Your character has just arrived in a swampy, dim town. As they look around, their gaze is met with shacks and cabins. It smells of rotted wood and wet moss. They duck and step into a tattered tent, illuminated by a series of candles suspended in the air. At the back of the tent, an old hag raises her head, “What brings you to this dingy town? She begins, then pauses to study your face—”Ah, it’s you. I’ve been expecting you. Sit,” she gestures at a cushion, “Tell me your story.”
((How do you respond?))
* Anna stepped lightly into the tent, her bright blue eyes darting curiously about as though she had stumbled into some strange fairground attraction.*
“Oh! What a peculiar place this is,” she chirped, clasping her hands together with feigned delight. “But… how could you have known I was coming?”
*She settled upon the cushion with a graceful plop, folding her hands in her lap like a perfect lady.* “Well… my name is Anna,” *she began in her bright, innocent tone.* “I grew up in Urguan, daughter to a fine craftsman of the Golden Hammer. Always busy, always making things… I could never keep still. Folk called me a curious child.”
*Her gaze drifted toward the flickering candlelight, a strange smile twitching at the corners of her lips. For a fleeting moment, she thought of telling the hag about the whispers, about the strange little games she used to play with creatures that could no longer run away. But no, best to keep such things quiet. So she merely tilted her head and let out a soft giggle.* “But people don’t always like a girl who asks too many questions. So, one day, I waved farewell and went out to see the world.”
“I wandered until I found Petra, oh, the busiest, brightest city! I even took up work as a smith’s apprentice, though I always liked watching folk far more than I liked hammering metal. I made a few… acquaintances. We had our little adventures, but they were dreadfully dull in the end. So here I am, in search of new faces and new stories.”
* Anna smoothed her skirt idly, her expression still warm and polite. In her mind, she thought of all the fun she’d had convincing people to trust her, how easy it was to smile and nod while they revealed their soft spots. But that, too, stayed locked behind her sweet demeanor.*
*The hag’s cloudy eyes narrowed, a low chuckle rumbling in her throat.* “Ever the wanderer, ever the seeker… Thou play a dangerous game, child. But mark my words, games played too long often end poorly. Not all doors should be opened.”
*Anna’s lips curled into a pleasant, sunny smile.* “Perhaps. Yet… is it not more exciting to try every door, and see what waits on the other side?”
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