It's finally night time. You're exhausted from your trek, not to mention starving. Skipping breakfast and leaving in such short notice was definitely one of your smartest ideas. You mentally slap yourself rather than doing physically due to the weariness you feel on your arms. Sleep is definitely a requirement and if you have any nightmares you're going to give them a big fuck you because sleepless nights after treks are not okay under any circumstances.
You spent the past hour searching for any sparse area and any signs of wild animals that would enjoy eating you alive. Ugh, for once in your life, you wish Tavros was here to tell you about that. Though just having him around would definitely make you less nervous out here due to his affinity with animals of any kind for whatever reason. You don't hate animals. It's just most of them tend to creep you out a bit and you'd rather stay away from them.
Well whatever you've resolved to taking a long branch with you in case you're in danger of anything since the safest thing you can find is the shade of a tree which you doubt to be safe at all. You slump against the bark of the tree and lean your head back, staring at the partly covered sky while catching glimpses of stars. Lucky for you it's early summer, so it's not too hot or cold. Not that it gets terribly cold but you aren't a huge fan of it either. You just keep looking at the stars with the dangerous branch in the grasp of your hand
You sigh heavily and begin thinking about what exactly it is you're going to do. You have planned to join the Empress' army, yes, but how is the real question. They don't just let any street urchin join. Oh no, according to society you aren't even worthy of acknowledgement. Surprisingly, most of the forces under her command are aristocratic brats whose lives have been served on a silver platter since birth. The lowest being the city folk living close to the capitol. It doesn't surprise you actually, it explains a lot.
The Upper class gets far more privileges than anyone, not counting the Empress since she is the highest there is of course though you're sure that must be its own type of burden. Middle classes get slightly less, but at least decent accommodations. Then there's the lower class like you, which is little to no rights for anything. You just get pushed around and most of the poor starve to death due to food being unaffordable.
That's why most don't make it into the force. It's a vicious circle in your opinion, since in order to get out of a bad life, you have to get a good job, but to get a good job you have to be healthy which doesn't come with a bad life. You're healthy enough, you're lean and rather short but you consider your height normal for your age, it's just your friends are freakishly tall.
The question still is, how to get to the capitol? There's no way you'd make it there on foot, at least not before half a year has passed. And even if you could walk that much, how would you manage along the way to either not starve to death or be killed on the way? You'd be out of money long before you were even a fraction of the way there. You hate living so far out into the country where houses are literally a day apart.
Though assuming you were lucky enough to hitch rides and get enough provisions you might make it alive in a couple less months. You could hunt if you had at least knife with you but you don't and killing things always made you a bit queasy. Not that you wouldn't do it if you absolutely had to but you were never as smooth as Aradia or Sollux to kill anything without a second thought.
If you could join though, you'd definitely be remembered. Maybe they could even look past your poor bringing up and look up to you. Just like that one guy they tell stories about. You're sure they're just stories though. There's no way a lower class like him could have amounted to all that at his young age. Tavros liked to believe in those stories and you humored him too though you always found it a bunch of tall tale lies the townsfolk like to tell to their kids so they feel they can amount to something. Right now, you really believe in those stories. You must be really tired to feel so stupidly hopeful.
Your eyes sting and you know they're only going to stop stinging if you close them. Still you can't help but feel alert for noises. Alert for...anything. You slowly ease your grip on the branch and everything just sort of goes dark for a moment. A moment of absolute bliss with your mind forgetting about impending dangers, or anything that might be lurking in the shadows. Besides, who cares if the world eats you whole anyway?
You're startled by a heavy rustle in the bushes. You jolt awake and clutch the branch tightly while you listen at the loud sound. Just as sudden as it started, it stops. You scan around looking for the source of the noise while pulling yourself to your feet cautiously. You gulp down your fear and take a tentative step forward in the dark. You jump as another rustle sounds from behind you. There's another direction. This is becoming really unnerving. You back away from the tree and as you do so something taps lightly against your back but at this point it's enough to make you jump terrified. You whip around quickly and pointing the branch threateningly at whatever it is that touched you.
You lower the branch feeling like an idiot, yet still startled. You don't recall a plush being there, much less hanging in such a gruesome manner with a noose tied around it's little plush head. You'd expect it to be some sick joke but the noose looks just about perfect to you. Not that you've ever really seen one, but you assume them to look similar like the snares you used to make back home. Whatever this is for, it's still quite sickening and disturbing.
"God, that's creepy," you mutter poking the plush with a branch.
"Well excuse me for having a hobby," a voice calls from behind you. You let out a gasp and turn yet fucking again, to see who this is. You don't find anyone and you realize, it wasn't just from behind but also...You tilt your head up to find someone sitting on a thick branch above the tree. You see a glinting, wide smile and are vaguely reminded about a bedtime story.
