So, Q and I were doing this in a RP and we got an idea to make this into a story, so here we go! We hope you enjoy this!
Talia looked around within the mysterious forest unsure of her surroundings. They didn't look like the Ironwood forest that she was so accustomed to. They were different. They seemed more dark, depressing, and even creepy. "Where am I?" Talia questioned. Even the air was off. It had a foul odor to it. Despite being in the protected family castle of Ironrath, Talia knew the stench of death when she smelt it.
Where was her mother? Where was everyone? She didn't understand what was happening. She was in the grove walking to try and clear her thoughts after the incident with Ramsay and Ethan when the forest around her suddenly changed to the one she was in. But why could she smell the stench of death?
The stench of death was... worse than what it had been. It was more concentrated and more powerful than usual. "What is that awful smell?" Talia asked as she covered her nose in an attempt to prevent some of the fumes from reaching her nose. The smell seemed to come from everywhere. She then accidentally tripped on a root and fell onto the ground below her. "Oof!" she grunted before she pushed herself up. The smell reached her nose again and she gagged, covering her nose with her hand.
She had to get out of there... She had to get back to Ironrath and inform the soldiers that there might something dead in the forest, but there was one problem: she had no idea where she was.
"H-Hello?" she called out, hoping someone would answer as she continued walking. Sadly, no one replied. Here she was, in a place she had no recollection of with the smell of death everywhere. She pushed some bushes out of her way to keep walking.
She stumbled on her dress a bit before she could hear her footsteps hit what sounded like gravel. She looked down and noticed that the ground was... gray as she kept walking?
It was nothing that she had ever seen before. The workmanship was nothing that she had ever seen. It was so precise and accurate. She looked up to see many castle-like structures. Many were huge and intimidating. She could see several odd structures in overturned and abandoned postures, as well as smoke coming from the castle-like structures. Talia noticed that many stray items littered the gray, hard ground beneath her as she walked through the area. "What is all of this?" Talia asked as she picked up an item with a word on it called 'crackers'. "So bizarre looking." Talia said to herself as she looked at the packaging. "What would it be used for?"
The Forrester then saw what appeared to be a person near an odd looking structure on wheels. "Excuse me?" she called as she began to walk towards it. "Do you know where we are?"
The person turned and Talia screamed. The person's face was rotten and its mouth was in a permanent snarl. The apparel the thing wore was tattered and ruined. "By the gods!" Talia exclaimed with shock. She backed away as the growling monstrosity got closer. It looked like a white walker but she wasn't even near anywhere cold. How could it be a white walker?
Talia backed away from the thing with fear, but tripped on her feet, landing on her back. She looked up with horror as it stumbled and reached towards her, ready to grab her.
Just then, a loud bang rung througout the air. Talia saw a hole appear in the creature's forehead before it suddenly went limp and collapsed on the ground. Talia looked on in horror. Talia turned to find the source of the loud boom and saw a woman and a young man at the door of one of the castle like structures. "Quick run! Get in here!" the young man exclaimed to her as more monstrosities staggered out.
She was shocked seeing the apparel that the two people wore. The woman's dress even showed her legs! "What are you doing?! Come on!" the young man exclaimed. Snapping out of her shock, Talia scrambled to her feet and ran to them as fast as her dress would allow her. The woman grabbed her and quickly brought her through a metal structure as the young man placed something else on the structure as he closed it.
Talia huffed once inside the castle like building. "You okay?" The woman asked her.
"Y-Yes... I... I think so." Talia panted. Talia couldn't help but be astonished by the woman's apparel. It was bizarre and somewhat offensive.
"What were you thinking?" Another woman was heard. Talia looked up to a mean and unkind looking woman glaring at her and the person who saved her. "She's a kid! I couldn't just let those things eat her!" the woman retorted.
This mean and unkind woman was wearing odd clothes that barely covered her arms. She was shocked by that woman's apparel as well. "We can't keep doing this." the woman frowned. "And we can't just keep letting people die either, just like I said!" the woman who saved her retorted.
"When I said those doors stay shut no matter what, I fucking meant it!" the mean woman snapped. "No more saving people! We already have those two fucking families in here."
A large, fat, and mean looking man scowled. "Lilly, you've got to keep control of these damn people! And what're YOU supposed to be? A princess?" he spat at Talia.
"Hey, ease up on her!" a dark skinned man defended Talia.
"I'm not a princess." Talia stated with an angry tone lacing her voice. "I'm the second daughter to Lord Gregor and Lady Elissa Forrester."
