thoughtformed | Eighth flight [video]

[The repelling pressure against her skin vanished as the lady invited her in. Aisling sighed silently in relief, coming in with only a quiet murmur of thanks, keeping her steps slow so as not to startle or upset her hostess. She turned and held up her hands, cupping a little mound of dark, rich soil. Her long hair spilled down to the floor as she cocked her head, smiling a little. She hoped this pretty lady would like the present she brought... ]

I have something for you... Is there a place I can put this?

[Kaylee couldn't help but smile a little bit at the offering of soil. Kaylee had livened her and Luki's place up with flowers in pots; taking the nearest one, a bright red geranium, she knelt down and held it out.]

This seems like a good place for it.

[She sniffled.] ... I'm Kaylee, by the way.

[Aisling's smile widened. Oh good, she hadn't given it away quite yet. She carefully deposited the soil , and pushed her nose in close. When she pulled away, a bevy of little white snowdrops bloomed just beneath the geranium's leaves. Those definitely weren't in there before, and they hadn't been in her hands... Hm. Aisling smiled up at Kaylee.]

I'm Aisling. Thank you for the hospitality, Kaylee. It's not very nice to meet this way, but I'm glad to meet you anyway.

[Kaylee let out a soft gasp when she saw the new flowers bloom inside the pot. The display of kindness warmed her heart. She knew that she wasn't done hurting by any means, probably would not be for a while, but she felt a little less alone.]

I should be the one thankin' you for giving me the company. It is awful nice of you...

[Aisling tucked her grimy hands into the pockets of her rough tunic, her smile fading to seriousness. She wasn't exactly known for her delicacy and tact, this girl.]

I know what it's like to lose... [She looked away a moment, allowing her hair to partially curtain her face.] ...to lose those you care about. It's hard. Very hard. Sometimes I think it would have been nicer to have someone nearby. Someone to maybe talk to, but more to... to have present.

[She pulled out her PDA, and looked at Kaylee's network post, and that dark-skinned man's post with the list that made everyone upset. Aisling shook her hair back and showed Kaylee the screen with all the comments.]

You have lots of friends. [Was she a little...wistful? Jealous?] But none of them live here with you. And some people think it's best to work out your grief alone.

[Kaylee shifted from one foot to the other as she listened, more tears flowing at Aisling's remark that she, Kaylee, had a lot of friends, at the screen showing proof. And yet...]

I do. I've got a lot of people about here who care 'bout me, and ones I care about a lot, too. And... I ain't the kind of person likes to be alone. Even when I'm hurting. [She set the flower down in its proper place and began to drift toward the couch in her and Luki's living area- she would think of it that way for a while, even if assigned another person to live with- and sat down, motioning that Aisling should join her.]

I've lost two people I cared about. Before I got snatched n' brought here. But I still had my crew. We were always there for each other. And when I got here, Simon was here, too, and... he understood. [She wipes her eyes.] It was nice to have that... one little link t'home, you know? But now, surrounded by people, I feel alone, because he ain't here, and none of the crew're here, and now I'm pretty damn homesick.

[Oh, that sentiment is one that Aisling identifies with strongly. She allows herself to indulge in brushing her fingers across the geranium's petals before wandering after Kaylee to the living area. It was like the girl couldn't travel in a straight line, only in curves. It was pretty clear that she was interested in all the strange things that people adorn their spaces with, but she wasn't going to ask yet. Still, she perched cross-legged on the couch with her back against the armrest. It was strange, for her, to linger on the painful emotion, instead of pushing it away, not thinking about it, so she wound up a little hunched in on herself, twisting her fingers in her lap in an absent-minded sort of way. Finally she offered, quietly...]

This forest is nice, but it's not my forest. Not the one at home. I can try to lose myself in this forest, but it doesn't hold the same claim on me. None of my friends are here - none of the trees and hills, or the wolf pack.

[Aisling pulled her knees up, hugging them. She rested her cheek on her knees, looking out in the direction of the woods. Her hair swung 'round her like a blanket, a protective barrier between her and the world.]

Everything here is strange, and new. Strange magics I've never heard of are things that people live with every day. I just want to go home.

[Kaylee watched as Aisling joined her, finding the idea of curling up like that to be very appealing suddenly, closing in on herself both physically and mentally. She wanted so badly to just turn the sunshine back on and stop hurting, stop feeling like this, stop feeling like she wasn't herself, but she knew it wasn't that simple.]

I think... I think I can understand that, too. I fix machines for a livin'. It's what I'm good at, and I got a natural talent for it. I do that here, but it ain't the same as home. It ain't my ship. I don't know this city like I knew Serenity.

[She brushed a strand of her own hair behind one ear.]

It is hard to be in a new place 'n see strange things. And scary. We sometimes try to pretend it ain't, but... hell, I'm used to traveling, but I could always leave, before. We could always fly away and not be so grounded. I just try not to think 'bout ti too much.

[Aisling tilted her chin so as to watch Kaylee more closely, letting her curiosity draw her out of her inward melancholy. The little fae had seen ships, of course, but tossing and heaving on the waves at the mercy of wind and weather could hardly be called flying. But if it was a big ship... A big ship might not be in so much trouble on the sea. Serenity. It was a good name.]

What was it like, your ship? Did you get to see lots of different places?

[Kaylee actually looked and sounded a little happier when she began talking about Serenity. Her ship was her favorite subject, of course- her home, the place she felt almost a spiritual connection to. It never occurred to her, of course, that Aisling was thinking of a sailing ship, not a spaceship. ]

Well, she's kind of old, but solid. I was her mechanic, and it felt like... like she talked to me. Whenever there was a problem, I just knew and went to fix it. And she carried us wherever we needed to go, even if'n it took us a long time to get there. I miss floating around.

[It struck her as odd that the ship might talk. Hills and lakes had their spirits, of course, and the trees had their ladies, but a man-made thing? With a voice? Aisling let her brow draw down a little, puzzling over that almost-heresy. But then... she hadn't exactly asked the bard about human things much. Why should she have? Her own people's history was more than interesting enough. Perhaps human things did have their own avatars. She shrugged it off lightly and refocused. Kaylee seemed a bit less devastated, talking about the ship. Maybe if they kept talking about that...]

If she spoke to you, I'm sure she appreciated your help. Everyone likes it when someone is nice to them. Flowers like being tended. Ships must like it too. You traveled a lot, then?

[Kaylee finally gave a little chuckle at that, remembering all the times they'd come close to breaking down. And the one time they had, her expression turning somber again at the memory of breaking down.]

Sure did... and I know the crew appreciated my help a lot, too. Like I said, she was old, so things was always breakin' down and needin' to be patched and rigged to work... travelin' through space takes a toll on everything.

[Space travel didn't really phase Aisling because she didn't really understand what it meant. There's space, empty air, around everything, so in a way, everything is traveling through space. It was just a strange way to say it. It would take something a lot more specific to trigger her curiosity. She nodded wisely.]

Old places have a lot more memories. More stories to tell, more lessons to teach. The people who listen are smart. Especially people who respect and love the storyteller. Everyone comes to depend on them.

Eighth flight [video]

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