Lunch time! Rice, crab meat, more rice , ten fried shrimp, five crawfish, and for dessert a strawberry short cake bar.He spread in front of Baron was enough to feed a small family, but this was nothing but lunch for him. The entire cloth was stacked with food, everything in arm’s reach as he prepared himself to dig in. Having gotten most of this from the sea, save for the rice things couldn’t get any better for the adventurer. He had managed to catch the the crabs on his own once again, but instead of eating at his camping site he was hanging out at the shore line.

Beside Baron laid a few bottles of seasoning for his crabs, he cracked them open and stripped them of their shells to get to the white succulent meat inside. This was a heck of a spread and he couldn't believe he managed to catch them all on his own just at the shore line at the moment. With pepper in hand he peppered one of the crabs in front of him and stuck a fork in to sample some, he twisted his fork and dug out the meat raising it to his mouth and munching down on it. “Needs butter.”

A breeze waltzed through the shoreline, bringing the salty, soothing aroma of the ocean's breath. The pale princess arrived in Hargeon Town a few hours prior, having heard the beach of Hargeon stood on another level, completely outclassing other water sources in the country of Fiore. Fleur stepped onto the sandy arena and confirmed the rumors that reached her ears. A steady intake of fresh air flowed throughout her entire body and out, causing an exhale that disregarded all the negative chi that buried itself within. Just a whiff of the sky was enough to shoo away her worries; her mind shuddered at the thought of what form of ecstasy she could feel upon bathing in the waters of what seemed to be a fountain of youth.

It was only imagination, as she was covered head to toe with black fabric; so much so that she could have easily been mistaken for an emo. Her eyes burned scarlet red and was the only form of color that was slapped onto God's creation of black and white. Black waves trickled down the side of her ears, protecting them from the cool wind that threatened to freeze, were targets not wary. Today, she had her strands parting on each side, causing somewhat of a messy look. Her bangs sheltered her forehead from the same windy treatment.

Fleur wanted to enjoy the ambiance of the ocean without having to mingle amongst others, particularly those social butterflies that she strove so hard to mimic. At least a few feet away from everyone, she sat upon the mound of sand that beaches often formed before they dropped into the ground and met with the waters. Nothing was out of the ordinary until a man who stood miles taller than herself suddenly appeared upon the shoreline. Her scarlet eyes stopped in their tracks, unable to show any particular emotion that could have possibly been described with words. "Please don't come near me." she'd whisper in the quietest voice, scared for her life.

Running his hands together he looked out to sea, for a moment he stood up to take a dip in the water, though just before he could gof for a swim something caught his ear, it was faint and he could barely make it out, thus he looked around for the owner of the disturbance. He expected maybe a cat that murmured a low ‘mew’ to dash across the sand and towards his meal to arise but instead he saw a figure in clad in black materialize out of almost thin air. Obviously his lack of awareness is what made them appear so quietly, but all the same the fact that he hadn't noticed them before caught him off guard. He played back what they had said in his mind, they told him not to come near him. Hm, made more sense than a meowing cat.


Turning to the soft voiced woman he crossed his arms and smiled, “Now what makes you say that?” he tilted his head visually offended by her words. In truth he didn’t mind she told him to stay away, most women had that reaction. Though, those women typically got to know him a little better before he was told to leave them be. What was this one’s excuse for such an early warning? Baron would have to find out wouldn’t he? That and her appearance made him further curious, she seemed to be almost too reserved in appearance.

Without a word he laced his fingers behind his back and began to walk towards her with a shifty glance. With a wide, some what warm grin he would make his way towards her inch by inch as he tried his best to look nonthreatening. “You have nothing to fear from me little lamb, I’m only a wolf trying to enjoy lunch, why don’t you join me?” like a true carnivore he went for the throat first thing inviting her to eat with him out of no where. “I know it’s random, but it’d beat sitting here wouldn’t it? As peaceful as it is.” he extended a hand.