The statement only earned looks of confusion from everyone in the room. "Who?" The dark skinned man asked. "What the fuck are you talking about?" The mean lady inquired.
"The Forresters! My family! They're in control of Ironrath!" Talia exclaimed, but everyone continued to look at her with confused stares. Why were they looking at her like that? Did they not know who the Forresters were?!
"Uhh... Lee, you're the history buff. Do you know what she's talking about?" the young man asked.
"I'm a history buff when it comes to American history. I don't know anything about an Ironwrath or a Family of Forresters." the dark skinned man answered with a shrug. "American?" Talia asked with confusion. The word sounded foreign to her.
The big, fat, mean old man crossed his arms and glared at Talia. "Yeah, you're in America." the young man clarified. Talia still had a confused stare. "Did... you bump your head or something?" the woman who had saved her asked. Talia shook her head. "No. I was walking through the Ironwood forest when suddenly, the area around suddenly turned darker and rather gloomy looking." she answered.
The group of people looked to her with confusion. "Ironwood Forest?" the dark skinned man known as Lee asked. "There's no forest named that around here."
"What?!" Talia gasped. "B-But I was walking through it and I somehow ended up in this strange place!"
"Listen, girlie! We have no time for your little fantasy game!" the big, fat, mean old man told her rudely. "Dad, calm down. Your heart-" the mean lady told him gently. "This is no fantasy!" Talia exclaimed. She looked around and noticed that there were more oddities in the people's apparel. The castle like structure was even more bizarre with weird object holding other objects. Could it be that she was the one out of place rather than the people she was talking to. "Where am I?" Talia asked as she started to calm down. "Where am I exactly?"
Lee crossed his arms and looked at Talia. "You're in a drugstore in a town called Macon in a state called Georgia in a country called The United States of America." he explained gently.
"I... okay." Talia whispered as she let this new reality sink in. "Wh-What happened to my family, my home?"
"We have no idea. You just got here blabbering about this stuff we have no clue about." a man with light brown hair with odd attire, odd trousers, and odd shoes replied.
"This girl is obviously a nut." the fat old man accused.
"I am not!" Talia defended herself. She found herself disliking this man more and more.
"Why don't we just throw her out!" The old man exclaimed.
"Look, obviously something's up." Lee interrupted. "I mean, look at her. She's wearing clothes that look like are from the thirteenth and fourteenth century."
"Are you saying that you believe her?" the light brown haired man inquired, raising an eyebrow.
"I'm not saying that, but what I am saying is that I don't think she's nuts." Lee replied. Talia was relieved that the man, Lee, wasn't like the old man. "Guys... I... I have to admit that Lee might be right. Where else would she have gotten those clothes?" the woman pointed out.
"From a museum, duh!" the old man spat.
"She's just a child. Let's just leave her be for a bit. She's probably terrified by those things out there." another woman said. She was different. She was rather big, but she seemed kind. Her apparel had a bit of a floral design on it.
However, the old man just scowled. "This girl is obviously not right in the head."
"And you just want to kill her. Now, how does that sound? Maybe you're the one who's nuts!" Lee snapped at the old man. "Hey, I'm not going to risk having a crazy girl in here with us!" the old man growled.
Talia frowned. "I am NOT crazy! I just want to know who you people are, where I am, and how I got here!" she said, beginning to lose patience with the old man. "Hey, you don't get snippy with me girlie!" the old fat man spat. "Otherwise, I'm going to smash your face in!"
Talia's eyes widened at the threat.
"DAD!" the mean woman snapped at the old fat man.
"Leave her alone!" Lee defended Talia. "She's scared. Don't make this worse, Larry!"
"Lee... why is he being mean to that girl?" Talia heard a voice asked. She noticed a girl wearing a yellow dress with wild hair with an odd white and blue object on her head clinging to Lee nervously.
I don't know, sweet pea." Lee told her gently.
"Dad, you need to calm down, NOW. It is not a big deal." the mean woman said.
"Do you have any fucking idea how dangerous it is to have a psycho with us?!" Larry exclaimed.
"I am not a psychopath!" Talia exclaimed. "I want to know what's going on!"
"What's going on is that we have a lunatic in here." Larry scowled at her. He almost reminded her of Ludd Whitehill: fat, rude, doing everything he can to get what he wants.
"You're right. We do have a lunatic in here and I'm staring right at him." Talia frowned up at him.
