Post by Aegle Verdant on Jul 19, 2020 21:30:04 GMT -5
Berwyn's unfortunate outburst produced a faint titter from Aegle.
'Well, there it is. No more need to wonder how my appearance strikes her.'
It was hard to hate her for it though, especially when Aegle was already so used to that kind of reaction from others. She wasn't ignorant of how she looked, far from it, and Berwyn's obvious discomfort on the topic showed she was at least polite enough to feel bad for how ugly she thought Aegle was.
"S'alright," she crooked girl said with her characteristic grin, "I just want some of my pants t'fit right. I ain't expectin' a miracle."
The conversation fortunately moved away from Aegle's unfortunate appearance, however.
Aegle eyed the pair from her perch on the bed, one leg swinging idly under its own weight. The motion caused the little motor by her knee to whisk and whir, sounding an awful lot like the cogs and gears turning in the highlander's head. She wasn't exactly thrilled by Bianca's line of inquiry, but the question was far from an unexpected one, and that she would even think to ask it said something about her.
'Says she knows the dangerous business we're all signed up for. Says she understands this isn't a normal kind of thing, learning to fight the grimm.'
That reality was something everyone in Solitas grew up with. With its cold winters and its sparse population, spread out all across terrain fit to kill most other residents of remnant, her ancestors knew a thing or two about fighting, and the value thereof. It was a great honor to go to the Academy, to learn to fight for your kingdom, to match ones mettle and skill at arms against the Grimm. It was a tradition as ingrained as it was martial, peculiar to Remnant's most northern kingdom. Every one of her brothers, and both her parents, had gone through the Academy, though it was only Aaron who had chosen to enlist as a full time huntsmen. Such was their duty.
It wasn't quite the same in Mistral, Aegle had learned during her short time at Haven. For all the old kingdom's ties to Mantle and Atlas, it's people had never been half so martial. In Mistral, it was a risk few saw much worth in. Aegle could understand why; She knew what the life expectancy of a huntress was. It was enough to make anyone wary of the profession. That Bianca, as a mistralian, would choose this life was telling. It might have been three square meals and a place to sleep, but that was only worth something if she hadn't had those things to start with. Hard as Aegle's life had been, her parents were affluent by Highlands standards, and she'd never wanted for anything growing up.
'They even had the means to get me treated.'
It made her wonder what kind of life Bianca had lead to make Haven, with all its difficulties and its dangers, the preferred alternative.
She might have turned that same question on Berwyn, for that matter, had the answer not been so obvious just from looking at her. There was a reason most huntresses were tall and strong. A certain amount of natural athleticism lent itself well to the trade. Those that didn't have it usually had a semblance making up from the fact.
'And then there's the huntresses like me.'
Aegle's grin twitched, but she knew it couldn't be that simple, and Berwyn soon confirmed it for her. There were plenty of things a big woman could do which didn't involve risking her life in fights against soulless monsters for random strangers. The big woman was even so helpful as to name a few. Plainly, there had to be something else going on, something that had pushed her this way, the same as it had pushed Bianca.
'The same as it pushed me, for that matter...'
Was it a punishment then? Recompense for her bad attitude from half a decade ago? Or were her parent's both huntsmen, eager to see their naturally gifted daughter follow in their footsteps? From the way Berwyn spoke about it, it almost sounded like there was some tradition she was expected to hold up. It would probably be rude to pry, and Aegle had already been plenty rude already.
Then it was her turn to answer. Her turn to explain what sequence of happenstance had landed her at an academy, training every waking hour to catch up with fighters who'd been training half their lives. What had pushed her into this unusual course, one for which she was so obviously ill suited? What could possibly justify her being at Haven, when even able bodied mistralians would sooner do anything else. A good question. It was therefore quite fortunate that she'd had plenty of time to come up with a good answer. A good thing too, because not answering would have only called more attention to herself.
"Aye, so basically, I'm a bit bent, a bit crooked, and ever so slightly cracked," Aegle said with a sing-song grin, stealing Berwyn's opening line for some ironic flare, "Y'might've noticed."
She shrugged her shoulders, a difficult gesture for her, then sighed and kicked her heavy shod feet.
"Was a time I reckoned I'd grow up t'be like my brother, my biggest brother. Might be y'have heard of 'im. His name's Aaron Verdant."
Aegle had given this answer enough time that she knew to pause here, to gauge whether her audience knew who she was talking about. If either girl had ever paid any attention to the Vytal tournaments, they would know who Aaron was. Praised as the 'Perfect Soldier' during his time at Atlas, he held the record for the shortest final round victory in Vytal history, and by a not-inconsiderate margin. In his other matches, he'd been untouchable, as quick and skilled as he was efficient and ruthless. A stand out in an already exceptional year.
"Figured I was gonna be just like him, aye? Standin' vanguard for Solitas and such."
Aegle shrugged again.
"Got sick instead, and that sickness ended in this pretty little result seated a'fore you." Aegle slipped her hands out of her pockets and spread her arms wide, as though to present herself to the pair. She was quick to get her hands back into her pockets though, where the bloody wrappings and trembling fingers could remain unseen.
"Cleverer girl might've seen some kind of a sign in that, but I ain't never made much of a claim to cleverness. Saner girl might've figured fightin' when ye cannae even hold a weapon would be crazy," Aegle showed them her craziest smile, "Fortunately, I quite enjoy the challenge."
Grinning wider, she tipped her head back and rolled her shoulders.
"I ain't lettin' small details like a bent back and bad hips keep me from my dream. I ain't lettin' anythin' keep me from bein' like my big brother. Not sickness, nor weakness, nor crookedness. Nae, not even my own self. That's why I'm gonna be a huntress."
It was a good answer. At least, Aegle thought it was. It was the answer she'd given her brothers and her parents after all. It was the answer she'd given Atlas and all the other academies on her applications for that matter, though perhaps not worded quite so audaciously as she'd just done. It was the answer she gave whenever someone asked her that question, because it was an answer that was hard to argue with. It was an answer inspiring enough for people to want to believe it, and a worrying enough ring true. An answer that implied she was just a bit too stubborn, just a bit too stupid, to realize what a terrible mistake she'd made, but one which it would be rude for someone to attack.
It was a good answer. The only thing that could have made it better would have been if it was an honest answer too.
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