“Baron, by the way.”

His voice bellowed a question, wondering why the ghost said what she did. Sheer terror embraced her within as the giant physically responded to her remark. His grin confirmed that he wasn't enraged with the comment, but that only threw Fleur deeper into her bubble of alienation. There was no doubt about it; this man was certainly one of the social butterflies the ghostly female wished to abstain from. Shivers shot up her spine. Ignoring the beach breeze, her palms began to perspire and form a personal brine. Every step he took seemed to cause an earthquake; nothing of that sort actually occurred but Fleur's imaginative ability to daydream at a moment's notice worked against her. He explained that he was just a guy eating lunch, though the words he chose didn't match the attempt at friendship that his smile offered. Defining himself as a wolf and herself, a lamb, forced the dread to seep deeper into the bones until they could cause no more psychological damage than they already have. Geniuses weren't the only ones capable of comprehending the connection of sheep and wolves.

Before she knew it, he towered over her and gave her no opportunity to elude him. Her eyes smacked themselves shut, picturing the worst thing that could happen to her, rather vividly at that. Two seconds passed before she opened a single eye, then both. Her ears registered an invitation to lunch, but she must have misheard. Legs straightened and jetted the lone shark into the air, ready to run. At the same time, her stomach answered the question for her and expressed a sorry excuse for growling. Rosy cheeks dawned upon her, giving her lifeless body some color. Despite all of the signs, she still refused and her head shook side to side, vigorously in accordance to serve as an answer.

Fleur opened her mouth, letting words ooze their way out. However, because of her skittish behavior, the only audible words were, "No...you." as she tried to say 'no thanks'.

His patience seemed to increase as she fumbled with her words. Perhaps she was misreading his friendliness for flirting? Oh no, that wouldn’t do as he wasn’t flirting in the slightest at the moment, the weather was far too dreary for his liking and his hair would have curled terribly if he wasn’t careful, couldn’t flirt if he looked terrible now could he? No, instead he merely offered her something warm, a smile of all things. Maybe she wasn’t the type for friendly endeavors, but she didn’t have much choice at the moment. He was so much bigger than her, how easy it would have been to hurt her. Pick her up, spin her around, held her by one foot in the air, he could have done all of those brutal things to her, but he wouldn’t as he was a nice guy or so he liked to think. Instead of over analyzing her he simply placed his hands behind his back and watched her onward. This would be quite a show if he wasn’t careful and the last thing he’d want was for people to think he wanted to harm this young woman. She seemed far too frail.

He tilted his head from side to side, a crick was coming in it, he could feel it forming. A hand would reach back and rub himself down for a moment as he tried to find the pain in his neck as it formed. It seemed she wasn’t for eating lunch with him. “Oh? No me?” he frowned, that wasn’t a very coherent answer to his question, thus he wouldn’t accept it as a no until she completely said so.

“Now, now, I know i seem scary, but I’m not gonna hurt ya.” he backed away from her and raised his hands in submission, “See? I’m totally not dangerous ha ha…” more or less.

Corner a dog in a dead-end street and it will turn to bite.

The goliath took several strides and within a second, he halted a few feet away from the porcelain doll. Fleur had only finished letting the words exit her mouth as they were immediately brought into question. At least the audible bits. He recited what she had said, replacing the pronoun that was directed at him with a reference to himself, forcing it in an inquisitive tone. It seemed that the man recognized what Fleur feared and because of so, tried to back off. In addition, his hands flew into the air, shoulders parallel to each other to display that he was in submission. From his lips, the words delivered tried to appease and call a lull between them. Meanwhile, the ogles from others at the beach was directed at both the giant and Fleur. Only then did she realize how rude she was truly being and what a scene it was from other points of view.