The old man glared at her and spat, "You little shit!" He went to throw a punch at her, but thanks to her quick reflexes she was able to avoid his attack. What is wrong with this man? A real man would never insult or try to hit a girl.
"DAD!" the mean woman exclaimed. "What are you doing?!"
"Bitch!" Larry growled as he swung at her, but Talia ducked down. "What kind of man insults and tries to hit a girl?!" Talia exclaimed.
"Stop, please!" the kind woman pleaded Larry. Larry swung once again, but once again he missed. However, Talia hit the wall and had no more room to duck and weave around the old man. "Now, I got you, you little bitch!" Larry snapped. He drew his fist back and was ready to deliver a swing that would connect. Talia braced for the impact and shut her eyes.
Suddenly, a pair of hands grabbed his, stopping him from hurting her. "Stay out of this!" Larry growled at Lee.
"You're prepared to beat a girl who did nothing wrong to you!" Lee frowned. "She's scared, just like the rest of us!"
"No, she's psychotic. We need to throw her out or kill her!" Larry growled, determined to get rid of the girl. He turned his glare back to Talia, but the mean woman from earlier got between Talia and Larry.
"Get out of the damn way, Lilly!" Larry spat.
"I'm not going to let you do this." Lilly said as she crossed her arms over her chest. "If you want to hurt her, you're going to have to go through me."
"Lilly, can't you see she's psycho?!" Larry growled. "It doesn't matter! You trying to beat a kid!" Lilly exclaimed. "It was bad enough when you tried to kill that guy's kid!"
"You heard what she called me!"
"Your heart, Dad! You can't strain yourself!" Lilly told him. "Lilly, I'm handling this! Stay out of it!" Larry ordered. "No, you're going to calm down and you are going to leave her alone. The last thing we need is for you to get worked up and have a heart attack." Lilly frowned.
"Can't you see that this girl's just as scared as the rest of us?" the woman who saved Talia earlier told him.
"She's obviously not right in the head! Forresters, Lords and Ladies, this shit about Ironwood forests..." Larry growled. "And she looks like she's playing dress-up!"
Talia chose to ignore the man's bantering since doing so would probably get her in trouble. She was already in hot water as of now.
"Look, all I know is that she is just a child. I don't care if it's make-believe or not... who knows, maybe she lost her family and this is just her coping with that." Lee said.
"I'm not making any of this up." Talia insisted to Lee. "I swear, all of it's true." she added. "I really am from Ironrath, I really am the second daughter of Lord Gregor and Lady Elissa Forrester!"
"Look, I don't know what to tell you. We've been stuck in this pharmacy since everything went down south." Lee told her. Just then, Talia heard rapid booms outside. Everyone ducked down. She didn't know what to do, so the woman who saved her brought her down. "What's happening?" Talia asked nervously.
"Is it the military?" Lee asked.
"Thank god for whatever it is." the young man muttered. Larry growled and got to his feet. "We almost died because of you!" he snarled at Talia.
"Me? You were the one trying to hurt me!" Talia retorted angrily as she got to her feet.
"And you were the one to lose your damn marbles!" the brown haired man snapped.
"Hey, you should fuck off!" Larry snapped, but suddenly, he growled in pain and clutched his chest. "DAD!" Lilly cried out as she rushed to him just as he hit the ground.
"M-My pills..." he groaned as he tried to get up
"What's wrong with him?" Talia asked.
Lilly looked up at her. "He has heart problems. That's why I try to keep him from stressing himself."
"I'm sorry." Talia apologized.
"Don't be. It's not your fault." Lilly replied.
"I guess we'll need to get in that pharmacy, now." Lee muttered as he crossed his arms. "He needs nitroglycerin pills." Lilly clarified.
"While we're trying to get in there, someone should keep watch." a man with an accent with an odd mustache, wearing odd attire, as well as a strange orange object on his head, said. "Doug, you be our lookout."
"Sure thing." the light brown haired man, Doug, replied.
"Katjaa, you help get Duck cleaned up. Lilly, you look after your dad. Carley, be ready. You're a good shot, and I'd like to keep it that way." the man said to the woman who saved Talia. "Now let's get him those pills."
Talia wandered around the room nervously. Everything was new to her and nothing was making any sense. However, she owed her thanks to Lee for helping her with Larry. She went up to the man as he looked over the young girl that Talia recognized earlier. "Hello, um... Lee." Talia greeted nervously.
He got up and looked to Talia. "Hi, Talia."
"Thank you for helping me back there." Talia told him. "No problem." Lee nodded. Talia looked down. "I honestly don't know what's going on. I was walking through the Ironwood forest after the incident with Ramsay Bolton, then I found myself here..."
