Word Count → 366 /rudely barges in
With the harsh temperatures and snowstorms of winter gone, she could finally return to a wardrobe that was consistently more natural to her. The makeshift winter cloak she'd fashioned together now lay in a heap, and would for some time, until it was needed again. Earlier in the day she'd passed by her mother's weir to check on its progress, and found it to be a hub of activity with slaves hard at work. If Eris had noticed her, Artemisia was unaware. Her dark mother cared very little these days where her wanderings took her, given that she was now taller than her predecessor and more than capable of defending herself with brute strength, if needed.
Her visit to Ichika no Ho-en had yielded some interesting fruit. Soon enough she would pluck up the courage to visit Freetown and extract her Cueponi gift from within its heart. Until then, she attempted to make herself useful by doing what she did best. Watching, listening, looking for any sign of danger. On this day, she found another of Salsola's younger beneficiaries doing quite the same, or so she thought. Draugr was still enough to be a statue, she thought, and wondered for a moment of she had in fact been turned to stone. It seemed unlikely, but her superstitious mother had managed to instill some fear in her about the supernatural.
After a moment of running her long fingers through short, dark hair, Arte finally huffed and finished her approach, uncaring whether she was noticed or not. Draugr was no enemy of hers. Buon giorno; hello,
Came her easy drawl, though it was warmer than she'd intended and perhaps a bit kinder than the relative stranger deserved. Despite their closeness in age, it was with Ataxia that the pretty, strangely colored girl had spent the most time with out of the litter of three. Despite her correct use of the still strange Italian term, she failed to smile. It was out of necessity that she used the strange words. Currently they held very little meaning to her. Using them provided practice, though, and if she was to become proficient in the language of her King, it was essential.
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