"What's wrong boy? Can't talk?" the person interrogates, ending with blood curdling chuckle. Though it's a bit hard to tell from the voice, you assume it's a girl who either likes to sound creepy or simply some weirdo with issues. You just frown and she breaks into a fit of giggles.
"You know, it's very rude not to answer if you can. A lower class like yourself should display more manners and abide by law to at least address a lady," she begins, her tone a bit more serious. "Could call for a hanging though I haven't gotten to do a real one yet so anything could go wrong. The noose might not be tight enough and you could slip through and fall to your death instead. But if it's too tight I might break your windpipe instead of letting you hang and sputter. But if..."
"Shut the fuck up!" you yell as each of her concerns for her execution method chill you more and more to the bone. She stops talking and smiling for a moment. Then she stands up and you notice a reddish glint outlining where you assume her eyes must be.
"You're funny," she cackles manically, ending it as though she laughed so hard until she cried. "Oh, I thought I had you with that one. You're kinda cute too, but I simply must know. What is such a charming young man as yourself doing here in my wonderful forest?"
"Your forest?" you sneer ignoring how red your face must be, and she begins balancing herself to the trunk of the tree.
"Yep, my forest," she confirms leaning against the trunk. "I live here dummy. I take it you're new around here since I've never smelled such a delightful smell as yours. What is that, like strawberries or something?"
"What?" you ask confused. Smell? "Wait were you the one trying to scare me rustling in the bushes?!"
"Never mind," she sighs then tilts her head to address your second question. "Scare you? I haven't been down from my tree all night. You must be talking about the dragon." This girl is completely insane. Living out here on her own must have affected her somehow.
"There's no such thing as a dragon!" you yell. She begins walking down the branch again, toward the rope tied on it and begins pulling the plush toy up.
"Sure there is," she counters, "Just because you haven't seen one doesn't mean they don't exist. I've never seen one and I know they exist. You really should get off the ground though. She doesn't take kindly to strangers. She can be a bit overprotective when my sister isn't here. I wouldn't like you getting hurt, you're a great convertionalist."
"Fuck you and your imaginery dragon," you scowl. You hear her huff.
"Are you always this difficult? Geez," she grumbles. "But I'll be a kind host and offer you refuge for the night in exchange for this nice little chat we had."
"You're completely insane," you blurt and she giggles again.
"So I've been told," she answers lightly dropping a rope ladder. "There. Just make your way up and I'll show you around."
"What makes you think I'll trust you?" you demand. "Or that you can trust me."
"Well, you're a lame kid without a weapon and I could easily overpower you. As for the first one, there isn't much choice is there? Unless of course you're dying to meet the dragon, which meeting her I guarantee you'll be dead. I take you have heard those awful tales told about how vicious dragons are; monstrous creatures that breathe fire and could crush you with their enormous claws. I wish I could tell you that's all legends but they are surprisingly accurate."
You look down at your feet and begin weighing your options. On one hand there's a psychotic girl and on the other there's a vicious monster you have no intention of finding whether is real or not. You grab the ladder and against your better judgement, being climbing.
You expect her to try something nasty like dropping the ladder but she never comes close. You make it on the branch and very carefully try to stand up. The branch is wide so your footing isn't lost which is something quite fortunate since a fall from this height could mean certain death. The girl turns to you and offers you her hand. You take it and she gives you a light shake.
"I'm Terezi," she introduces herself. You hesitate before telling her your name and you can tell she feels slightly offended.
"Karkat," you mutter and she smiles. From this close you can make out some of her features. She has a wide smile and rather dark skin. She's not much taller than you either, you'd say you're about the same height though you could be wrong. She begins walking back to the trunk carefully, conscious of your balance and inexperience of walking on tree branches.
"It's nice to meet you Karkles," Terezi giggles as she stands in front of the trunk. You blush indignantly from the given nickname. She doesn't know you well enough to give you such a nickname! You don't say anything because you actually feel welcomed by been given the silly name. "There's steps nailed on here. The house is right above."
Terezi begins climbing up the steps with you following her. It's not a great deal amount of boards, but you think it's pretty dangerous to pull yourself up like this. You've had to catch yourself several times in near falls as opposed to Terezi's swift and skilled climbing. Once you're up, you notice what you stand on feels solid and sturdy. It would never occur to you that a platform so high up could feel almost like standing on firm ground.
"Don't look so surprised, building things like this only require finding the right tree. Well and knowing how to nail boards," she comments. "Now if you'll be so kind as to step inside. You see the open doorway and look at Terezi hesitantly. Then you sigh heavily and enter the brightly lit room with Terezi right on your heels. "What do you think?"
You step into a crazy arrangement of color. Purple on some walls, other walls with a very strange shade of teal and scribbling on the wall that you're not sure what they are.
