#rivervale_lodge

Today she feels a bit more like Sam than Dagmar, folks are all yaking about 'mom mom mom'

"Uhg. Lame." She grumbles, and kicks it out of the Brown's house.

She pulls her hoodie up - even with the warming may weather - blocking out the world.

Well, she tries. Before she gets to the woods she loves she has to pass by suburbia.. Gah. And sure enough... "I got her a card. I always get her a card. Oh, and I bring her breakfast" One kid playing basketball with a friend says

Her shoulders hunch and she scowls at the pavement.

The woods will be better.

"who's that?" the boy says, noticing her. //"her? some foster kid... Sam or something"//"She's got a boy's name?" //"It's probably short for something."//"Ha. she doesn't look short to me"

She flips off the pair and keeps walking.

"Geez, she can't take a joke" is the fading voice as she heads towards the woods

Once under the cover of trees, she breaks into a jog - getting further from suburbia, from the other kids, from everything...

She goes off the beaten path, confident in ways she wasn't before. The Rivervale gang know the back trails, and..she's learned some was well. She finds a large boulder in a clump of trees.

She stops, studying the rock for a moment before making an impulsive decision to climb it. She drops her backpack and halberd at the base before hunting for hand-and-toe holds.

It's actually a bit of a challenge, this thing is big, even by her standards. But she's strong, and determined, and she's got time.

She clambers up.

"Ha! King of the rock!" Dagmar grins, announcing her triumph to the trees. She holds up her arms. "The crowd goes wild."

"Well, " A gravely voice speaks out, "I didn't vote for you."

She flinches, startled - reaching for a halberd that isn't there. "Who said that?"

"I did," A big man, troll sizzed, and..fae, but not like any fae she's seen before says. He's dressed in a wide brimmed hat and a duster. His features are ...roughhewn? and his skin looks grayish

"Well, you don't vote for kings."

"Oh right," The big man says, looking nervous, and he sits down

She can feel glamour in the boulder she's sitting on. Not like a balefire but.. yeah

So there's a big man sitting down on the ground. She's on the boulder

She drops to a crouch, placing her hand on the rock. "So were you watching the whole time?"

"In a way," He says cautious, on guard. she recognizes it. She.she acts the same.

"I've never seen a grey troll."

"oh. I'm not a troll" He says, "You're a troll right?" He doesn't sound sure. He's definitely not mortal mind you

"Yeah... " Uncertain. "There's lots of trolls around here."

"I guess? The blue ones. I like them, they're quieter. The ...grown woman, the one with the silver hand She...she came close once. You can see her love of nature. you know her?"

"Brekke, yeah. She's the real boss. I'm not in charge of anything, really."

"Me neither, Brekke? Huh..yes. I have heard. The winds talk..." A sigh "The winds are always talking. Yak yak yak"

"You can talk to the wind? That's pretty cool." A pause. "I'm Dagmar."

"Not all winds, but thanks, mostly just my fellow inamine..." a nod "I am Klump."

"Inanimae?" She sits, legs dangling over the edge of the boulder. "Hi Klump."

"Oh." A slow pause, "I should be careful what I say. Um. Yes. We are the dreams tied to ..nature? things? it's...complicated. I am a Glome. We're..rock people. You are..." A nervous swallow that s ounds like rattling "on my anchor."

"Like dryads, but for rocks?"

"Dryads.. yes I suppose the Kubera are sometimes called that... yes, something like that. You.. you're actually merged wit ha human soul. it's not like that for us." He says leaving it at that.

"So... so the rock protects you from banality? Your anchor?" Eyes widen. "Oh, crap. Did I hurt you? I'll climb down..."

"No no, but..you're quite kind. If you chipped it, or such I would feel it. If it was destroyed I'd die, but.. ah. I'm not so fragile. The rock is my soul. My husk..."He taps his skin, it doesn't sound quite like flesh, "That..that protects me from Banality. I do ask that you do not ... what is it called when people make marks on something with the color ? Sometimes they use cans that spray the color?"

"Graffiti. I don't tag anything, though." She starts looking for a path down.

"the southern side" he points

And she slips down

Easy peasy

"Yes, please do not graffiti my anchor or mar it."

"Sure. Not a problem. I don't think too many people come out this way..."

"No, it is off the main paths, harder to get to..." A pause "Why are you off the path?"

She shrugs. "I like the woods. It smells nice, and it's quiet, and it's pretty."

"It is," he nods, "sometimess I like the quiet. Am I moving my mouth parts too much?"

"No, you aren't. Do you get lonely?"

A pause, and then, "Not..often, but sometimes, when the parasomes have gone elsewhere, when the animals seem to be too...routine. I find myself feeling like I am reaching, but there is nothing to touch. not literally, but you understand? In those times, I do I suppose feel what you call loneliness."

"I do understand." She drops to sit, so her head is roughly level with his. "It's okay to be alone, but... " She shrugs. "Dunno. Sometimes it is more like you don't have a choice."