"Who's this Ramsay Bolton?" Lee asked curiously.
Talia frowned. "He's the son of the new Warden of the North. He... controls other families who live in the same area that I lived." Talia explained.
"He was a psychopath... he... DID THINGS to other women, regardless of age. He kills for fun." Talia shuddered.
"Why hasn't anyone arrested him?" Lee asked, disturbed to hear that an individual like that could be on the loose.
Talia shook her head. "He's the bastard son of Roose Bolton, the Lord of House Bolton. He's just as bad. He... also killed my twin brother Ethan... I could never forgive him for what he did." Talia said bitterly on the last part.
"The fuck!" Lee muttered. He stopped himself and said, "Sorry. I should watch my language around you. It's just... a monster like that having all that power... How old are you, anyway?"
"I'm 14." Talia replied. "Ethan was the same age... I have a younger brother that's 7. I have an older sister, and two older brothers, although on eof them, I haven't seen in four years... But my younger brother was taken by House Forrester's enemies, the Whitehills."
"The Whitehills?" Lee asked, raising an eyebrow. First the Forresters, now the Whitehills? "Why are you two enemies?"
Talia shook her head again. "It's just been that way for years. The Whitehills constantly blame us Forresters for their problems. Things got even worse when their soldiers attacked a pig farmer's family and killed all except one. The Whitehills ordered we paid for it, even though they were the ones who started it. That's when Lord Whitehill brought Ramsay Snow." Talia muttered sadly, then lowered her voice so the girl wouldn't hear. "Even though we obeyed Ramsay, he shoved a knife through Ethan's throat... right in front of Mother, Ryon, and I..."
Lee gave her a sympathetic look. "I'm sorry Talia. I know that couldn't be easy." Lee said.
"A-After that, they took Ryon away. Lord Whitehill has him." She looked down sadly. "I'm sure he's trying to brainwash him... Ethan and Ryon were taken from us... and I just stood there, unable to do anything... I want to see my twin so much..." she whispered, choking up a bit.
"Hey, you okay?" Lee asked with a worried look aimed at her.
Talia shook her head. "N-No. Mother wanted me to write a song for the funeral, but I-I couldn't do it, not this soon after Ethan died... so I went on a walk through the grove and I found myself here..." she explained.
Unknown to Talia, some of the group was listening to her tale. Lee stared at the girl. "You're really not making this up, are you?" he asked after a moment.
Talia shook her head. "It's true, I swear!"
"Okay... listen, Talia... this may sound weird to you, and it will even sound weirder when I say it. I don't know how, but you somehow ended up in a different world from your own. We have different rules here. And it may not look like it, but we are going to try and help you since you're still just a kid." Lee told her gently before aiming a look at Larry. "Well... most of us."
"A... a different world?!" Talia asked incredulously. She was shocked by this information. No wonder why everything seemed so different!
"Yeah..." Lee nodded. "We don't have castles, wardens, lord, or ladies."
This was all foreign to Talia. She shook her head in disbelief and exclaimed, "You have to have something!"
"Well, we have cars, governors, mayors, stores, presidents, universities..." he listed.
Talia just had a blank look. This sounded so foreign to her...
"Presidents are like the one who's in charge of a country, but has others to help him with stuff." Lee explained.
"And what exactly are all the other things?" Talia asked.
"Cars are like... mini houses on wheels. Governors and mayors are kind of like lords, but they have to follow the laws and we have very strict laws. A store is what we're in right now. Stores can have food, water, medicine, and other supplies. And well... I used to work at a university. It's like school, but for adults. It helps them learn and gets them to move up in the world... if they want to." Lee kept explaining.
"School...?" Talia rose an eyebrow.
"A place where people go to learn. But most people your age practically hate school." Lee chuckled softly. "Their parents made them go anyway, even if they hated it."
"And...the president is the king?" Talia asked. "We had a king named Joffrey that was just a few years older than me, but he is an absolute tyrant that had Ned Stark, Lord of House Stark executed by beheading for treason, even though Ned never did anything treacherous..."
"Yeah, thankfully, that doesn't happen in our society. Our president is not in complete control. It's the people who have the final say. We live in a democracy... or did. The walkers pretty much ruined everything in our society." Lee told her.
"Walkers?" Talia asked curiously.
"It's what we call those things out there. They're corpses that stumble around eating anyone they can find alive and eat their flesh." the man explained.
