Open Old Little Me

[Astrid Freecss]

Unlike other kids, Astrid had never really been told to stay away from certain parts of the world. If anything, her dad encouraged it. She'd always thought that it was because Morrigan hadn't really turned out the way Daddy had wanted her to. Not to mention, the way his ex had run out on him, and so he said that he was definitely gonna get it right this time. She wondered sometimes if Uncle Aeron was as disappointed as he looked sometimes, but he'd never said as much. For the most part, Astrid was allowed to do what she wanted for as long as she could get herself out of any trouble she would have gotten into - that was at least expected. And well, she would like to claim that she doesn't get into trouble. At all. Besides, what's a little fun and exploring without a hint of trouble. It certainly wouldn't be an adventure if there are no dragons to take down. Not that Astrid was a particularly good knight. Or princess. She might be her Daddy's princess, but she's always liked the dragons in the story more. And dragons liked dark places where there's trouble to be had, because they are trouble. So yeah. Astrid doesn't get into trouble because she was the trouble. Which is why it would have been no surprise to her parents if they ever found out that she was in Bleak Street, idly painting the wall of one of the shops. It was looking a little... bleak after all. Sometimes you just really need a splash of color.​

 

[Annika Nightray]

Nik wasn’t technically supposed to be here. Kael-Oppa had told her specifically at least a dozen times not to go anywhere near Bleak street - something about it being dangerous and not a place for kids or something to that effect. But really, how dangerous could a street even be? Surely people had to come here to buy things right? So how could it honestly be dangerous. And surely if Kael-Oppa knew it was dangerous then he’d been here before, and that meant he’d managed alright, so if he could manage then she could manage because she was just as good thank you very much. Which was why she definitely wasn’t expecting to find another kid here - especially since she seemed to be casually painting a shop wall like it was somehow the most normal thing for her to be doing here in the world. See, not dangerous. Nik stopped a few feet away and tilted her head. “Is that your wall?” somehow she doubted it but she wasn’t about to jump to conclusions over here. She was really quite impressed actually, she was sure it took a lot of guts to be painting a wall in a public place like this.​