forum "If This is My Penance, So Be It" (REBOOT O/O open)

Started August 07, 2020 by @Oakiin

tune

(Let me know if this doesn't work, I can always re-write it! ^^)

The heavy overcast let a soft rain fall down on the city below. The soft rumble from the finishing storm rolled throughout the streets, an occasional flash streaking across the sky. It was definitely a surprise to say the least, after the dry-spout the smaller city had gone through. Though one soul in particular wasn't complaining.
With her bright smile, Arla grinned as she skipped down the sidewalk with her umbrella. She was alone on the streets, her boots making a squeaky sound as she walked. Her hair was pulled back into a braid, swinging back and forth to the bounce in her step. Arla had been on the way back to where she lived from school when the rain had started up again. The showers had been on and off all day, the clouds never rolling away.
"It's like some kind of magic!" She had earlier said to one of her classmates, inventing some kind of story to go with it. The way she talked about it, you would have thought she believed in that kind of stuff. But she never seemed to be too invested in it.

Arla continued to walk along in mostly silence, humming softly. She seemed to be in a chipper mood, managing to turn a gloomy day into something more. Her pale-pink coat reached her knees, her black leggings peeking out in the break between her coat and boots. Occasionally she hopped onto a shallow puddle, grinning brighter as she did so.
Eventually when she was about a block away from the orphanage, she caught sight of the park. She stopped in her walking, glancing across the street.
"It couldn't hurt to take a detour…" She trailed off, her smile picking up. With her decided plan, she slowly made her way across the street— after looking both ways— coming up to the park.
The path was concrete, slick with the rain. But it wasn't muddy like the grass. So she made sure to keep on the pathway as she walked.

(I'm thinking the storm is probably caused by your guy coming to earth. Just a suggestion though :3)

(aahhh this is stunning! Having the storm be caused by my guy is genius, I love it :D (Also, I like the lines you put in-between rp and ooc, I'm definitely using that from here on out xD)

Arlath stared up at the red sky in confusion. It never stormed like this in Hell. Sure, it was always overcast and angry, but the clouds gathering were black, not the customary reds he'd come to expect. The lightning that danced and flickered through the cloud cover wasn't green, it was white and violently active, crackling with such energy he could feel his skin prickling even from the ground. As he watched the white spiderwebs streak and crackle across the sky, the dull roar of continuous thunder rising and falling in volume, he was struck by how…natural the storm felt. It felt like something from his own home-world, nothing like the continuous heat and unbreaking cloud-cover of Hell.

"…What?" he muttered to himself, shocked as he felt the temperature noticeably begin to drop. A sudden gust of cold wind hit him with enough force to knock him back, stumbling as he caught himself. The wind picked up again, fierce and powerful, and most disturbingly, carrying with it the first few drops of cool rain. Arlath took another step back - voluntarily this time - beginning to think he should be heading back home. Whatever was happening, it couldn't be good. As the sky above him rumbled again, loud and close enough to shake the rock formations around him, the rain hit for real, driven by the uneven, blustery wind. Arlath raised his hand to shield his face from the pelting drops, turning to leave, when there was a flash much brighter than the others. He just had time to look up when the sky split again, and an arc of electricity struck down with all the force of the worst mountain storms.

To his surprise, he was not killed instantly. There was a blinding, searing feeling of white-hot pain, and everything turned brightly colorless for a moment, then his vision slowly returned to him. It was spotty, after-images dancing across his one good eye as he tried to comprehend anything that had just happened. His first realization was that he had fallen, limp in the grass as rain much more gently pattered down upon him.

Wait. Grass? He tried to push himself up, his muscles still weak and shaky from being struck by lightning, blinking in alarmed confusion as he saw an undeniably un-hellish landscape surrounding him. Forcing his protesting body to rise, he staggered to his feet, half-falling against an obliging tree as he tried to catch his breath and understand what was happening.

(Wow, that got long!~ Yours really inspired me to go all out tbh xD)

(Thank you, thank you! :)(Lol, I normally try to do it for roleplays like these :3)

Arla continued to walk, half skipping as she did. She was still humming softly, holding a hand out from under the edge of her umbrella. Rain drops built up in her palm and started running down her forearm when she tipped her hand a bit.
Her blue eyes lit up at the cold sensation, grinning further. To say she excited easily was an understatement.
Water dripped from her fingers when she pulled her hand back, a gust of wind blowing through. She did her best to hold onto her umbrella, but the wind yanked it out of her grasp, blowing it off into the distance.
"Hey!" Arla shouted, running after it. But she wasn't making it very far, her feet continually slipping out from underneath her. A huff of frustration escaped her lips as she stepped into the grass, hoping things would be easier there.

