#rivervale_lodge

"Aye?" A glimmer in her dark eyes. "I turned 17 in July..."

"Well, I was borni n the dreaming so harder to say. I'm told I'm SO Sagitarius, whatever that means. I assume it's a compliment"

"The Hunter's sign, the Centaur, the Archer, the Wanderer and Wayfarer..."

"Could be me" She sighs happily "Well, I have adventured a little since I came here, and I am proud to call it home. But you, tell me, you bbeen on any quests or the like?"

A small smile. "A few, aye. Though, well - the Dreaming is what it is. The details for many are... fuzzy... especially those in which I dove deep."

"Oh isn't it frustrating? Having so much of it taken from your mind? "

clearly she's been there

"Aye." Vehemently. "To know I have seen aught, and be taunted, as with dreams... just out of reach..."

"I grew up like... well there are whole years that are more like day dreams.. a lot of what I know is gathered from comparing notes with the crew. Can ye imagine piecing your younger years together by a mix of what your mom da and friends say"

"To have no past? That is... to be without anchor or rudder, if I have my nautical metaphors correct."

"Oh, I have a past. I do remember... the important things. my mother's smile...my father chasing me to make me take a bath... standing in the crow's nest where two constellations above danced in a grand waltz. The lady had a horn like an unicorn ... and the man wings. And they... oh, it was lovely. I remember foes...and fights. And the wonder and that i was loved"

A sigh. "Important things, then. And knowledge some would kill to have for themselves."

"Well, know you make me feel important," A grin "And I appreciate the nautical metaphors ye used a moment ago. I still think of myself as a sailor. I need to start thinking of myself as more than that though."

"Land may well be more difficult to navigate - the storms are less clearly seen when they build on the horizon."

"Can be, what of you, Zara? What's home and hearth for you?"

"My family. I still live with my parents, for now. Until I graduate, at least..."

"Family is everything."

She nods "it is. I know dad and mum worry I will run as soon as I graduate, but I could sail all 7 seas in this world, and the thirteen great oceans of the Deaming...and this will still be home port to me. I don't want them thinking anything different, but they worry so." A sigh "Here I am, a troll, the veritable dream of power physical, and they still worry. They're getting better. mind, but I wish I could assure them I'm fine"

"I know! I have been to the deep dreaming and back, to the wilds of Australia, to the alleys of Europe, and still - 'Text us when you get to the grocery store, Zara dear, let us know you made it safe..."

"I've sailed past Fjords, and da is like 'don't forget your coat' "

With a 'what is up with that' look on her face

A huff. "Parents!"

"I'm GPSed... it's not even my phone. It's to make them feel better, and I go with it because well, they worry and I am.well, I ddo have some reason to scare them but really, I can handle myself"

She taps her cutlas in its scabbard

"Ah, to be able to deal with all my foes with a sword..."

"Oh, well, not to play into Kith stereotypes, but most trolls are expected to know how to fight a bit at least. . Now, from what I hear about sluagh, an what I saw today with even our dogs surprised, your kith isn't allowed to stomp around with big hard shoes and wear bright hawainn shirts?" A smile

"Allowed? Well, I imagine one somewhere does. Likely Firnost. And not so many are so extroverted as me. I am something of a social butterfly, truth."

"Well, that's my good luck then," She says "As I said, I don't have many fae as close to my age as you. And trolls are often stoic. Have ye met my uncle Jaymes? If he grunts he's feeling vocal. "

"Well, I am more familiar with the DeBuke clan... it seems a common trait."

"Ah, the DeBukes" A grin "Ye know, they say every time a bell rings a new DeBuke sprouts from a corn stalk" a chuckle "Forgive, they're good people, but SO many trolls"

"And an eshu."

"But yes. While I am fond of them... it.. the farm is very... trollish."

"I imagine Symon thinks the same of the lodge here. I do hope ye visit him. He might sigh with relief."

"I had hoped to check in with him, aye..."

"He's a good lad, and one of us, but how he FEELS about being one of us, I'm not sure. Poor lad probably where he went wrong in life now that he's an honorary troll." A grin

"And the new fledge?"

More serious "Nadeen is a hard nut to crack. Symon is protected from her, and she's never made a direct threat. She distrusts him though, and yes, she is a bigot. Her sword is always upon the wall when she visits here."

"more to keep it from screeching at him"

"Aye...."