Welcome to Gaia! ::

The room which young Audrey had been led to was much larger than she had anticipated.

After spending a good deal of time being escorted about the northern base, traversing its many corridors and halls, the Auvinian had assumed that she was being shown to what might be an office of some sort. considering the size of the snowy castle, it would of been no surprise had this 'office' been on a grader scale, but once her guide pushed open the door to her destination she'd found the meeting place to be much more dramatic.

A whole dining room, expansive and dimly lit with the warmth of scattered candles. At the center was a wooden table fit for no less then twenty people, chairs still lining it's edges as if a party of ghosts might be filling them. Though, as Audrey stepped into the dining hall, itching to free herself from the watchful eyes of her escort and abandon the chill that still lingered outside, she found her stride slowed as her sights finally caught hold of the figure at the end of the table. The Adviser, Sage Estratus, sat across the room, well lit by the fireplace that rested within the wall not far behind her.

The girl had paused once she had noticed the woman, a rare moment of nervousness washing over her as the entrance to the room had shut behind her. She'd nearly flinched at the unexpected sound of the door clanking closed, but she quickly gathered herself as her eyes remained focused on the lady across the hall. She had not looked up herself yet, still fussing with various papers lined up before her on the table, the only sound within the place being the shuffling of the documents and quill against stationary. Audrey made a skeptical face, brows pinching as she considered the silence, before forcing herself to relax her shoulders and attempting to quickly brush her bangs from her face. Pushing forward again, now with what anxiety she had being smothered and pushed to the back of her mind, she found herself at the edge of the table, standing confidently beside the end chair.

"M'Lady?"

Audrey flinched again as the chair beside her slid out from under the table, looking down to the seat before her gaze returned to the woman across the table. She'd nearly opened her mouth to speak, but before she could even properly form the right words the lady had finally spoken up and left the urchin standing in silence. Unwilling to sit, the Hatch girl merely placed a hand to settle on the backrest of the piece of furniture as she observed her host with furrowed brows and tight lips. Time seemed to move at a bitter, slow pace as she was forced to wait silently as the mage continued to put her penmanship to use, and just as the repetitive scratch of the quill against paper began to get on Audrey's nerves, Sage had ceased her work.

The woman had moved to place her work in a neat pile, and lifted her eyes to meet the Auvinian for the first time since she had entered the vast room. The blond's back straightened, taken aback by the direct contact, though her face looked to the one across from her with no fear but instead a respectful determination, though her jaw felt tight. She was preparing herself, all this stupid tension surely wouldn't shake her, she would prove to be a valuable asset, no matter how young she was nor what her roots were...

This is why when Lady Estratus parted her lips to speak, it was rather disappointing to the girl that she had been taken off guard.

"W-What," She questioned, almost incredulous that those were the words that the northerner had decided to open this important discussion with, and looked to the woman in mild disbelief. I was about to have some stew, myself seemed to be her only response, and as Sage raised from her seat and traveled down the table along it's smooth edge Audrey continued to stare at her with knit brows. Once she'd passed her and reached the door not far behind them, the pickpocket continued to keep her eyes awkwardly glued on her as she attempted to make sense of the situation. It wasn't until the mage glanced back at her and make her comment about the contents of the stew that Audrey felt an embarrassed knot form in her stomach. "No, no, that really isn't necessary, Ma'am! I'm not hungry, I'm fine, really. I don't need your food--," noticing her tone becoming louder, defensive, she pauses, catching herself before giving a curt sigh, looking up and over through her bangs to the Lady who'd made her way back to her seat through the little speech , "Thank you--- but, really, no."

Another awkward pause.

"Y-yes, you can eat... I can wait until your meal is finished just fine."

One more.

"Ah-- Yes--or No. As in, no... I got here just fine. Little difficulty. Fine."

The girl's obvious disdain of her sudden lack of eloquence could be easily noted by the reddening of her cheeks, followed by her fingers clutching anxiously at the back of her chair.

Audrey furrowed her brows at the demand, but as she allowed herself accept it she released a breath and lowered her shoulders. "Alright," she replied, almost in a groan of defeat. She couldn't argue in this situation, which greatly frustrated her, though in the back of her mind she knew the chance at a meal was rare and almost, almost, worth the pangs it shot through her pride.

As the young girl finally, unlatched her grip from the chair before her, she made a hesitant change in position, moving about to the front of it and taking a seat. The thing felt large an claustrophobic at the same time, suited for someone of much more.. healthy standards, and locking her within with it's steady armrests.

Though still embarrassed by her poor performance in speaking to the Lady, Audrey refused to allow herself to stare down at her lap or the table before, she would not stuffy the tapestries nor pretend to be fixing an article of clothing for the sake of avoidance. She looked forward, jade eyes resting on the form across from her in an attempt at showing some kind of fearless respect. As Sage parted her lips to speak again, the blond's gaze wavered, growing more alert before almost baffled at her question until she settled once more. For a moment, the inquiry had unleashed several proposals for answers into her mind. Perhaps this was an opportunity to rewrite some things. Ah yes, Mishkan, possibly a much more decent place of origin, though Audrey could not say she had even been to the place.

"I do not, Lady. "

But, no. She knew better than that, and lying was not a habit she took lightly, nor ever hoped to develop. She had learned by now that it could be such a vile, nasty thing.