But as she was running after the black umbrella, a streak of lightning bolted to the ground. It was a little ways away, but too close for comfort. Arla felt her eyes grow wide, deciding she could just get a new umbrella.
So quickly she made her way back onto the path, pushing her wet hair out of her face. Quickly she continued walking down the path, approaching where the lightning had struck. To her surprise, she saw a figure lying on the ground. She tried to make out the shape through the darkness of the evening, figuring it was a person. As soon as she figured it out, she ran back into the grass out to the figure.
"Jeepers mister, are you okay?" Arla called out, avoiding the mud best she could. But she was also trying to reach the man, hoping he was alright.

(Haha, we totally don't have to keep it this long, but we totally can!)

(ofc! ^^ That is intelligent xD)

Looking up hazily, Valen struggled to focus on the girl running towards him. He stumbled back, holding out a hand as if to keep her away. It took him a moment to find his voice, but when he did it was shaky and unsteady, a far cry from his normal calm, steady tones.

"Don't!" he said as loudly as he could, catching himself on the tree again as he threatened to fall. "Don't come any closer."

He wasn't entirely sure why he has such a violent reaction, but internally he recoiled from the concept of interaction. Especially with a child. Especially when he wasn't fully in control of his emotions. No – he actually knew exactly why. It was because she was a child, because he was already freaking out. He'd chosen a life far away from people for a reason, to afraid of even the quietest whisper of a potential relationship. People only got hurt around him, and it was always my fault. He raised his head to stare at her again, struggling with his mind as it tried to replace her with -

No, he thought, tearing his gaze away. He just needed a moment to collect himself. Closing his eyes he took a couple shaky breaths, trying to calm his racing mind. He was just confused after the…whatever had just happened. He just had to clam down. Just calm down. Lock away the bad things, regain control. As his breathing began to even out, he looked back up to see if the girl had actually stopped.

(Dude, I'm 100% down xD I'm having a lot of fun going deeper into my chara's mind and reaction, and learning more about Arla's! ^^)

Arla had kept coming, until she heard him shout at her. Taking a moment to register his words, she was probably way close than he would like her to be. But she didn't move, not quite sure what to do. Not having a phone, she couldn't call anyone. To her, he definitely looked like he needed some sort of medical attention. But she wouldn't dare tell him that. She was trying to helpful, not rude.

So she stood there, watching him with concern. He was a full-grown adult. She was probably more than half his age, and seen as a bother to him. Though her little smile wasn't wavering, even in concern. Water drenched her from head to toe as the rain picked up, considering she had lost her umbrella to the wind. But clearly she didn't seem to mind too terribly. Otherwise she'd be gone.

Her blue eyes watched him with intent, waiting to be told what to do. Though she hoped he wasn't going to yell at her for staying to try and help. He had already kind of done so when he had seen her. And that was when he seemed unstable.
She didn't want to know how he'd react when he could focus once more. That definitely worried her enough to take a step or two back. But her smile remained.

"Are… are you alright, sir?"

(Alright, cool aha! I'm honestly loving this :P I really get to use my character, y'know?)

Arlath made a massive effort to overcome the whirlwind of sensations he'd forgotten during his time in Hell; the sweet scent of wind and thunder, the cold, driving rain drenching him, the lush rustling of the green green leaves, the sight of trees, and grass, and clear air, no more horrid, constant burning smoke, no more distant sounds of violence and pain, no more unrelenting, scorching heat.

He nearly cried with relief.

Well, more than relief, if he was being honest. Panic, grief, horror, anger…all the emotions he'd been pushing away under the excuse of self-preservation seemed to see an opportunity here to strike him while he was weak and confused. He felt he was on aflame with mental and physical pain the rain shockingly cold against his burning skin. For a moment, he kept it together, then something gave out, and he fell to his knees, tears mixing with the rain streaking down his soot-stained face. He raised his head to focus on the girl again, hearing her ask if he was altight.

No, he mentally responded, staring blankly at her. not at all.

"Where are we?" he asked, voice raspy and rough, but surprisingly steady. Taking advantage of the control he seemed to have maintained over his speech he slipped in another question before his voice could catch up with his unbidden tears and break. "Who are you?"

(SAME. If I take a little longer to reply it's because I want to make sure it's perfect. I'm having a BLAST, and I LOVE seeing the way the replies overlap?? :D That's so cool, it feels sooo much more real ^^ plus, I actually get to try with my writing, which is a thing xD)

The rain kept coming, drenching the blue-eyed girl. Her hair was plastered to her face, which she attempted to slick back. But the loose hairs kept drooping down onto her. Eventually she gave up, dropping her hands down to her sides.
Though being as fidgety as she was, she started rocking on her feet. Back and forth she swayed as she waited for some kind of response from him. The last thing she expected was to see him start crying. That definitely worried her. Carefully she stepped back some, ready to run away at the threat of danger.

