/:/The Gray Bandanna\:\ (Open)

[White Raven]

/:/Marina Navari\:\

With a sigh, I stared up at the clouded sky and pulled my cloak around my shoulders tighter. It had happened again. I had promptly gotten kicked out by my mother into the cold weather for the third time this week. Of course, I really couldn't blame her. Another project had been ruined, and the socks had ended up a strange shape, not near close enough to go on some one's feet.

But what could you expect from someone who had not received the talent? 'Apparently much, or so my mother likes to think,' I thought, readjusting the gray bandanna around my head. But then I laughed to myself quietly. My mother, though rather disappointed in my ability to sew, loved me still, and hadn't kicked me out just for the reason that I had messed up. The paper in my hands and the money, however small, proved that. She had sent me out on a shopping run, asking for some more needles, as a few had broken recently.

My mind began to wander as it usually did, and soon my thoughts drifted to my eye, or rather lack there of. It scared me still some times, the emptiness that existed under the gray cloth of the bandanna. In the mornings, when I would look at my reflection in the broken mirror in the bathroom, I would cringe. I found it sad that I would shy away from my own self. My mom constantly reminded me that it was only natural, and that it would soon seem normal to be. But four years is an awfully long time to get used to it.

The sounds of the approaching District Square snapped me back to reality, and just staring at the crowd from a distance made me want to bolt. Interactions with people always made me worry. Would the covering come off and some one see? I so hoped not. I always fear what reactions people might have.

But still, I swallowed the lump that had formed and head toward the crowd with quickly falling courage.

[Nervoux]

Thalia Rose

Thalia quickly ran through the streets, her cheeks flushed with pink. Sweat dripped down her forehead, despite the freezing weather that January had brought. She quickly glanced behind her at the fence where she had come from, finally noticing that no one had spotted her. Immediatly, her pace slowed down into a exhausting walk.

She hunched over slightly, placing her hands on her knees as she gradually caught her breath. Finally she straightened up, glancing around at the crowded street up ahead. She knew that she had wasted enough time, and needed to go and buy some extra thread and needles with the little money she had left.

Thalia set off at a quicker pace towards the end of the street packed with people, her brown hair sticking out in places from the wind whipping at her face as she ran from the fence. Her eyes were clouded with thought, once again worrying if anyone had spotted her.

She nervously stared at the ground as she pushed through the crowded street, not really noticing where she was going. Thalia yelped quietly in surprise as she ran into a girl, immediatly falling down on her butt. Her brown eyes were wide with alarm as she looked at the girl she had run into, seeing the gray bandana on her; something she didn't see too often.

"I-I'm so sorry"she said quickly, swiftly getting up and dusting off her tattered clothing. She barely glanced at the girl, scared of what she might say...or do.

[White Raven]

/:/Marina Navari\:\

I had once again wandered off into my thoughts, paying no attention to things around me. Of course, it took running into some thing to throw me out. For a second, I tried to remember what had been passing through my head, only to have it disappear completely. I shook myself out of my thoughts and turned to see what I run into, and found that it wasn't some thing but rather some one

Curiosity got the better of me as I straightened myself out. However, it was forgotten as I registered what she had said. At her words of apology, I smiled softly and responded with a quiet, "It's alright. I should've been paying attention to where I was going." Silently I sighed. It was at times like this I wished that I had the ability to concentrate on one thing for over a minute.

[Nervoux]

Thalia sighed under her breath in relief. She had been expecting the girl to yell at her to watch where she was going. She got that reaction from others many times. "No, it's okay. I was going too fast" she said quickly.

She shuffled her feet nervously on the snow-covered ground. She glanced up at the girl, her eyes continuing to drift towards the gray bandana and secretly wondering what lied underneath it. She did not voice her thoughts, though; simply deciding to stay quiet.

Thalia was ignorant to the dirt smudged across her face from the trip in the forrest. She had stayed too long, and silently wondered if Lila had noticed her absence from the cotton fields. Her golden-brown eyes filled with worry as she stared off into space.

She was snapped out of her thoughts by a chilling wind that blew by. She tugged her thin and torn jacket close to her, though it didn't help much since it had so many holes and was damp from falling in the snow.

Her nervousness and silence suddenly began to drift away as she stared up at the girl. She smile slightly and offered out her hand. She ignored how it looked; the skin pulled tightly around her fingers' bones, and covered with dirt. "I'm Thalia...Rose" she said nicely, her voice getting quieter as she said her last name. Many people knew her family, but not because they were rich... but because they were very poor.

