[Prompt] Lights and Explosions (Fawn)

[Mirage]

32nd of Frost, 120 AS

Night had fallen and the streets of Kalzasi were alight with lantern and flickering candles. The major festivities of the day were nearing their end, but there was an air of anticipation, an electricity as the last rays of sunlight fell over the horizon. Crowds were gathering in every open space, at the top of every building, to get a good view of the Cloudhaven Distract. As time passed the crowds grew quieter, and quieter until there was near silence. Children scrambled to stand not the shoulders of parents for a better look. Then in the distance, there was a soft whirring sound, followed by a sound bang and a spray of sparks that lit the night sky in dazzling colors of emerald and gold.

The crowds cheered as a flurry of 3 more fireworks exploded in the sky, and then the show truly began. The sky became a tapestry of light and images of dragons and flowers, and the world was filled with warmth despite the cold air. Unfortunately, one person was not thrilled by the show.

A little boy or boy, his tusk barely stumps, stood near the back of the crowds, his hands covering his ears as he looked around as if lost. He did not appear he had any adult with him, and he slowly shuffled along behind everyone as if looking for something, or someone. Each time the fireworks boomed he flinched, closing his eyes and pressing his hands harder against his ears.

[Fawn]

32nd of Frost, 120xx

The sky was aglow with the pop and crackle of fireworks, something Fawn had never seen until that very night. Celebrations had often happened in hometown, but not like this. Her eyes were wide with awe as she stared at the display of magic and gunpowder above her. Her skin was flashing with different shades of pink, red, yellow, green- every color of the realms, and as the fireworks continued she couldn't help but wish beyond anything that she could share this moment with someone.

Rickter and Telion hadn't been home that day, and Lyra hadn't seemed the type to enjoy such things. It was disappointing really, but part of her had already planned to annoy the woman later with her own poor reimagining of the spectacle in the sky. There really was something fun about seeing Lyra's annoyed expression. It had always seemed to end with a sigh. She never told her to stay away for good. Perhaps the woman was slowly warming up to her, or maybe more than that she just wasn't as cold as she'd like to believe. Whatever it was, Fawn was fond of the woman.

Another bang scattered across the sky sending pictures of winged horses and dragons flying across it's expanse, and left trails of dragonflies in it's wake. But from behind her Fawn could hear something else. A whimper, a gasp. She turned around, and saw a figure of a small boy disappear behind another crowd. Curious, she rounded herself fully and began stepping through the thickening crowd of onlookers. Nearly having to shove some of them aside she finally made her way to the outside of the wall of people and hurriedly followed the sound of a scared child.

And there he was- terrified, body trembling as clear signs of any overwhelmed, lost animal wracked his body. Her brows rose in a pained expression for him as she approached, smiling softly.
""Hey hey- shhh shh. Are ye lost?" Her hair spilled over her shoulders as she knelt down and shoved a hand in her pocket. Moments later she plucked out a long red lollypop shaped like a dragons head with a wide grin and handed it to the boy. Truthfully she wasn't a huge fan of kids, but a lost child was as important as a lost horse, and she recalled the moment her own mother had nearly lost her. How she had cried, nearly breaking her own hip just to run towards her when she came home. The memory close to her heart, she ushered the boy a few feet away from the crowd of people and into a slightly quieter corner.

"Let's find yer parents, aye? What do they look like?"

[Fawn]

32nd of Frost, 120xx

When she sat back down again with him in the corner, he finally pulled his hands away from his ears to clutch the candy between both hands. His tusks, small but still lifting his lips, glinted in the light of the fireworks above. But he didn't speak. He simply wept, flinching with each firework and bang. Fawn frowned slightly but kept her peaceful expression as much as possible, beginning to pet the boys hair as if he were a newborn foal simply trying to stand for the first time. She asked again, softer, but once more he did not speak.