Arla kept rocking back and forth, seeming taken by a bit of surprise when he started talking to her. This time, not yelling at her.

"Ummm… I think we're in Queenland's Park. Near the orphanage down on second street." She informed him, pulling her hair over her shoulder. Water seemed to flick off the end of it, sending droplets onto the grass below her. It didn't really do much, as the grass was already incredibly drenched with water. What more would a little water do?

Her eyes watched over him, seeming to light up when he asked who she was. She started to approach him as she responded to his second question. "I'm Arla! I live down that way." She hummed, pointing down in the direction she was headed. Her smile was extra bright, still approaching him. "I was headed home, when I saw you… what's your name, sir?"

(That's totally alright! Don't stress yourself over this, though, alright? I can wait a little if you're super busy! With that said, I might be a day or so later to respond to this as well.)(And I definitely agree! I love getting to be descriptive, which doesn't happen in RPs very often. Mostly because they have shorter responses, and I don't have the time ;-; And your writing is spectacular! <3)

Queenland's Park? he thought, confused. Where's that? What orphanage?

He didn't notice Arla getting closer, too lost in his own overwhelming stress as he tried to understand anything at all. He barely heard her response, shaking his head as he tried to clear it. He made no attempt to rise, this was fine. He doubted he was steady enough to stand alone at the moment anyway.

Arla… The name sounded painfully like one from his culture, though as he looked up again and studied her closer, he realized she couldn't be one of his kind. Her eyes were blue, an unheard of color. Arlath only knew one other person who didn't have the metallic colored eyes his entire species had, but he had been a stranger, not of Arlath's land, with green eyes…

"Are you a human?" he asked uncertainly, roughly wiping away his tears and quelling the emotions as best he could. He needed to focus, not be panicked and disorderly. He hesitated, realizing he'd completely brushed off her question about his name, but for now kept quiet. He needed to know what was going on before he gave any information about himself.

Be calm, man, he told himself, taking another deep breath. God the air tasted so good. Get it together, you're better than this.

At least he had that. Nothing else of course, but he could still keep his wits about him. He hadn't lost his skills along with everything else. A thin line to grasp at for sure, but at this point, he was willing to take anything.

(Thank-you!! And same to you, never feel rushed to reply <3 <3) (YES it's so much fun :D I don't think I've ever had an rp this…engaged before, I'm really loving it :) aaahhhhh tysm!!!!! Your writing is just so stunning and evocative, I can't help but be inspired to really put some effort in the replies. Gotta at least try and match your skill <3

Arla stopped in her tracks, giving him an odd look. She tilted her head to the side, seeming quite confused. Had he just asked if she was a human? Wasn't he one, too? The longer she thought about it, the more confused she seemed to grow.

"Um… yeah? A lot of people here are… I'd say that all of them were." The way she said it came out a lot more sarcastic than she had intended, but she was still too confused to apologize for it. What else would she be? Even if she believed in fairytales, she knew that would be a different world. Nothing mythical lived in the town around here. Not that she had seen, at least.

She kept her gaze on him, not approaching any closer as she talked.

"Sir, do you want me to go call a hospital? Or… um, some form of assistance?" Arla asked softly, growing worried. The way he was talking, and crying, it had her worried. He seemed delusional to her— kind of crazy, even. She was worried he had seriously hit his head, causing brain issues. Or maybe he was drunk, though that would be a bit of a surprise, considering the nearest bar was over a mile away from here. It was quite a walk from there to here.

And yes, Arla knew what, and where the bar was. She didn't drink, of course, but she went for walks. She knew the town like the back of her hand. A lot of people knew who she was because of her walks, so finding someone new was a surprise indeed. What made it more surprising, was the fact she found him in the middle of the park, seeming quite confused and lost.

(I'll try my best to respond quickly, but the extra assurance is greatly appreciated <33)( I'm glad to hear you're enjoying it! :D Pfft, thank you. I'd disagree, but we might end in an endless loop of insisting the other is better. Lol)

Arlath finally got his emotions under control with one final deep breath, not replying to Arla for a moment as he slowly rose, testing his balance and finding he was no longer in danger of falling over. So this wasn't part of the plan. No problem. It wan't like he'd had much of a plan anyway.