Thalia forced the thoughts away, and thought hopefully that this girl was as nice as she sounded. She waited, wondering if the girl would reply to her and shake her hand.

[White Raven]

/:/Marina Navari\:\

I had noticed when the girl's eye's wandered to the bandanna covering my missing eye. It didn't matter though, I was used to it. People got curious about things they didn't know. At least she didn't seem like the others. There were some people who would ask bluntly, those who would beat around the bush, and some people who would even trick me into telling, but this girl didn't seem like the type to do either of those things.

But then I saw her shiver and pull her jacket tighter. It worried me, the condition of the jacket, seeing as it was torn, full of holes,and wet. So, without hesitation, I removed my cloak and wrapped it around her shoulders, ignoring any protest she may give. 'I may be quiet, but I'm not heartless!' Besides, I cold stave off the cold for a bit longer because of my sweater.

"Here. It may be a bit big, but it's better than your jacket. My name's Marina Navari. It's nice to meet you Thalia." I smiled softly, shaking her outstretched hand. At the same time, some part of me realized that I may have just made a new friend out of this girl. 'I certainly hope so.

[Nervoux]

Thalia's eyes widened in silent surprise as she felt the cloak being wrapped around her shoulders. She lifted her gaze from the cloak, staring at Marina in shock. "You don't have-I mean thank-It's too cold for you-" she was simply lost for words. Normally for others this wouldn't be such a big deal, but Thalia rarely ever received things from other people.

She stopped stuttering once she realized her protests wouldn't matter, suddenly aware of the difference the cloak made compared to her tattered old jacket. Thalia smiled as Marina shook her hand and told her her name. "Thank you.. and nice to meet you too Marina" she said nicely.

Thalia couldn't help the warmth that seemed to spread through her 'I think I just made a friend' she thought silently. Her golden-brown eyes gleamed slightly with happiness at the thought. She rarely ever had time to meet new friends, but it made her extremely happy when she succeeded in doing so.

Thalia's eyes traveled away from Marina, her eyes passing over the bandana so it didn't look like she was too curious or nosy; though she was. She looked around them at the crowd of people, she had been almost completely oblivious to the swarm of people the whole time.

[White Raven]

/:/Marina Navari\:\

Right then, someone rammed into me, shoving me forward abruptly. I stumbled forward, footing lost for a moment before I regained my balance. Once I straightened myself, I frowned at the direction the person was going. 'Rude person,' I thought to myself, brushing my shirt off.

"Sorry about that," I turned to Thalia and smiled softly. Then I realized something. The area under my left eye where the scar from the knife was felt strangely cold. I raised my hand instinctively to examine it, and was shocked to find that the shove had knocked the cloth up, revealing the scar and just a sliver of the empty socket. My eyes widened, and I quickly readjusted the bandanna. 'I really hope Thalia didn't see that!'

[Nervoux]

Thalia jumped slightly in surprise as the person had rammed into Marina. She stepped back as Marina was shoved forward. Her eyes narrowed as she watched the person leave without one glance back. Thalia clenched her fists slightly "no, it's okay. People are really rude-"

Thalia's voice was cut off as her eyes traveled over Marina's eye. She caught a glimpse of the scar before Marina had covered it up. Thalia noticed that her mouth was slightly parted in surprise before she quickly closed it shut.

She knew that Marina must get tired of people staring at it or asking questions, she had covered it up. Thalia felt questions burning inside her, her curiousity building up until she couldn't suppress one question. "How did you get that?" she blurted out. Thalia's eyes widened at her question, her cheeks flushing "I-I'm sorry...It's none of my business" she stammered quickly.

'You're so stupid Thalia' she thought to herself, clenching her teeth as she did so. She had always had a problem with her curiousity, though weren't all kids her age that way?

[White Raven]

/:/Marina Navari\:\

She saw. Crap. At least it was just the scar, not the socket. That thought calmed me down a little. Now would it be a little easier. Briefly, I wondered how she would react if she saw the whole thing. 'Not so good,' I thought. The few people who had seen it hadn't reacted very good. I winced at the memory.

When I heard her question I sighed. "It's okay. It's natural to be curious." I should know. The personality I had before the incident led me to often be curious about things as well. If I had been in Thalia's place, I would've asked about it too. "I got it as a result of a misunderstanding."

It wasn't a lie, nor was it the whole truth. The Peacekeepers were mistaken when it came to the culprits of whatever happened. Her family had just been at the wrong place and at the wrong time. They were framed, as a result of that. In the end, it was that misunderstanding that had caused the loss of her eye. But even after the Peacekeepers had realized their mistake, it was too late.

