farsickness | (no subject)

(no subject)

WHO: Graham/The Huntsman & ota
WHEN: February 9th-12th
WHAT: Settling in
WHERE: Gazin
WARNINGS: mentions of death

[Arrival]

It feels like he's dying, because he is. He's sure of that much. And then, with barely a thought, he's not anymore. He's no longer in the darkened sheriff's office in Storybrooke but standing on some street in broad daylight. Not any street in Storybrooke, either. He knows them all. The only clue to his location is a sign that says "Gazin" with an arrow. But where is Gazin? How did he get here? And how does he know he's not dead...or about to be?

The only thing here at all is the sign, so he supposes there's nothing for it but to start walking in the direction it indicates. So he does. When he arrives in the town, he'll look a bit out of place in his modern clothes, the shirt with the sleeves rolled up, the vest and tie, the five-pointed sheriff's badge pinned to his vest. At least he's got practical shoes on.

[Around town]

It hadn't taken him long to slip back into the Huntsman part of him, now that he knows about it. Graham had been a fabrication, anyway. The person someone else wanted him to be. But now, somehow, he has control over himself again.

He's shed the modern clothes he'd been wearing when he arrived in favor of something more fitting to the place, and the title of Huntsman. He's got a bow and a quiver of arrows slung over his shoulder. He'll have to pay them off, but with his arrangement to provide meat for the butcher and the taverns, that's something he can manage.

In fact, it's to the tavern that he heads, after dropping off his kill for the day at the butcher. He'll have a pint and maybe something to eat before heading home.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

The clothes were enough to tell Eufemia that he didn't belong in this world, that he was as much of a stranger as the rest of him. The more their circle grew, the less she felt alone. This was not a simple mistake on her part, this was nothing to do with her but some unseen force that pulled them here. Why? It wasn't clear. Maybe when enough people arrived, they would finally learn the truth? For now, they had to be patient.

"What's your name?" She asked, approaching him.

He doesn't know it yet, because he hasn't seen Gazin or the areas around it yet, but even though he's not from here, he'll feel right at home soon enough. He just has to get to that point first.

He's not expecting to be addressed; he hadn't known there was anyone else out here. He's glad he's not here alone though.

"Me? I'm Graham." He doesn't think to add his last name because even as the sheriff, no one used it.

She doesn't exactly have a last name of her own, so it's not an omission that she'd notice or care about. Given the circumstances, they were both guarded, nearly all of the city was guarded. Him withholding information was hardly surprising.

"The inn is nearby. They have been renting rooms to new arrivals. There should still be a bed free for you." There weren't that many, thankfully.

"I'm Eufemia."

"I can make do if there aren't." He might not look like it right now, but he's no stranger to a life without a roof over his head. It may have been somewhere around thirty years since he actually had a life like that, but that doesn't mean he's forgotten it.

"Pleasure."

She was much the same way, able to survive without a village or the luxuries an inn might offer. "It won't come to that. It seems that they provided for us, whoever 'they' might be." The village might be surprised by them, but something brought them here.

"Do you want me to show you the inn?"

"Because random things given to us by strangers can't turn out poorly?" Calm down, Graham. Not every place is the Enchanted Forest, and not everyone is Regina. He just doesn't know how to tell if someone can be trusted.

"That would be nice. You wouldn't happen to know if there's a doctor around somewhere, would you?"

She had to laugh at that. "No I agree. It wouldn't be wise to rely on what we're being handed in this world." She certainly didn't trust help that was unsolicited, having learned better than to rely on anyone before coming here. "We don't have much choice."

But there had to be a way around it.

"Are you hurt?"

"Once we know more about where we are, we may have a choice." But that will take a couple of days to figure out, probably. At least he has enough skills at surviving on his own that he doesn't need what's provided to him by others.

"I don't know. I would like to be sure."

This is not the weirdest dream Videl has ever had, but it's definitely in the top five. Because that's what this has to be: a dream. There's no way that she actually fell thousands of feet out of the sky (because her helicopter disappeared while she was flying it) and ended up in a weird fantasy village. Clearly, she needs to stop leaving the television on at night when she goes to bed.

Since this is a dream world and all, it doesn't matter what she says or does. None of this is real, including the people.

Which is why the short teenage girl is looking Graham up and down with a dubious expression as he enters town. Unlike the other townsfolk, this guy is dressed in normal clothes. Light glinting off his sheriff's badge catches her eye, and one eyebrow goes up. "What're you supposed to be, a fantasy policeman?"

He's only slightly less confused than she is; he's at least aware of magic and the possibility of travel between worlds, even if apparently that's getting harder (if not almost impossible) to do. As it is, he's not entirely sure this isn't some strange sort of afterlife, either. He doesn't know what it is, other than that the town doesn't look that different from the towns he used to wander through in the Enchanted Forest.

"Fantasy policeman? More like fairy tale policeman." Might as well be honest about it.

"Close enough," Videl replies with a dismissive shrug. It's all Greek to her, the girl who never had a phase in her childhood where she wanted to be a fairy princess.

"So what's the deal here?" she asked impatiently, placing her hands on her hips. She looked plainly unimpressed as she glanced around their homely surroundings. "This dream's been pretty boring so far. Isn't there gonna be a dragon to fight or a princess to rescue or something?"

