even alive.

But, she thought despairingly, she had to say something. She couldn't just tell Rapunzel while she was crying that her world was destroyed, gone! The words had tumbled out by accident, just something Merida had latched onto in a moment of panic, just to get the poor girl back on her feet again.

Still, there was no going back now. They would search for a while, and then once they inevitably came up empty-handed, Merida would tell her what had probably happened. The whole truth.

She swallowed the guilt down; the truth-telling could come later. Right now, she was more concerned about getting Rapunzel's emotional status in a place where the blond could handle.

And also in a place Merida could handle, as well.

Merida rose with the blond, feeling the weight of her daintier hand. Smooth and clean compared to Merida's callouses, it felt as though this girl had never been on an adventure in her life. She eyed the flowers and the ridiculously long braid; even Rikku - who had been rather... exposed with her dress sense - had more of a tomboyish feel than Rapunzel.

Oh, but just listen to herself. Merida was judging the poor girl, moments after she'd just arrived to a brand new world. The ginger shook her head, and with a slight beckon of her hand, bade Rapunzel follow her on their beginning walk.

The blond was quiet to start out with - though Merida could hear every breath she drew and the ungainly way her bare feet (bare feet! Goodness she could step on something and be in real trouble) slapped on the pavement. She supposed this girl in her too-small princess dress (oh, that was rich, mocking somebody else for being a "princess" when she actually was one) never had a moment where she needed to be silent as a shadow.

But then, they were searching for someone, weren't they? It would make more sense to make noise, to draw someone over to them. Something about that notion struck Merida as a Very Bad Idea Indeed; what if they drew trouble? What if the extra noise invited Heartless along? Merida was reckless, but she was paradoxically cautious about her rash behavior.

"So what's DunBroch like, and how did you end up here?"

A snappy retort almost found its way out of her mouth, but Merida bit it back, along with her general unfriendliness. She'd been about to tell Rapunzel to be quiet - but they weren't in the woods, they were in a town (albeit the outskirts), and she had every right to speak if she wanted to. Though, Merida thought dryly, she'd found the quickest way to talk about Merida's past, which she liked to avoid (except to Rikku but, well, she trusted her).

Then she sighed. Rapunzel didn't need this sort of unfriendly behavior. She mulled over her answer in her head and drew a breath to speak -

- and then froze, the color washing out of her cheeks.

Heartless. Dozens of them, by the look of it, and materializing from little dark portals. Most of them were the twitchy kind, the shadowy insects with bulbous yellow eyes. But there were some, a few she'd begun to acquaint herself with, that were decidedly tougher than the little shadows.

Merida's bow was out and an arrow notched before Rapunzel even squealed. She heard the blond and spun around, seeing the Heartless leap for her. In half a second, she aimed, and loosed an arrow - there was no time to think. Straight and true, it plunged into the shadow, and seconds before it would've reached Rapunzel, it vanished, and her arrow clattered to the ground.

She quickly picked it up off the ground and placed it in her bow again. "Run, lass!" she shouted to Rapunzel, before aiming and taking out another one of the little ones. "Ge' oot o' here!"

Merida was judging her from her looks again, but her slim form and naive appearance led the redhead to think that her fighting instincts were probably sub-par. As it was, she would have a hard time holding them off, as she had a limited supply of arrows and couldn't run into the horde to pick up one that had downed a Heartless.

She backed up again and fired at a twitchy devil that had seen fit to break ranks and lunge for the two of them. "Run!" she yelled, a frightened urgency seeping into her tone.

But then, she saw it. Radiant Garden's defensive mechanism, a thing Rikku had called "Tron." A cylinder of light shifted through the ground and rose up underneath a Heartless, encompassing the black creature and causing it to disappear. So, they were close enough to the city limits that the defensive system was working.

Nonetheless, they had to get back to a populace; the Heartless surely wouldn't follow them there.

Merida backed up, fired one last shot - taking out another Heartless - and got ready to flee. Either Rapunzel had taken her advice, or she had stupidly remained.

Arrows Remaining: 13

☼Just smell the grass, the dirt the way I dreamed they'd be.☼

Almost immediately, Merida had spun around, and then shot an arrow right through the little shadows monster. The arrow then fell to the ground with a clink, and all that had remained of the monster was gone, just like that the creatures that easily consumed Corona can disappear into the wind, with nothing left but the air where they had stood. Then before Rapunzel could finish her thought Merida had picked her arrow back up, and loaded it again, ready to shoot.

“Run, lass!” She shouted, before then shooting down another one of the smaller ones.“Ge' oot o' here!"