"It's very...colorful," you comment. " Why did you use so many damn colors?"
"Why not?" she shrugs. She smirk trying not to laugh at her response. She's proven to be frustrating but you see that she likes jokes. "Take a seat anywhere you like. Care for a snack?"
"I.." your stomach rumbles which is quite embarrassing but Terezi's response is the usual cackle.
"Gotcha," she dismisses and walks into another room, leaving you entirely alone in this oddly colored room. You look around and find many, similarly styled plush toys like the one that was hanging from the tree earlier. In a corner lay many cutouts and the head of one half stuffed with only one button eye. Maybe she makes these herself? But why is she intent on hanging them?
You don't trust Terezi and her odd tendencies, but you're trying to get to know what she's interested in so as to know something about her. You notice a cane against a wall with a dragon head as the handle for the cane. You've never seen a cane like that.
So what she likes is hanging things, dragons and colors obviously.
You sit down on the rug in the room with your legs crossed. Sitting on the floor isn't terribly uncomfortable and honestly, you're fearing to find needles or a noose in between pillows.
Terezi walks in carrying some bread and juice. You notice she's definitely around your height, she has shoulder length black hair and dark skin. As for her eyes you don't know, since they are covered with some red glasses. Sunglasses it would seem. Then you remember the cane. Oh.
"Here you go," she says handing you the food, "light but better than nothing right?"
"No kiddinng," you agree taking a bite. Not eating in a whole day makes anything taste amazingly. "Thank you."
"Eh," she shrugs, " You still didn't answer, why were you in the forest? Are you suicidal,or something?"
"What if I was just exploring?" you sneer she grins.
"You wouldn't survive a day exploring," she teases, "You'd die in a heartbeat. Also, I can tell you're not prepared for anything. Did ya lose your bag or something?"
"No," you sigh, "I sort of left home."
"Oh? How come? Did they hate you or something?"
"Nah. Well I don't think they did," you correct yourself remembering Aradia's moment of panic, "It was more of a personal choice. Why are you on your own?"
"I'm not on my own," she counters, "Usually my sister's here but she has some work to do at the capitol apparently. She's pretty cool. I kind of miss her, I haven't heard from her in a while, but I also haven't heard from a good friend of hers. I think they're just busy. Nobody thought they'd make it as far as they did."
"How come?"
"Well my sister is part of a nearly exclusive male division so everybody thought she'd give up, but I knew she wouldn't. She's the best there is and works for the Great High Regent himself. Not that she likes him very much, she says he's really creepy. And the other guy..well he's from basically the same class as you."
"That has to be a joke," you scoff.
"No, really! To what I can tell he's the Empress' favorite General. He says being a general is really hard work, specially when he still has to work at getting his own troops to respect him. He's peculiar though...not that I can't say the same about my sister."
"I really didn't think the stories were true. Are you making it up, like the dragon?" You ask skeptically. She frowns.
"I didn't make up the dragon! She's real and maybe she should tear you to pieces! Would you believe she exists then?!" she growls at you.
"Gee,z sorry. It's just the idea of a living, breathing dragon is pretty fucking out there. How can such a huge fucking thing stay hidden?" You grumble.
"She just does," Terezi crosses her arms.
"Sure," you shrug, rolling your eyes. Now you're both a bit angry which warrants for silence.
"Wait, going back to that. Did you leave to go to the capitol?" Terezi asks breaking the silence.
"Maybe I did," you shrug. She stays quiet, looking at her hands, now this makes you curious. "Why?"
"Well...If you are...I want to go too," she mutters you just stare at her. "I love my tree but this forest is all I've ever known. And I really want to pursue the same career path as my sister. But she'd never let me. And now you'r probably going to say no too because I'm blind, right?!" You stay quiet. That's exactly why you don't want her to come along.
"I'm not helpless!" she scowls. "I can take care of myself!"
"Give me one good reason I should let you tag along," you sigh. "Just one."
"I can provide enough supplies for a trip and know the quickest way out of the forest," she offers. "You'll need me for that or you'll end up dead, from the wilderness or from hunger. "
"That seems like a rather limited reason," you huff. She frowns, but not because she's angry, she's determined to go with you.
"I'm quite persuasive, and tell me, who doesn't pity a blind girl enough to help her? I know you're thinking it." You smirk at her defensive position.
"You can come along then," you say frustrated as though you had no other choice and she cheers for herself. "But I'm not going to be any more pleasant than usual. I don't think I have to be."
"That's what so charming about you Karkles," she smiles and you blush furiously yet again.
"Shut up."
A/N: It's been so long since I posted a chapter. Sorry about that. I got a tad stumped. But hooray! We meet Terezi! Nest chapter we get to read a tad about the Empress and possibly from a different time perspective. I'll be sure to have that up as soon as possible. Thanks you readers!
-Saiven