(open)

[devilsun]

WHO: Hama Sun
WHERE: Safehouse
WHEN: Mid-March
WHAT: Catchall
NOTES OR WARNINGS: Potentially discussions of cult stuff, including loss of autonomy and brainwashing.

Safehouse

[ The safehouse isn't that bad, Hama's decided. It's crowded, sure, and there isn't a whole lot of privacy, but she's got a whole bed to herself and plenty of hot water to wash her hair. And there's food, lots of food, all the food she could ever want in the world. It's pretty good in the safehouse, on balance, and it's totally cool she hasn't left in two weeks. For sure.

It's just. New Amsterdam is so loud and sometimes Hama feels like the sidewalk is going to start cracking around her and really, the whole kidnapping thing wasn't so good. So she'd rather just. Avoid that part. So far as she can tell, nobody's gotten kidnapped straight out of the safehouse.

So really, that's just common sense.

She can be found wandering around at all hours writing digital notes, trying to bother anyone and everyone when they come for breakfast - first by offering them tea and then, when they're distracted, pouncing with the questions - and in the wee hours of the morning, practicing with a switchblade.

She's definitely not going stir crazy. Why would you ever think that? ]

Dream

[ There is a cave carved into a mountain, a fire burning at the entrance, and a much younger Hama crouched down and staring out at the rain. In this place, and this time, she's around ten years old. The rain is coming down so hard it's impossible to see more than ten feet beyond the cave. Thunder booms in the distance and Hama flinches.

She's holding a knife, but she doesn't know how to do anything else except hold it and wait, turning it over and over again in her hands. All nervous energy. ]

They're going to come back.

[ She glances up, still clutching the knife. She's dressed in ratty clothes, a too-big coat secured to her with a length of rope for a belt, and her hair is wild, curls flying in every direction. She's alone. There are three packs by her side and a careful observer might notice a dark pattern splattered across the wall behind her, the distinctive pattern of arterial blood, but there are no adults to be found. Not for miles. ]

Mama promised.

Comments

dream.

[evasives]

[ a ten year old with a knife is a familiar sight for cassian, unfortunately. at least he thinks she's about ten; the girl is hunched over and vaguely familiar. he takes in the sight of the cave, the supplies, the blood, the almost wild look in her eyes as she sits there nervously. ]

[ there is an adult here now, and he squats down to get more eye level with her. he always liked it when people did that with him when he was smaller. his voice is calm, and any concern he has is completely hidden away. he'll address more of it later, but first he needs to make sure she's not going to stab him, wants her to know he's here to help. ]

Did they say when?

[devilsun]

[ Hama hunches over herself, clutching the knife, but she doesn't bolt for either the shadows deeper inside the cave or out into the rain. She's not supposed to talk to strange men. But this one hasn't tried to grab her or yell at her to get lost, so that's better.

Besides. Where would she run? There's nowhere to go. ]

Soon. Really soon.

[ She glances out at the rain. In the distance, she thinks she can hear the boom of gunfire. But maybe that's her imagination. ]

You should be nice to me. They won't hurt you, if you're nice to me.

[ It's not much of a threat. Kol and her mama are out on a raid. And the stranger looks healthy, well fed. She can't tell if he has a weapon or not, but most people do. Can't assume otherwise. If he wants to hurt her, there's not much she can do about that except try to hide, or convince him not to. ]

[evasives]

[ he is watching and taking in the way she moves, reacts. her expression, her tone, the fidgety, anxious way she handles the knife in uncertain hands. his instinct is to tell her how to use it, and how sad is that for aiding a child? but it's what adults did for him. ]

[ he makes sure, at least, to keep his own hands very still and in her line of sight. ]

I do not want to be mean to you. I just want to make sure you are okay. Are you hurt? [ there's a lot of blood behind her, and he doesn't think it's hers, but it's a way to steer the conversation. ]

[devilsun]

[ The knife belonged to Kol, who took it out of his coat before he left and pressed it into Hama's hands without a word. But that wasn't too surprising, really. Kol rarely speaks, but that's okay. He lets Hama ride on his shoulders and play with his hair, and he's nice to her. She wishes Kol was here now. He's big and tall, and Hama could hide behind him.

There's nothing here but the fire, and the stranger.

She shivers. ]

I'm hungry.

[ She probably shouldn't have said that, even if it's true. There wasn't any food left in the packs. Mama and Kol might bring some back after the raid, if they're lucky. She lifts her head a little, watching the stranger. ]

Do you have any food?

[evasives]

[ cassian gets the sense the shiver is not simply from the cold. ]

Is it okay if I check my pockets? [ it's strange to talk to her like a harried veteran instead of a child, but - but he's been there. sudden movements can be startling, reaching for unseen weapons. his jackets always have pockets, he always tries to shove some kind of snack in one of them, just in case - even a simple fruit bar, unobtrusive. he wonders if this dream version of himself had the same foresight. ] I might have some kind of rations leftover.

[devilsun]

[ He asks permission. Hama peers up at him uncertainly. No one asks her for permission. Not even Kol.

She nods just once, clutching the knife. She's never stabbed anyone before, but she's seen Kol and her mama do it plenty of times. Sometimes she watches Kol while he's practicing and mimes the gestures, trying to copy him. One day she wants to be as big and strong as Kol, so she can protect her mama like he does. Of course, Kol wouldn't have let the stranger get close to the fire. Kol would have done—

Well. Kol would have done something. ]

What's your name?

[ If he has a name, then maybe he's not a bad person and Kol won't kill him. ]

[evasives]

[ he is still very carefully watching her, even if he doesn't make it obvious, keeping his expression lighter, more curious than concerned. she's suspicious of his question, which tells him she's not very used to the nature of it. ]

Cassian. [ only after he gives his name does he stick one hand into his pocket, digging around, and maybe it's the dream magic, but there's a blueberry fig bar tucked in. he pulls it out, offering it out to her open handed. ]

It is blueberry flavored.

[devilsun]

Cassian.

[ Not a name she recognizes, though that isn't really surprising. She doesn't know many people. Most days it's only Kol and her mama, but soon they'l have lots of friends. A big family united in a single purpose. Mama says so.

She inches forward, one hand outstretched and the other clutching the knife. Then she snatches the bar and retreats back closer to the fire. ]

My name is Hama.

[ She keeps an wary eye on him as she unravels the bar with great care and then takes a small bite. ]

[evasives]

[ aha. hama, he remembers her from the safehouse. it explains the sense of familiarity. when she reaches to take out the food, it's quick with hunger, and cassian keeps himself very still until she settles back in with it. ]

Nice to meet you. I am afraid I am not sure how I get here. Have I intruded on your house?

[ he's being very purposeful with his word choices, as usual. house opens up a few different ways for her to reply. ]

[devilsun]

We don't have a house.

[ The food is good and after the first tentative bite, she devours it almost so quickly she chokes. She knows what blueberries are, though she's never seen the places where they're grown, and she finds she likes the taste. She wishes there was more.

She keeps back, examining the wrapper carefully in case she missed some crumbs. ]

Maybe when Mama comes back. She said...

[ She glances at Cassian, suddenly suspicious. ]

She said we're going to have new friends and they'll let us stay there.

[evasives]

House is a figurative phrase. It does not necessarily mean a building.

[ there were long periods of his life where his house was just... a cave like this, or blankets under the stars. people can live anywhere. ]

[ she regards him with suspicion, which isn't very surprising. ]

Is that something you want too? These new friends?