Talia was disturbed by that information. "We... We had something similar to that back where I lived. They were called white walkers, but they always lived in the north. The only way to kill one of them is by heat." Talia explained. "They are kept out of Westeros by the Wall, a huge wall spanning miles and miles across the land at the border. The Night's Watch keeps them out too."
"Well, they can't get here." Lee assured her.
"It's a good thing too." Talia nodded. "I think that we have enought to worry about."
"Agreed." Lee nodded in reply. He looked over to Larry and said, "I'd hate to leave, but I gotta go find medicine for that pile of crap over there. How about you talk to Clementine?" He gestured to the girl next to him as she smiled at Talia.
Talia nodded. "Okay." she replied.
Lee went to find pills as Talia sat next to Clementine. "Hello." she greeted the younger girl.
"Hi. I'm Clementine." the little girl introduced.
"I'm Talia."
"I like your dress." Clementine smiled shyly.
"Oh? Thank you. I like yours too. It looks cute on you." Talia told her.
Clementine smiled shyly and said, "Thanks."
"So, where's your mother?" Talia asked.
"She and my dad went to Savannah on vacation and left me with a babysitter, but she became one of those things." Clementine explained. "Lee found me a couple days later when I was hiding in my treehouse. We've been looking out for each other ever since."
"Wait, Lee's not your father?" Talia questioned with surprise. Clementine shook her head. "No. He's been taking care of me." she replied. "That's really nice of him." Talia smiled, but her smile soon fell and she looke down at her lap. "I miss my father..."
"Where's your daddy?" Clementine asked curiously.
"He's dead. Killed at the Twins during the Red Wedding..." Talia answered truthfully. "I'm sorry." Clementine told the older girl with sympathy.
"It's okay." Talia muttered. "I do miss him a lot. He was a kind and brave man. I miss my twin as well..." Talia added sadly.
"Lee's taking care of me until we find my parents." Clementine said. "I hope they're okay..."
"Do you have any siblings?"
"No. I'm an only child..." Clementine muttered. "I always wanted a sister..."
"I have one older sister, one younger brother, and two older brothers." Talia stated. "Although one is exiled and the other is gravely injured... my sister is off at Kings Landing serving as a handmaiden."
"Why was one of your older brothers exiled and why was the other one injured?" Clementine inquired. "And what does exile mean?"
"Exile means to banish someone from an area and order them to not return for a very long time. Rodrik was injured at the Red Wedding and thought to be killed alongside Father, but Rodrik survived. But his arm and leg are badly injured and half of his face is heavily scarred. My other older brother, Asher, was exiled because he fell in love from someone that belonged to our enemy's House. Father was faced with a terrible decision: go to war, or exile Asher. Sadly, he chose to exile Asher... I haven't seen Asher in four years..."
"That must be awful..." Clementine said sadly.
"How old are you?" Talia asked, hoping to change the subject.
The little girl smiled. "I'm eight."
"My younger brother is just a year younger than you." Talia smiled softly. "What was he like?" Clementine asked.
"Like you... fun and innocent and very kind." Talia told her. "I'm sure you both would have gotten along. I haven't seen him ever since... the Whitehills took him as a hostage..."
Clementine gasped. "Why would they do that?"
"Because both lords of House Forrester were dead, they took the last heir, Ryon, as hostage to keep us in line and... they threatened to harm him if we didn't do what they ordered us to. And they're ordering us to stand down in the dirt like we're nothing..." Talia explained with a frown.
"That's really mean..." Clementine frowned at the thought of someone doing such a thing.
"I know... I just wish that they never came with Ramsay Bolton in the first place. Clementine, do you mind if I go talk to the other people around here? I'd like to know just what is going on." Talia requested.
The young girl nodded. "Okay."
Talia got up and headed to talk with the woman who had saved her earlier. "Hello." Talia greeted the woman.
The woman looked away from a device she was tinkering with. "Hi, how are you holding up, kid?" the woman asked her.
"I'm alright, but a little shaken up... I'm Talia." Talia introduced.
"I'm Carley." the woman replied with a nod. "Thank you for saving me from that... thing outside." Talia thanked.
Carley shrugged. "No problem. I couldn't just stand and let a kid die."
Talia then looked at Carley's apparel. "Forgive me, but I've never seen a woman wear a dress that would show her legs..."
Carley chuckled and answered, "You heard Lee. You're in a new world. Hell, in our world, this is considered dressing up."
Talia looked to her apparel with a strange expression. It didn't look right to her. "Besides, to relax, I'll usually wear a pair of jeans and a shirt." Carley added.