He's known fairy tale princesses. It's really not all it's cracked up to be. There's no such thing as happy endings.

"Do you want there to be a dragon to fight?" He's never tried it, but he's also pretty sure he doesn't want to.

His question earns a self-confident smirk in return.

"Why not?" Videl lifts her gloved hands and cracks her knuckles; one fist, then the other. "It's not something I'll get the chance to do in real life. What's the worst that could happen?"

"You mean aside from dying?" There actually are probably worse things than dying, but they're not what's on his mind right now.

This is, of course, assuming they're not dead already.

Well that's not something he's expecting to see.

Sora has spent his time in and out of all kinds of worlds, of all kinds of stories. He's used to finding himself in the middle of one and trying to figure out who everyone is, what they're doing, how to help. It might not be the little island he's used to, with sea salt air and the slow circle of gulls overhead, but mysterious paths and unfamiliar cities are their own kind of normal. The forest seems to stretch out all around him and Sora walks because there isn't anything else to do. He'd shouted out his 'hello?' what feels like hours ago and come up with nothing but empty air.

And now it looks like walking really was the answer all along. There's a sign with an arrow and Sora pauses, leans forward to squint at it, "-Gazin?" only to give up shortly afterward. It's not a name he recognizes. Or at least, he's pretty sure he doesn't recognize it. But because of that sign it can't be far off, right?

With renewed spirits Sora starts forward again, eyes on the horizon for the moment that the city comes into view. But it isn't a city that appears first. It's another person. Whoa but that isn't just any person. Sora recognizes that uniform, he knows what it means.

"Hey hey! Mister Police Officer!"

He hadn't realized there was anyone else out here, but he is more than a little glad he's not here by himself. At least it means that whatever's going on here, it's not just happening to him. And since this is a person he doesn't recognize, it doesn't seem like Regina is behind it, either. Which means there might be a way out of it. If he wants there to be.

"Sheriff, actually," he replies to the person who addressed him, although there's no way of knowing that without getting a close-up look at his badge, of course. "I haven't got any authority here though. I don't even know where here is." And therefore won't be able to answer anyone's questions.

He raises one hand as he runs, an attempt to flag down attention as if the shouting and the shape of him wouldn't be enough. There's an immediate wash of relief to know that he isn't all on his own here, that's true. But it's also nice to be in a world where he at least recognizes something. So many times it's been princesses and castles, magic spells and dragons. And now it's not just a building or a skyline, it's a person! Well, okay, not a person, but a job! That's a start.

The figure ahead of him turns and Sora's arm lowers as the distance is closed. He hears sheriff, actually as his gait slows and much like a deflating balloon, whatever combination of enthusiasm and hot air had propelled him forward begins to drain out of him. Sora comes to a stop, head back to look up at him and mouth full of questions. Before disappointment washes through him in one fell swoop.

"Aw man, you too?"

It does seem like an unexpected amount of enthusiasm for the situation, even for Graham, who doesn't know what's going on here but does know he's not that eager to get home, and it doesn't surprise him when that enthusiasm deflates.

"Me too what?"

Sora has always been easy to read; for better or worse he wears his heart on his sleeve, telegraphing every emotion that washes through him. This is no different. Sora's entire body seems to deflate, as if everything drooping in the aftermath of one very big sigh. His arms dangle limp at his sides.

"You came here from somewhere else too, right? Another world?"

Coming across someone whose emotions are that easy to read is a relief, after what he's just discovered has been happening to him. He's had enough of deception for a lifetime.

"I did."

"Well that's good!" If it's deception he's eager to avoid, he couldn't have run into a better opposite. Sora has never had much cause to learn subtlety, much less how to tell a good lie. More often than not his troubles come from his own earnestness, his own tendency to tip his hand- to ask for help.

"At least I'm not the only one." And too his credit, he does look a little relieved.

"But I guess you've never been to this world before either, right?"

"I haven't." Somehow he just knows that this isn't part of the Enchanted Forest, or even the Land Without Magic that Storybrooke is part of. He's in a new place, and so far, no one he knows is here.

"None of this is particularly helpful, is it."

He droops- head, shoulders, arms, all of it. "No. Not really." But cooperative and thoughtful by nature, his next thought is that it's not really his fault that he doesn't know this place. After all, it's not like Sora does either.

"I guess this means there aren't any shortcuts." His head tilts to one side.

"What's your name?"

"None that we've discovered yet." He can see woods off in the distance, and doubts that it will take him long to learn them, but in the meantime, he has to go with what's in front of him. The road, the sign, the town.

"I'm Graham."

Emma had bartered for the clothes she now wears, having arrived with her normal everyday wear. She could admit that she felt uncomfortable in these clothes but they seemed to fit in more with the atmosphere. She was perched on a barstool when she heard footfalls behind her. Turning, Emma's mouth fell open, not expecting to see Graham, here of all places.

"G-Graham?" She asked, turning to fully face him.

There's a voice and a face he never expected to find here. If only because while it hasn't been that long that he's been here, it already seems like a world apart from Storybrooke. Which he supposes it is. The events of not many days ago have faded into the past as he's become more aware of who he is and who he wants to be.

Which is why he's currently dressed as the Huntsman he used to be, with arrows and a bow slung over his shoulder.

"Emma."

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

(no subject)

Arrival

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

arrival

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

arrival

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

Around Town- Appropriate icon

no subject