"No," he finally said, a little sharper than he'd intended. Or maybe not. He was too tired to know or care at this point. Now that the initial shock was gone, he was starting to realize just how much of everything hurt. He had a headache, his muscles and joints burned, he felt slightly sick, and as he took a hesitant step forward, testing the waters so to speak, the pain only flared, warning him that too much motion would be a poor life-choice.

Getting struck by lightning is no joke, he thought to himself, wincing. At least, that's what he assumed had happened. He didn't really know. Thinking back on it, the whole event was a blur, details fuzzy or missing entirely. His biggest concern, at this point, was simply why.

Why had that happened? Why was he here now? That kind of storm was completely unheard of in Hell. He should know, he'd spent more time than most people would ever care to, and he knew the weather patterns like the back of his hand, given that said weather patterns consisted of one thing and one thing only: Constant, angry, dry, heat storms.

"Then we're on earth," he concluded, focusing on Arla again. Come to think of it, who was she? He dimly recalled her saying her name was Arla, but…what was she doing here?

Well, he didn't know this place. Maybe this was a perfectly reasonable place for young children to hang out unsupervised. He supposed he should consider himself lucky that she had been the one to find him, not some adult who would be much more likely to cause trouble.

(Same here! ^^ But I'm glad we're both in agreement not to stress about it xD) (HAHA ain't that the truth tho xDD Glad we're agreed on that too xDD)

Arla flinched at his tone, stepping back a few feet. When he was standing up at his full height, it definitely made her nervous. He looked a lot more intimidating when he started to grow stable. Her thoughts of retreating were starting to come back, but they weren't making it to her feet.
Especially after his comment about being on earth. Her nerves seemed to disappear once again as more confusion built up.

Of course they were on earth. Where else would they be? Wasn't earth the only habitable place in their galaxy?
"Um, yes sir… we're on earth." Arla replied, brushing the water off her coat. She was trying to distract herself of the weirdness of the situation, trying to figure out what to do. He was probably faster than her, and would easily catch up. He could seriously hurt her.
That was clearly not the way to go about this situation. But then again, he looked injured.

Quietly she took another couple steps back, her confusion and uneasiness bouncing back and forth like a game of air-hockey. Her head even buzzed with what could be considered the hum of the machine when it was powered on. It was a lot for the young girl to handle all at once.

But she wasn't going to cry. She didn't really feel that stressed anyways. Which could be considered strange for any normal kid. But most people knew Arla was far from a normal kid. How could a girl like her be 'normal', anyways? It seemed like a lot of wasted potential if she tried to fit in. Though it may have kept her out of a situation like this, to begin with.

"Are you sure you're alright, sir? There's a hospital right down the street…""And a police station." She added on mentally, keeping her distance still. If he tried to come at her, she had the ability to gain a head start at least. Maybe she could catch someone's attention before he got to her.

(Lol, agreed :) I do still apologize it took a little longer for me to get something up.)(Lol, I've learned my lesson from the past. Best not get into that mess again xD)(Also, I totally keep forgetting, but the title does say this is still open if you care ^^)

(Hey! I don't know if you're at all interested in continuing this, and I totally get it if not, I really vanished there. A lot of personal stuff happened. Some really bad things went down and I just was off the internet for quite a while. But if you want to, I'm trying to come back to Notebook just a little bit, and I would be down to kepp going with this.
Up to you tho!)

@Fraust If you want to keep going with ours too, I'd be down <3

(Idr what ours was but we can if you want lol)

I think we just had the same rp going in pms, but up to you! I totally get it if you don't have time or so on.

(Hey! I don't know if you're at all interested in continuing this, and I totally get it if not, I really vanished there. A lot of personal stuff happened. Some really bad things went down and I just was off the internet for quite a while. But if you want to, I'm trying to come back to Notebook just a little bit, and I would be down to kepp going with this.
Up to you tho!)

(I'd love to if you're up for it :) And there's no need to apologize, I've been so incredibly busy myself. So I can't promise I'll respond often, but I'll do my best to. Honestly, you came at a really good week, because this is about to be a really relaxed week compared to everything that's been going on for a while haha.)

Yay!!! I'm really excited to get back into this one :D :D
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Arlath suddenly realized how this all must seem to the poor girl. He knew he wasn't the most friendly looking figure, with his bulky, worn armor, scars, and smears of blood and soot covering him. He took a step back, offering her the best smile he could manage given everything. He wasn't sure it was very reassuring, but better than nothing.

"Sorry," he apologized quietly, raising his hands peaceably. "I didn't mean to make you nervous. I…"
He trailed off there, unable to think of any excuse that would be convincing. He met her gaze, trying to judge. Maybe he should just apologize and leave. He had no idea where he would go, he'd never been to earth, and knew nothing of it. His English was only as good as it was because he'd spent so long trying to learn a way to communicate with the stranger when he'd first showed up on Arlath's home planet.

