westwhere | Don't ever forget

WHO: Eleven & Open (various closed prompts in comments)
WHEN: Early April
WHERE: Around Ke-Waihu
WHAT: A motley thread collection + open prompts
WARNINGS: none for now

i. Farming (Open)

[It's a fight he's going to win if it costs him every last second of daylight. Eleven spends far more time than he'd like making compost and churning dirt into usable soil to spread over failing fields. His smith gloves will never be entirely clean ever again, but when vegetables grow under tender care, it will all be worth it.

Knelt in a field, Eleven touches the earth, pats around blindly a moment, then turns a frown down at the patch of ground. He's already unpotted a young plant and holds it ready to transplant, but he's forgotten something. He glances about, spotting the missing tool at the edge of the field, but doesn't relish the idea of disturbing the plant any more than he already has.

His eyes snap to someone passing within hearing distance and raises his free hand to carefully wave and hopefully gain their attention. He points to the gardening tool on the ground]

Could I trouble you to toss me that trowel, please?

ii. Fishing (Open)

Depending on one's standards, the dark was either exceedingly late or terribly early. Eleven stifled a yawn and set his lantern down by the lakeshore. Fish, he'd come to learn, could be obnoxious at this hour here, and it seemed he wasn't getting much sleep tonight anyway. So he cast his line and waited.

Sure enough, the moon's reflection in the water shattered as sounds he would never have attributed to fish started up in the waters, ceaseless and echoed by splashes.

"Goddess," he grumbled, resigned. "Between this and the talking vegetables.."

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With a sigh, Eleven gave up on his work for the day. Though he'd hoped to finish the patch before dark, the light had gone before he ready for it and working one-handed whilst the other held a flame aloft to see by wasn't as efficient as he'd hoped. He slung the shovel over his shoulder and made his way back home, mind intent on a bath with an idle thought to wonder if Lily might visit.

But as he approached the house, a shifting sound from behind him slowed his steps and drew his mind to the present. Eleven's breath quieted to listen, ears straining in the dark for what might be a pursuer, and when the curious sound came again, he grit his teeth and swung the shovel out in the space behind him.

The makeshift weapon swiped through only air, but the familiar shadow standing only a step away from the swing stole his breath. Strength left his arms, fingers nerveless as he let the shovel clatter to the ground.

"..Arche?" he whispered, disbelieving even while hope soared high in his chest.

The form turned smoothly and silently away from him, toward the forest. Eleven followed without further thought.

"Arche!"

Edited 2022-04-16 01:38 (UTC)

This curse stuff was a pain in the ass, but the particular assignment he'd been stuck with did actually make him mad enough to do something about it. Somebody's shitty ego had gotten a man killed for no good reason. Under different circumstances than he was used to, but it was hard not to feel some sympathy for the guy.

He'd been trying to track down the guy's family, find out if there was a gravestone somewhere. Ghosts were a thing here, right? So he could at least make an attempt to go talk to the guy directly. Tell him he deserved better than what he got.

It was dark by the time he got done talking to the family, so he'd visit the grave tomorrow. Do all their prayer stuff, sure. But obviously that hadn't done the trick yet.

This town needed more lights. His vision was up to regulation standards, but back in the army, he'd have the illuminated HUD of his helmet and maybe some night vision scopes. Being out in the dimly lit streets put him on edge.

So when he heard a familiar voice shouting from nearby, he was quick to respond. "Woah, woah, hey--" He caught up with El.

"Arche's back? Where is he?"

It’s something off a shame to have a strong sword with sharp, gleaming edges and not put it to use. But given its weight, Eleven found himself sporadically working to muster enough strength just to swing it with something akin to ease. He hadn’t had time to ask after anyone to help him train with it, but with Hendrik’s arrival, Eleven decided he didn’t have any excuse.

Eleven brandished the blade, held between both hands with his weight centered and knees bent for stability. Accustomed to one-handed blades, the stance felt unusual for him, but he knew the theory at least.

He tossed a grin to his opponent. “Go easy on me.”

Edited 2022-04-16 01:32 (UTC)

Anduin doesn't know if he would necessarily say it is a shame to have Shalamayne with him and not use it. Shalamayne always was his father's sword, he had only inherited it, along with his position. But he supposes that if he were to be in a position where he lost his connection with the Light, he needs to keep his strength up. And given his personal connection to Shalamayne, he should keep to training with it rather than something else.

Thus it is that when El invites him to their next sparring session, Anduin finds himself strapping Shalamayne to his back and making his way over to the appointed place and time. He hangs back, watching the pair of them for a long moment, before raising a hand in greeting.

"I hope I am not interrupting!"

Hendrik's bluish green eyes stared at the blade that the Luminary wielded and said nothing. Half of him wondered if the boy had managed to gain himself another sword while he'd been away, as odd a thought as that was to his own mind. And if he thought too long and too hard on it, he would end up with a headache.

He saw the boy's smirk and wondered how much the boy had trained in his absence and so he gave a few passing blows to test that theory out. But then he heard an unfamiliar voice. The tall knight turned and saw a man who raised his hand in greeting. With a nod, Hendrik acknowledged the man's presence and lowered his axe, speaking to the newcomer.

"No, you are not interrupting."

Edited 2022-04-19 07:04 (UTC)

Don't ever forget

[Closed] Slick

i am the most late hello

[Closed] Hendrik- Sparring (+Anduin?)

+anduin!

no subject