Fawn sighed softly and looked around. The city streets were more crowded now than they had been during the day, which meant finding the boys parents would be doubly difficult. With a tender smile she turned back to the kid and opened her arms."Okay, how about this. I'll carry ye, and we can search together, yeah?" She asked, pushing a strand of his hair away from the tears that made them cling to his face. The boy quieted, but another crack of fireworks above them sent him running into her arms. She caught him, hoisted him up, and began patting his back to shush him. It was the first time she'd ever held a child, and the kid felt awkward in her arms, but after a few moments of fidgeting with the strange tanglement of limbs she finally got him into a comfortable position resting on her arm and holding her around the shoulders. His head tucked under chin, and as he sucked on the lollypop his sobs slowly quieted.

"Alright, let's find you your parents!"

She set off then. Looking through the crowd for anyone that had tusks, or anyone looking as frantic as they should upon losing a child. Ten minutes went by. Then thirty. Then an hour. The fireworks had all but died down, and the child was asleep on her shoulder. Her arms ached from the weight as she hurried over to a bench and sat herself down, taking a small break while she scanned the crowd. The entire time they'd been searching the child hadn't once uttered a word, no matter how many questions she asked or what she said, no response. Nothing more than a sob or a blank stare. It worried her, not just because she couldn't find his parents but because she'd never come across a child who didn't speak like this before.

But thankfully, now he was asleep. If anything it gave her a moment to breathe and consider the options. The likelihood of finding his parents was high, but the later into the night it became the colder it became as well. She shifted the boy as gently as she could onto her lap, resting his head against her leg and his body along her legs. It was awkward, but as his feet hung off the ledge of her knees she began to remove her cloak. Quickly, but with as little movement as possible, she draped the cloak over the boys body and wrapped him up inside it. His shivering that had begun not long ago slowed, and in turn she began to shake. The wind nipped at her expose collarbone and slid into her muscles, chilling her quickly.

"Nope! Gotta get moving!" She whispered, picking up the bundle of boy and beginning to search once more for his parents. This time with less people in the streets and the fireworks now finished, she was able to easily spot those still lingering and question them. If they knew who his parents were, or who he was, if they'd seen anyone like him- a few leads took her to single women and some took her to a shop run by an orkhan couple, but their child was thankfully safely asleep behind them as they sold the last of the food in their stall. Hours later Fawn trudged up to the entrance of the Sky Guard. Some drunken fools stumbled and screeched as they were lead in handcuffs, likely for disturbing the peace or similarly, down the hallways and to a holding cell. It was a celebration after all. Her feet heavy, arms sore, bones chilled and brow furrowed as she pushed the door open with one shoulder and slid into the strangely lavish building.

"Excuse me, can someone help? This lad is lost, I haven't been able to find his parents- and he won't speak." She collapsed onto a bench in front of a desk, holding the boy to her chest at first but then sliding him down to rest on her thigh once more. She let out a sigh of exhaustion and rubbed the tired from her eyes. Really, city life was such an opposite schedule of her normal dawn to dinner.

One of the guards approached, his chest heavy and shoulders slumped as he approached Fawn with his own level of exhaustion showing itself on his weary expression. The night had likely been a longer one for the guard, a celebration as big as this one hadn't happened in a long time and it had appeared even with their obvious training that regardless of how well prepared they thought they were, the citizens were not about to make it easy on them. Though, most trouble had just been excessive drinking and brawl fights that got out of hand.

He smiled as he finally stood in front of her, offering his best attempt at 'I'm definitely not tired'. "Let's see, I haven't had anyone come in about a lost child tonight. But let me check with the others."

Fawn smiled back, understanding in her eyes, and nodded. "Thank you." As the man walked away she leaned up against the wall behind her, feet splayed out in front, and sighed. Her gaze drifted down to the boy, who slept silently on her legs. Her expression worried and hair a mop of a mess, she wondered how long it would take to find his parents. They must be worried sick, panicking that their child was trampled or stolen or had run away. Biting back the worry, she placed a hand on the boys back and waited as patiently as she could muster for the guard to return.