Fleur accepted his act of compliance and expressed it by a series of events that she seldom put on display. It began with her approaching Baron, the name of the behemoth. Delicate in her steps, she aired some form of grace that mismatched her appearance. Standing only three feet away from him, she shut her scarlet eyes and opened them, presenting a new and improved version of herself for a moment. With as much confidence to support her voice as she could muster, she spoke. "Sorry for acting like that. I'm Fleur..." Though she had tried to better herself, the voice trailed off into another murmur. Thankfully, she got all the important bits out before her vocal chords that worked hand in hand with her personality gave in. The air about was certainly more soothing than the cornered bitch before. However, it was still lacking in its own right. Behind the persona, Fleur was the same old; her irises were trying hard to avoid any eye contact.

When the wolf chased the lamb the roles would seldom become reversed.

Words spoken so true having yet to meet the exception of the painted wolf and the snow white lamb. There were no names exchanged save for his own, little was known about this woman. She could have been a powerful mage, rogue assassin, or even a Rune Knight out for fresh air. No matter the title she held her presence was all that mattered to Baron. Of course, there were questions to answer: Why would he take an interest in a stranger, someone he did not know nor had he ever seen before. Well she presented an opportunity for conflict and being the bull headed type the whimsical male had to take a figurative stab at her. He didn’t quite understand the change in her tone, maybe the glances they were receiving from judging eye made her have a change of heart. Though, where most would walk off she advanced changing the playign field entirely for the better.

With an arched brow Corbin could see her transform before his very eyes, confused and taken aback by her sudden… Formality? She was kinder, but from what he could read she was still quite shaky a trait possessed by those who didn’t often speak to others most likely. He could respect her for wanting to stand up for herself, show some confidence and put aside her weakness but the murmur after her words sold that she wasn’t ready for this sort of confrontation. At least, that’s what it told him. Still, this may have been his chance to meet someone new, someone like none he had met before! So with a more subtle expression he lowered his hands and nodded. “It’s very nice to meet you Fleur.” his voice was calm and ginger in tone, “I take it you aren’t from around these parts with a name like that, am I right?”

Was he treading too close? “I mean, I’m sorry if I gave you a scare. I guess someone as big as me runnin’ up on you would be quite a fright.”

Fleur's facade could only be kept as long as her will remained able - needless to say, it wasn't very fortified. She tried her hardest to deem herself a respectable person; it rendered hardly persuasive as she shrunk back into her bubble with every word that Baron spouted. A greeting immediately followed by question was stated in a calming voice, one that tried utmost to soothe the lady clouded in black and white. Fleur internally smacked herself, wondering why her sudden boldness could start a conversation and leave when she needed that part of her the most. Everything could have been simpler had she avoided any sort of socialization or better yet, dismiss the sudden announcement of discomfort she had upon seeing the size of a single man. In the end, he was human and had feelings as well.

Nevertheless the conversation began and it was thanks to her. It was only right that she continued it and so she did. With only a second of pause, she answered and told him about where she came from. "I'm from Crocus actually." This time, her voice stood firm without so much as a waver. Memories from her past shot up and sped itself through her brain, her ability to daydream on cue turning into one of her greatest nightmares. Some scenes that passed by were her mother's dead corpse, her now-hysterical father, and worst of all, the brother smiling even as he hung himself. No time had passed in the realm called reality when she suddenly started to gasp for air, terrorized at the events that had transpired in her brain.

Gazes from all over were attracted and to hide herself, Fleur threw her hoodie over her head. While she never wanted any attention, it always seemed to seek her out like moths to a light. Gathering the remaining humanity she had left, she apologized once more. "I'm sorry." She wasn't just lacking of confidence this time around; the monotone voice showed that her sense of self-preservation was gone as well. Survivor syndrome took control of her to the point where what she said wasn't registered in her head no longer. Fleur only appeared to be without life because of her skin complexion and choice of apparel; with survivor's guilt, her eyes had nothing coming out of them. "I should have died with them." she said, a comment that didn't make sense to anyone else. This phrase would repeat over and over again, and with each time she did, she would take a step closer to the water. The demon of guilt planned to end the Beaumont household today.