"... jeans?" Talia asked with confusion. "Trousers." Carley answered. "Lilly and Katjaa are wearing them right now."
Talia looked to the other two women in the pharmacy and was surprised. They were wearing just what Carley had described! "But, that's what boys wear." she protested.
"Well, not anymore." Carley shrugged. "Hell, you should try a pair on. They're probably more comfortable than that dress you're wearing."
"My dress is perfectly comfortable... although not when running..." Talia admitted.
"We can find you some later." Carley offered. Talia looked at Larry, who was slumped over as Lilly tended to him. "Why is such a man here?" she asked her.
"He's Lilly's father, so Lilly's been sticking with him. He's a real pain in the ass to everyone." Carley whispered so Larry couldn't hear. "You saw just how bad he is earlier."
"I can't beleive he'd be willing to hurt or kill me..." Talia shook her head. How could such a man be loose without being punished?
"Yeah, he really needs to calm down. Before he targeted you. He tried to kill Katjaa's and Kenny's boy. Good thing Lee was here to get him to back off." Carley said as she glanced at said man. "If he didn't, we would have had a dead kid..."
Talia turned to the device that Carley used and asked, "What is that thing that you used outside to kill that monstrosity?"
"It's called a gun. Very dangerous if you point it at someone and pull the trigger. Those things out there can be taken out by these. I can teach you how to use one after we get you some new clothes, if you'd like." Carley offered.
"Are they like swords? Because Ser Royland, the Master-at-Arms of Ironrath, secretly taught me how to fight with one without my mother knowing." Talia admitted. The experienced soldier taught her quite a lot on how to use a sword.
"No, but if you hit someone with them on the head, they hurt." Carley said. "Guns are used as ranged weapons. Small, but deadly. But they make a lot of noise, and those walkers out there are attracted to noise."
"Swords are kind of out dated. We still use knives, machetes, and axes." Carley explained. "So, what's different about a gun? Why are they so powerful? Are they magical or something?" Talia inquired with curiosity laced in her tone. The information was stunning to her more and more by the second.
Carley chuckled. "No, they aren't magical. They're packed with bullets, which are like arrows, but smaller. They're shot from the gun, and if one hits you, it hurts like hell." the reporter explained. "And if you're using one for the first time, the kickback can make the gun hit your face. Trust me, that's happened to me before when I first took shooting lessons."
"Okay, but they seem like a drawback as opposed to a crossbow." Talia noted.
"Not exactly." Carley shook her head. There are guns out there that can shoot many bullets in only a few seconds. My handgun is actually considered semi-automatic, which means if I keep pressing the trigger I can keep shooting more bullets. It would take a while to reload a crossbow."
"That's... amazing." Talia stated with awe in her voice.
Carley nodded. "So, if you're gonna be with us, you'll need to know how to defend yourself. You should watch your back around Larry, though." Carley advised.
The Forrester nodded. "I will." she replied.
"Maybe you should talk to Kenny and his family." Carley suggested as she gestured to the man with the oddly shaped facial hair and the kind woman from earlier. "Get to know them. Make sure you don't get on their bad side."
Talia nodded. "Alright." she replied before she walked past what appeared to be shelves to reach the man, Kenny. "Hello?" she asked. The woman, Katjaa, looked up from tending to the boy. "Hello." she greeted.
"Heya." Kenny nodded. "How are you feeling? I can't believe Larry attacked you like that." Katjaa said.
"That fucker is a danger to us all." Kenny muttered as he looked over to Larry.
"I'm okay... I just can't believe he nearly beat me. Even when I acted very bad when I was little, my mother and father never physically beat me." Talia shook her head. "That old asshole is really pushing his luck. First he tries to kill our son, then he tries to beat a girl. HE'S the one who should be thrown out." Kenny frowned.
Talia glanced back at Larry. "He sort of reminds me of Lord Ludd Whitehill..."
"Who?" Katjaa wondered.
"He was an enemy to my house. He... took my little brother away from us." Talia answered.
Kenny's eyes widened. "Damn... sorry to hear that." Kenny told her. "They both have so much in common. They're both fat, they're both rude, they're both willing to hurt children..." Talia whispered to them.
"Ludd Whitehill sounds like an awful man. I hope we never get to meet him." Katjaa said.
"I'd hate to admit it, but... I wouldn't mind seeing him again if it meant that I could see my family. I already miss them." Talia said with a frown forming on her face and tears forming in her eyes, but she blinked away the tears. She needed to be strong right now. Kenny crossed his arms as he glanced at Larry. "Why do I get the feeling that those two would get along great?" he frowned.