However before she could intake another breath and reveal her home, there came a knock at the door, and the woman called a guard inside who silently presented each of them with a bowl of stew. Sage must have noticed the way Audrey did not move into to enjoy the meal, and simply looked down into the bowl, watching the broth swirl inside, or maybe she was giving a friendly warning, but the girl did not give a nod nor reach for the handle of her spoon until the Lady had warned her of it's declining temperature. It seemed as through it took her much longer to actually bring any of the stew to her mouth, regretfully letting the warm soup run down her throat.

Audrey spent a good enough deal of time picking gingerly at her meal before finally deciding to lift the wooden spoon up to her lips. A warm dish was rare for her nowadays, and once the stew hit her stomach it was a foreign sensation. She could not deny that it somehow felt nice, that the food was much better than what she had been surviving off of, and her need for something substantial was not easily overlooked. She ate quietly and slowly though, not savoring the taste as much as pacing herself.

This, however, lead her to notice that the woman across the table had already finished her meal, and was waiting upon the young girl. The Lady's eyes so steadily settled on Audrey made the urchin feel rather self-conscious, embarrassed. This ensured that she quickly finish off what of the meal her body could handle, and regrettably leaving aside what was left over once her belly began to resent the substance with pangs of pain. This discomfort was not much of a distraction though, and was something she pushed aside along with the bowl before her.

It was then that Lady Estratus rose from her seat, and wandered toward the open floor. Only when she beckoned her over, did the Hatch girl flinch, then steadily rise to make her way to the woman.

She knit her brows, spine stiff and lips pressed into a tight line as she was studied. Audrey could not help but feel incredibly awkward before her superior's gaze, as if just based off her ragged appearance the woman's judgement would be made. The girl's face remained determined, however, despite the heat she began to feel pricking in her cheeks as her nerves continued to tense.

Finally the silence was broken.

"Ah, yes! Yes I did it's right here," Audrey fumbled in response, twisting herself about to reach into the small satchel resting just behind her hip. It took no longer than a moment to retrieve the thing, being the largest item ( and of course one of the only) in the bag. When the young lady turned her eye back up toward the woman, her arms extended to present the spoils of her hard work. The pickpocket could not help smirk as she realized that this whole trial was finally coming to a close, the cold porcelain in her hands proof enough of her skill. She subtly exuded pride, the smile not yet leaving her face.

" Of course I did. I wouldn't dare show up without it."

'Good'

Audrey's face brightened further at the approval that broke the silence between the two. She had almost allowed herself to fall into relief for a moment before such luxuries fluttered away with the woman's next words. The southerner's smile faded.

She paused, rapidly attempting to regather her thoughts, swallowing down a lump of anxiety before parting her chapped lips.
" I-I did as I was asked my Lady," she responded, brows knitting as she folded her arms defensively against her chest.
" I didn't engage em'. I stole it."

This was true, the mask had been stolen right off of the man's face.

As the thought crossed the girls mind, she nearly flinched. His face was not something she would prefer to remember. Instead she merely raised a hand to brush her bangs further out of her eyes, gave a short inhale, and straightened her back. Looking onward she addressed Sage once more.
" I acted under the restrictions you gave me, and you have your mask. Is a boring story really necessary?"

Instinctively, the girl shifted her stance, a hand trailing to hover protectively over her side pocket. There was no hesitation here however, and Audrey was quick to look the Adviser in the face. Her answer, was short and swift.

" Yes. "

This was a topic the Auvinian girl was not fond of, but her stature as well as the steady way she kept her gaze forward and strong was a testament to her expectations that her precious item would be brought up in conversation. She was well aware that plagues were a valuable commodity to the various factions, and knew that in the Fellowship that would most likely be no different. This thought left the girl on guard. The presence of a fearful undertone in the child's presentation was only subdued by stubborn delusions that she could easily protect herself from any possible threat to the tail's ownership. Perhaps even, there was a glimmer of hope that clung like a leech to the blonde's skepticism, that maybe this stoic lady before her may not be as manipulative as she often thought she might be. Audrey had come here because the Fellowship had similar ideals, right...?

The orphan was not one to easily fall to hope, however. She knew better than that.

"He's pretty active, yes. Do you mean most aren't like this," she inquired, raising a brow at the Lady's comment before turning her eyes down to the tiny critter in her palms. The inky wolf arched and stretched it's limbs in her hands before it began it's usual nonsensical scurrying about; Audrey turning her wrists so that it could climb around and perch itself atop her knuckles. It was hard for the urchin to imagine a plague that didn't exude so much personality, even when still just an item. She hadn't met many others in her time away from home, though, the ones she had were far from passive.

The girl barely heard the next question as she was distracted by the little creature attempting a darling leap from her fingertips; however Audrey was quick to snatch at his tail and hold onto him tight, hissing a
'Tsk!' as him as she did. As Sage finished her sentence, the girl looked back up, thick brows raised, allowing the words to register in her mind.


"Oh," the girl finally replied, the tail still dangling lamely from her grip. She began to gather him back up into her palms as she replied, her gaze back focused on the plague, jade glaring down at it as if communicating her displeasure with his embarrassing her in front of company.
"A few months, I'd say. I haven't exactly been keeping track of time."