Maybe he should just be honest. The girl probably already thought he was crazy, if he told her what he thought really happened, the ball would be in her court. She could decide if she wanted to try his company or just leave.

Not that I care if she does leave, he told himself. He certainly didn't need the company, or even want it. He'd messed up enough things in his life, this girl didn't need him messing up her life as well.
Truth it is, he decided. What could go wrong? Not much could make this situation worse.

"I'm not from earth," he explained. "I'm from a different planet, and I don't know how I got here. There was a storm, and then…I think I got hit by lightning." he decided to leave Hell out of it for now. No need to bog down everything with details. He watched her, waiting for her to bail and run away or call him crazy.

As am I! I'm sorry it's taken me so long to get to you.

And that's when the curiosity flooded in. Millions of questions flooded through, not quite making it to her mouth. The only consistent question was so stupid, but she felt it was the only thing that she could ask.
"So… are you an alien?"

Arla expected him to laugh, and make fun of her. Maybe that's what he was already doing, trying to play games with her. But she was too rattled to think straight. Sure, she was only a child, but she was typically smarter than that. But alas, her active imagination was taking over. She barely had any restraint on the questions she wanted to bombard him with, attempting to get one at a time.
Though he may not even answer, and just try to turn her into Arla soup if he really was an alien.
But even that thought couldn't get her feet to run. The longer she stood there, the more complicated her thoughts grew, giving her a more and more puzzled face. Why would an alien be here? Should she tell someone? Would they hurt him?
Would he hurt her?

She didn't run, but she definitely took a noticeable step back at that one. He could be so dangerous, and yet she couldn't make herself go anywhere. She was stuck with curiosity, even to the extent it could kill her.
Every adult told her she was too nosy for her own good, and clearly, they were right. But how many ten-year-olds got to discover alien species, talk to them, and get to claim they were the first to make contact with something scientists have been looking for for years.
This was her chance at something special.

"And, if you're an alien, where did you come from? You… you don't have a ship." Arla mumbled, glancing around for some form of spacecraft that he flew around in. She honestly half-expected him to turn green and have antennas pop out any second now. Though he did look pretty normal. Even for a so-called alien.

Don't even worry about it haha I am slower than a snail navigating a minefield.

Arlath had a momentary short-circuit as his brain tried to catch up with the little girl's question. He had expected, feared, hoped for, many reactions. This hadn't been one of them, though the longer he thought about it, the more he became unsure why. It seemed like an entirely logical question, really.

He snapped back to reality as she asked about his ship, or lack thereof. He opened his mouth to respond, but only managed an "uh…"
Finally he got his thoughts sorted, and shook his head. "I don't have one," he explained quietly. "I don't know how I got here."

He looked down at the ground. He had no idea how to get back. He didn't WANT to go back, but he couldn't stay here. There was less or him here than in Hell, and that wasn't saying much. He sighed and touched his blind eye absently. He'd have to figure something out. He had no ideas, nowhere to go, nothing to do, but he knew he couldn't just stand around in the rain in a park, talking to some little girl, waiting to catch thier deaths.

"I have to go," he said abruptly, and turned away. He couldn't be here anymore. It was all getting to be too much, he needed to find somewhere to hunker down and make a plan.

(So I'm thinking, maybe he heads out, Arla is like 'aw heck naw' and follows him and he keeps trying to get rid of her but she ain't having it? Your character, so of course your decision, but that was one way I thought this might go?)

(Hey, I don't even know if you're still interested in doing this, but I've been trying to get back into rps. So if you're not, just let me know. For now, I'll leave a response aha. And I really like that idea! You also may want to change the title to closed, if we are still doing this :)

Arla watched him for a moment, rather bewilder at his abrupt leave. While he had only taken a few steps, she had the time to decide whether to follow him or not… and she did. No rhyme or reason to it, she just felt she needed to follow him. If he was to hurt her, she felt it would have already happened by now.
So off she went, trailing only a few feet behind.

"Well," She started, picking her rain boots up as quickly as she could to keep up with him. "Where are you off to? It's a little rude to leave without saying goodbye first, you know." Arla chirped, trying to stay plucky, despite her nerves creeping up. He was just a man— that could be an alien, but she doubted that now— and he wasn't that scary. There was no real reason to be afraid of him— he hadn't done anything after all.

Eyes bright, and smile brighter, she managed to keep up with him. Eventually landing by his side, and half walking backwards to look at him. Her curiosity was painted over her face, with a tilted head, and swaying braid hanging down her back. She stood there expectantly, waiting for the other to respond.