Talia noticed the boy Katjaa was tending to. "Hello, there." she greeted.
However, the boy was silent. "Is something wrong?" Talia asked, raising an eyebrow. Was he a mute?
"He's a little shaken up. One of those things almost got him." Katjaa explained. "But Carley and Glenn saved us."
"That cannot be easy..." Talia noted. "What's his name?"
"Duck." Kenny replied.
This caused Talia to raise an eyebrow. "Duck? Like the bird?"
"Yeah. It's a nickname. His real name's Kenny Junior." Kenny nodded.
"Why is he called 'Duck'?" Talia questioned. Never in all of Westeros had she ever heard of someone called 'Duck'. "Well, we have a phrase around these parts. If someone isn't affected by something, we say that it's like water off a duck's back." Kenny explained.
"I understand. It's a cute nickname." Talia commented. Katjaa smiled. "Thank you." she thanked her.
"Lee over there told me quite a lot of what this world was like." Talia told them. "You people have quite a few interesting customs. I feel sort of... primitive compared to your customs."
"We can help you adjust to this if you'd like." Katjaa offered.
"Thank you, but I think I can figure most of it out. I was always good at adjusting and learning." Talia told them. "And Carley's going to help me shoot and get me some new clothes so I won't be so limited in movement. I have to admit, I'll like being able in making a difference. It always infuriated me that I would have to rely on a man back home to get anything done." Talia frowned softly at the memory. "I'm more than capable myself."
"That's good to hear. It must have been frustrating for you wherever you came from." Katjaa noted. "Well, you better watch your back. Those things can sneak up on you when you least expect it." Kenny warned. "And maybe watch your back around Larry, too. Fat, crazy piece of shit might try to throw anyone in here who pisses him off out."
Talia nodded. "I will. Thank you for the warning." she told him before she then walked away and headed over to Lilly, who was still taking care of Larry. Talia kept her distance, scared of what Larry might do next. "Um... hello..." she greeted a tad bit nervously.
"Hey." Lilly replied as she stood up. "Sorry about my dad... I never thought he would go all apeshit like that."
Talia rose an eyebrow at her. "I thought you didn't like me?" she questioned, slightly surprised by the woman's change in behavior. "I was only worried about my people. We already took a big risk bringing in Kenny, Katjaa, Duck, Lee, and Clementine." Lilly answered. "We made another risk when Carley and Glenn saved you."
Talia glanced at Larry. "How do you manage to put up with your father?" Talia asked. She was amazed that someone like Lilly could deal with someone like him. "That's just how he is." Lilly answered. "I know he can be an asshole, but that's only because he has one last thing in this world to protect. So don't judge me if I take his side."
Larry glared up at Talia. "Looney." he gritted out.
"Dad, leave the kid alone. Don't get stressed without your pills." Lilly scolded.
"Lilly, what did you do before? Did you stay while your father did the work?" Talia asked the older woman. Lilly scoffed quietly. "Hah, things like the ladies staying home while the men do the tough stuff are outdated, kid. Both men and women work and do tough stuff. I was a mechanical admin at Warner Robins."
"... a what?" Talia asked. Everything she was hearing sounded so foreign. "Mechanical admin is the person in charge of working a machine, in my case, a plane. Warner Robins is an airforce base." Lilly explained.
Talia was still confused by the jargon. "What's a plane? And an airforce base? What's that?" Talia asked. "So many questions... A plane is a vehicle that can fly through the air. An airforce base is a military base where the airforce resides to prepare for missions." Lilly explained.
"It can fly through the air like dragons?!" Talia asked incredulously.
Lilly rose an eyebrow and said, "Kind of... a plane can fly four times faster than a dragon. Did you have dragons wherever you came from?"
"Of course we do!" Talia answered as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"Stupid... dragons only exist in fairy tails." Larry spat from the ground. "Not where I come from. Of course dragons are a rare sight now." Talia noted. "They're rarely seen in Westeros, but they're mostly in Essos. House Targaryen is deeply associated with dragons."
"Westeros? Is that the name of the world you come from?" Lilly asked.
"Yes." Talia nodded.
"You should be in an asylum." Larry gritted out.
"And you should be in a dungeon for trying to attack me." Talia retorted.
"You and your stupid fairy tale shit!" Larry barked at her. "Back at home, people like you would be thrown into dungeons if they went too far." Talia frowned.