He could feel the tension in the air, the hair on the back of his neck softened when he looked at her now. Fleur, the name given to him anyway, seemed to be uncomfortable around him. Was he pushing her to be social? Yes, normally he was the type to pull people out of their zone of comfortability and make them speak to him. This little habit of his of shoving himself on others was one adapted from years of public schooling, he was always social and he always tried to make a new friend but now he felt guilty for trying to crack this woman’s shell. From the lack of eye contact to the softness of her voice it was obvious she was clamming up and suffering from his presence.

With his realization came her answer to his question, she was from Crocus. Baron hadn’t left Hargeon yet, interesting to meet a local. Well, another local anyway. He could have asked her an assortment of questions, directions to the next city in particular, but he wouldn’t bother her anymore or pick at her brain as she seemed to be at a loss for words at the moment. There was little to him, he was a menace and shouldn’t have been bothering her. Ever since he was small he had a habit of bugging others, more from that bad habit of bothering people for no reason maybe. He readied himself to apologize and walk away from her, the least he could do was end what was already prolonged. Just as his lips parted to speak he could hear her wheeze.

There was no reaction, he watched her clam up once again even her voice had become detached. Her eyes were dull and lifeless, her voice rang on and on. Words of death fell from her maw, Baron was stunned by the sudden transformation, but he would come to when she made her way to the water. Unaware of her demons, he’d reach out for her and close the gap between them. When she was in arms reached he did the first thing that came to mind, he broke the threshold of acquaintanceship and hugged her. It wasn’t firm, nor was it forceful, it truthfully was little more than a plea from one stranger to another for them to wake up. “Listen uh, Flurry! Snap out of it!” why the hell was he hugging someone he didn’t know? Ah screw it he’ll take the punch to the nose as long as she woke up! He’d take soft and nervous girl over this scary one!

A red glow glistened upon her pale shell, blood flowing directly into her head and most notably, her cheeks. Her delicate body was enveloped by another and had it been under other circumstances, passersby could comment on how romantic the scene was. If only.

Acting like a magnet, Fleur's left hand found itself impaled against the abdominal of the giant. She gained consciousness and upon noticing she was embraced, the reserved emo didn't wait to confirm who and why she was being embraced. Everything was reactionary as soon as she hopped out of her trance-like state. Fleur rubbed her eyes with her hands, glistening with sweat when the sun beat down against it. The world became clear again and the psychological fog seemed to disperse too. That was when Fleur realized what she did, her pupils beginning to water up.

"Umm..." she managed to utter. She was in disbelief at what she had done, having pushed away someone that tried to help her out during her panic attack. "I'm sorry..." apologizing for the third time in the past five minutes. And she ran. Coming to the beach was a mistake, one that she should've seen coming. Fleur wasn't capable of being a functional, communing person and that was that.

This was certainly a scene he didn’t mind, but given her current state of mind it was only a the glow of something much more than what it led on. There were no words, he tried his best to keep calm until she came back to, given her last few reactions to his actions this one may have earned some ire but it was a panicked move to comfort another. Everyone needed a hug right? If only their hug could have lasted.

When she came to, if she came to, he had let her go. Her hand on his core telling him she was alright, even if it was only for a smidgen of a second he felt warmth from her uniquely cold appearance. Despite her pushing him away, he was relieved that she was alright. It wasn’t everyday someone had a panic attack in front of him and if he had learned anything on the road it was that sometimes an embrace can help in many circumstances and the one he gifted her seemed to help just enough to bring her back to reality. “It’s ok,” he waved a hand, “relax.”

Soothing words fell flat, she spoke softly and would soon depart, he reached out to her but slowly retracted his hand as she departed. The hand would retreat underneath his cloak as he could only watch her go. This was an interesting day, he’d certainly have to ran into her again one of these days, but for now he would only question what just happened. If only they could have met on a better day.

If only.

-exit-