After that, I was forced to cover up the hole in my face.[/color]

[Nervoux]

Thalia stared at her as she spoke, relief slightly flooding through her that Marina hadn't been angry about her asking. Her eyes filled with slight sadness "Oh, I'm sorry" she said softly, surprising herself as she almost sounded exactly how her mother used to. Thalia could still remember her comforting voice, her beautiful melodies that she sang.

Thalia snapped out of her thoughts, realizing that she was drifting into her own little world. It took her a few moments to remember what they were talking about, not easing her sadness for Marina. She didn't want to ask what the 'misunderstanding' was, realizing that none of this was any of her business to know.

"If it helps, I too have scars.."she told her, remembering the Peacekeeper's whip coming down on her back. Thalia winced "but it's easy for me to cover it up" she admitted, staring at Marina's bandana warily. She wondered if Marina had gotten her scar because of the Peacekeepers also, that would be something else that they had in common. Thalia frowned at the thought, her eyes drifting away from the bandana and staring at the crowd of people.[/color][/size]

[White Raven]

/:/Marina Navari\:\

"It wasn't your fault," I smiled sadly. 'At least you didn't see the real reason why I cover it up.' That was when I noticed Thalia's eyes drifting to the crowd around us. As quickly as the thought appeared, I said it out loud. "We should move to a quieter place. Do you know of any?"

The noise wasn't the only reason I wanted to get out of there. Being trapped in there meant that there was a chance of something like that happening again. And if it did, the bandanna might just come off completely. Or at least to the point where the socket would be showing.

[Nervoux]

Thalia listened to her question, a thought nagging in the back of her head that she needed to move on with what she actually came here for. 'I'll get it later' she thought, sighing under her breath. She thought for a few moments "I know there are a few stores here and there, though I don't know how packed they'll be" she admitted.

She flinched slightly as a few Peacekeepers walked by, she seemed to freeze as they passed. She breathed a sigh of relief after they left, her thoughts drifting back to this morning how she had run quickly back from the forrest. Her eyes clouded with thought, how had no one even spotted her yet? She had been going there for years, and nothing had happened.

She looked back at Marina as if nothing had happened, smiling and waiting for her response. She was happy that this girl might actually be a friend to her, someone other than her large adopted family back home.[/color]

[White Raven]

/:/Marina Navari\:\

Briefly, the original task I sent here to do appeared in my mind's eye, and I nearly wanted to laugh. Then another thought passed through my head. 'Mother must be worried by now. I Hope she'll understand what happened.' But Thalia started speaking again, and I focused my attention on her.

"That's fine. It'll be good to get out of the middle of a crowded market, even if the stores are packed."[/b] I smiled, and looked around for a path to get out of the crowded area.

I was distracted when Peacekeepers walked by, and memories appeared. Shaking my head to remove them, I couldn't help but notice Thalia freeze when they passed. 'That;s right Marina. You're not the only one whose had a bad experience with them.' Though I was curious, I didn't want to trouble her by asking her about it.[/color][/size]

[Nervoux]

Thalia glanced out of the corner of her eye, watching the Peacekeepers disappearing into the crowd. She looked back at Marina once she spoke, nodding with a slight smile. She gazed around, trying to find a path that they could use to get out of the large mass of people.

She finally noticed a spot, indicating into Marina before beginning to walk towards it. Thalia was shorter than most of the people in the market, causing her to have to look around people. She glanced behind her to check if Marina was following, hoping that they would get seperated; though it wouldn't take too long to meet up.

[White Raven]

/:/Marina Navari\:\

((Sorry for not posting!!!))

Something flashed, and I turned to look at it, curious. Turning back, I realized Thalia was already moving through the crowds. I jumped and started pushing through the people, trying to catch up. I was shorter then most, to my annoyance, and people tended to tower over me. 'This is another reason why I don't like coming into town.'

When some one gave a bark of loud laughter, my head whipped around to find out where it had come from. For just a moment, I froze. And in that moment, the crowd surged, pushing me back. Thalia's back disappeared from sight, and I was shoved and bumped until I fell on my butt in a less dense area. Standing up and silently cursing, I stared at the crowd before me. There is absolutely no way I am getting through that.'

Sighing, I turned to look around at my surroundings. And again, I froze. I didn't recognize this part of town. That wasn't good. Getting lost was never good. I scowled, adjusted my bandanna, and turned to find a way through the large crowd.