"Fuck you!" Larry growled in pain. Talia was surprised that Larry had swore at a girl like that. Clearly, he had no manners and respect.
"Dad, stop." Lilly told him. "Look, maybe you should go check with Clementine again. I've seen him act this way before; he won't stop anytime soon."
"That might be a good idea." Talia replied. She quickly walked away from Lilly and Larry and started her search for the eight year old, hoping she wouldn't hear anything else from Larry. However, she couldn't see the child anywhere, but noticed that Lee and Carley weren't in the room either. Where could they have gone?
Talia looked around until she noticed an open door. Maybe they were in there. Talia approached the door and overheard the conversation on the other side. "I know who you are." It sounded like Carley. "You're Lee Everett, a professor at Athens who killed a State Senator who was sleeping with your wife. This is your parents' store, folks around town know the owner's son got himself a life sentence, but I'm a reporter working for WABE in Atlanta." Talia's eyes widened upon hearing the information... There was no way Lee was a murderer. He was so calm and understanding... surely it was a mistake!
She decided to hide and eavesdrop on them.
"I paid attention to that trial. Maybe you're a muderer, but I don't really care. Frankly, that's a skill that might come in handy." Carley told him. "Humph." Lee muttered. It was strange. He wasn't even defending himself.
"Did you tell anyone out there who you were or that you were tied to this place?" Carley asked.
"No. There's reason why I'm sticking with first names." Lee replied. Carley was silent for a moment. "You seem like an okay guy, and the last thing we need is drama out there. You've got this little girl to take care of and we have someone who's not accustomed to this place that came from a different world, so... don't make me wrong on this."
"I don't plan to." Lee replied.
"Good. Because if this lasts longer than a few days and you're a detriment to the group, then we'd have a problem." Carley said.
Talia heard Lee reply, "I hear you."
"I'll just keep it to myself." Carley told him. Through the cracked door, Talia could see that Lee had a thankful smile at this. "Thanks."
"Don't mention in it." Carley replied. Talia could hear the woman's heels approaching the door. She backed away and pretended to be interested in the items on the shelf. Granted she had never seen the packaging or the items before, but she intended to not be caught eavesdropping. She prayed that Carley wouldn't notice, but she could hear Carley approaching her. "Talia?"
Talia inwardly winced. "Yes?" she asked as she turned to the woman.
"You were listening in on my conversation with Lee, weren't you?" Carley crossed her arms.
"I don't know what you mean." Talia tried to play it off. How did she know that she was eavesdropping?
"I could see you through the crack of the door." Carley told her. Talia mentally smacked herself. She needed to be more discreet next time she ever eavesdropped on anyone again. "How much did you hear?" Carley asked her.
Talia pursed her lips and replied, "Everything."
Carley sighed and brought Talia to a corner so no one could hear them. "Look, you can't tell anyone about what you just heard." she told her. "You're mistaken." Talia told her. "There's no way that Lee would ever hurt anyone. He's a nice man. I've seen true murderers and psychopaths. He's not one of them."
"Talia, all evidence pointed to him. He even confessed it in court. He was guilty and he knew it." Carley said gently.
"You're wrong. He couldn't have." Talia shook her head as she hugged her arms. She felt a cold chill run down her spine.
"I was there to report the trial. He confessed it himself. Said he was in a fit of rage. But from what I've seen, he regrets it deeply." Carley told her.
"B-But Lee is such a nice man!" Talia protested. "I know he is." Carley nodded. She placed her hands on the girl's shoulders and said, "Talia, I need you to look at me." The girl hesitantly complied and Carley continued, "Lee is not a bad man. As you saw, he's a very kind man, but he felt a lot of anger and hurt when he saw that senator with his wife. Do you remember how angry you were when Ramsay stabbed and killed your brother?"
Talia was surprised that Carley had heard that, but shakily nodded. "Y-Yes... I hate that man more than anything in all of Westeros..." she said bitterly.
"You see? Lee just had one of those moments. He had about the same amount of rage and hurt in him that you did, but unlike you, he couldn't control it."
"I... I understand. Thank you, Carley." Talia said. "You promise you won't tell anyone?" Carley asked.
Talia nodded. "I-I promise. I think I should go talk to Lee."
"Well, if you're gonna do that, be careful. It's a touchy subject for him." Carley warned.
Talia nodded before she walked away from the reporter and towards the room. She couldn't help but think... was Lee still a good man? Or was it just a facade? She'd soon find out when she'd step through that door...