[Fawn]

32nd of Frost, 120xx

Where were they?! Fawn screamed in her head. Anger was lit inside her like a volcano ready to erupt. Six hours had gone by. The skyguard had questioned the boy and finally got him to speak- but it was nothing. All he cried for was his mother. He didn't say her name, not even his, and it had left the wing of the building in a scuffle of confused and frustrated guard. But more worried than anyone was Fawn. It had then dawned on her that something horrible could have happened to them. Had they gotten into a fight? Or perhaps they were only visiting and had left without him, unknowingly? No matter what thoughts ran through her head not her nor the guard had a single clue as to how to proceed. Finally as dawn came rising up on the horizon, lighting Fawn's hair to flame through the window, one of the guards came walking up.

His hair a mess, hand running through it as his brow furrowed and he sighed.

"We have searched all night. Ten of my men are still out knocking on every door of known Orkhan family in the city, but I have no word yet. I'm sorry. It may be a while longer."

Then suddenly the sound of the door crashing open. A frantic, elderly human woman with grey hair, a large bust and larger stomach hobbled her way in on a limp hip. "Henrick! Oh gods-" Her eyes darted across the room until they finally landed on the orkhan boy in Fawn's arms. Asleep once again, the boy stirred as he heard a familiar voice. His eyes opened, they refocused, and within seconds he began wailing. The woman took him up into her arms from Fawn, her fingers digging into him with the ache of near-loss wracking her body.

Fawn jolted up, her limbs sore and eyes red from a long night, and simply stared at the scene. Was that what she had done with her mother? Was that how her mother had acted? It had been so long since that day... the memories came flooding back like an avalanche. Every emotion swelling inside her, a bittersweet longing for her own adoptive family.

"Thank you, miss, gods thank you." The woman looked to Fawn, relief flooding her. "I'm sorry, I don't know how he got separated or when."

"Are you his mother, ma'am?" The guard asked, pulling a parchment and pen over on his desk and beginning to work on the paperwork for the case. His least favorite but most necessary task of the morning.

"No, caretaker. I run the orphanage and we'd all taken the kids on a field trip to see the fireworks. But Henrick- he's got a disability, I don't know when he got lost but we had to take everyone else back home. Hadn't noticed him missing until we did the headcount." The woman clutched him closer, rubbing his head and patting his back as if it were the first and last time she'd ever the see the boy. But it wasn't. And Fawn found herself crying.

An orphan... would this have been her life if she'd not been found? Why hadn't anyone adopted him? And who had been the disgusting monster to give them away? Did her own mother give her away because she thought there was something wrong with her? A well of emotions, questions, confusion, and exhaustion came pouring out of the girl as she collapsed into a heap of sobs on the ground. And there she wept. She wept for the boy, for his strife, for his hardship in not being able to speak like others, the frustration it must cause him. She wept for the parents who gave him up. For their souls, for their lives. She wept for herself. But she didn't blame anyone, and that was the worst part.

In the following days, Fawn visited the orphanage. She sung to him, she danced for him, and she promised the boy that no matter where he ended up, or the parents who she promised would adopt him some day, that she would always be his friend. Even if he never spoke back. Even if he barely seemed to pay attention. She would be there for him. Because she too knew what it felt like to be unwanted, and hell be damned if she'd let the boy grow up feeling lost ever again.


~~fin~~

[Equilibrium]

Balance in All Things

XP: 10 (As this is a mod prompt, this is considered a mod collaboration)
Lores:
Perception: Scanning a Crowd
Endurance: Carrying something for a long time
Investigation: Ask Around for Clues
Investigation: When all else fails, find Authority
Charisma: Calming Someone with Candy
Charisma: Children Mimic Your Mood
Notes: Poor little Orkboi. It's good to see a character so caring and kind. I very much enjoyed this thread and it'll be interesting if Henrick ever re-appears. As a side note, with the mod colab you can get 8 lore's. You currently only have 6 if you would like two more specific ones you can DM me.



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