❢ open rp ❢

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hit me with your best shot ❢ meme continuations ❢ aus ❢ idek

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[ She nods slowly at both, not able to deny the truth he speaks. ]

It was the only life I had ever known.

[ A beat. ]

Before now.

[endlesswar]

And no bodily injury to speak of, I've noticed.

[Which is uh the bright side. Frank slows as they approach an elaborate, marble set of stairs leading down. There's a lush, garden and the bluest pool spread before them.]

What did Casterly Rock promise you, milady?

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[ She tries not to roll her eyes at that though she knows she should be grateful all the same. They were quite fortunate to escape with their lives and what belongings they could carry. Far more generous than most that were considered "enemies" of House Lannister.

But the sight before them is enough to leave her speechless for a long moment, staring at the beauty close up now. ]

A future. Stability. Security.

[ All those things that were prized in a world as cruel as theirs. ]

[endlesswar]

[The response gets a laugh low in his gut. Frank chooses to say nothing. This time. The response intrigues him. There have been other pretty, painted birds from the other six kingdoms to come to Dorne. All of them sing pretty songs and put on pretty airs while leaving their true feelings a mystery.]

And do you believe those things are gone forever?

[They keep walking, closer still. The trees are providing shade to walk through and the air is fragrant with jasmine. Beautiful, white cranes flutter to splash down at the far end of the pool, the ripples cascading outward disrupting the mirror like surface of the water. A tall, solid figure like the man beside her only seems more harsh and out of place were it not for his collected, lordly behavior as her consort.]

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[ She doesn't appreciate his laughter, taking it to mean that he's laughing at her and the concerns she has. It's enough to make her mad. Mad enough to be blind to the beauty around her, ]

I suppose if I were a man I wouldn't have to worry about such things.

[ She withdraws her arm from his, thank you. ]

[endlesswar]

[Frank relaxes his arm and folds them in front of him. His expression is plainly puzzled.]

Though our backs are strong and our shoulders are broad, we have the same burdens. I do not think that being another sex would suit you. Women are more cunning and careful then men. We charge like bulls and are undone by the smallest of things.

[Which sounds very, very contradictory from a man with the edges of scars visible in the long, open neck of his garb.]

My world has changed a time or two. So few a time with my will.

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[ She noticed the scars briefly but she still purses her lips, ]

And yet women are not treated in such a way.

[ At least not where she comes from. Women are only heard when they are in a well enough standing or have enough power behind them. And even then they will always be seen as lesser. ]

They are considered emotional and weak-willed.

[endlesswar]

[She is the one to lead where they go. His steady steps trail behind.]

In Dorne, women hold equal standing. I don't know the ways they carry on in the other kingdoms.

[In Westeros. Essos is... always it's own story entirely.]

Any who think so ill of women don't deserve their company.

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[ Her brows go up at that and she stops long enough to turn and look back at him, ]

Do you truly believe that?

[ Because, if she were honest, she would state that he doesn't look the type. He looks like one of those Essos warlords out here, among the green and water. ]

[endlesswar]

[Ah. Finally she's looking at him again. Frank looks back. Most men would take in the moment to posture, to puff up, to grin back. He meets her gaze the way one would with a wild horse, gaining mutual respect and trust. Except Karen is a lionness. And he has never had experience taming a lion. Just killing one.]

I do.

[About his land and how to treat the fairer sex.]

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[ He is different from what she had expected, she can't deny that. Though she still has her reservations. She gives him a once over after holding his eyes for a long, silent moment and then turns, walking again.

She heads over to the pool, careful in her movements so she doesn't upset the birds in it. It's a delicate sort of beauty she had never expected in the desert. ]

[endlesswar]

[He assumes that she has a vast experience with men. She has to. She must. Eyes like that. A body like she does. Frank is in for a shock. Following her step for step like a shadow. While her presence doesn't disrupt the birds they do get more active in the wake of his presence. Just a little. They're familiar with visitors.]

You can bathe in the Water Gardens. I would recommend to have it reserved or else risk sharing it. When the summer sun is high it offers so much comfort. This is one of the many pools.

[And there is an intricate pipe system that sprouts at set hours. It truly is a triumph of architecture.]

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[ Experience in watching them, hearing how they talk and treat other women. But personally? Very little. Intimately? No. It's why it's such a wonder so is still out here alone with him.

Her cheeks go warm again as she watches the birds bathe in the water in their own way. ]

I don't think I could ever do that.

[ The very thought makes her body feel hot all over. Especially if the man beside her were to watch... ]

[endlesswar]

[He steps closer to her, hand grazing the back of her arm. Frank cranes his neck to beer over her shoulder.]

No?

[That was a rather fast answer. The one word question has an honest, near childlike confusion.]

It is near custom, welcomed for Dornish and outsiders alike.

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[ The touch sends tingles through her arm and she shakes her head again in a silent answer. She clears her throat slightly before turning it on him: ]

Have you ever done that?

[endlesswar]

[He makes a humming sound low in his throat and now stands close enough for their contact to be far closer than before.]

I have. The water is cooled by the tiles and clean as crystal. It's a treat. I say a lady of an exiled family deserves a few treats.

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[ She looks over at him again and this time he's so much closer. She can clearly see the deep brown of his eyes and there's a surprising gentleness in them.

Her mouth feels dry and she licks at her lips without thinking about it, ]

I...I wouldn't feel safe out here, doing that.

[endlesswar]

I would stand watch with an arahk in hand to ensure you are undisturbed.

[That would mean he would witness her nakedness. Though that is not what he focuses on, not out loud. The fine garbs of the Summer Sea and Westerlands are fitted but there is so much more to imagine beneath. Frank hasn't been a man long on imagination or words. This might be the longest conversation he has had in sometime.]

If that is what you wish.

[The most important condition. Frank leans even closer, the bristle of groomed hair along his jaw is close enough to graze her skin. Just a little. You cannot rush these things. Realizing just how near he has become, he balls his hand into a fist and gently eases a step back.]

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[ She has to turn away when he leans closer, moving away once more. She feels slightly out of breath; as if she had almost lost herself in such a moment. And with a man she just met. As if there was some sort of pull between them.

She swallows hard and remembers the cup in her other hand. She drains it as she continues walking, asking afterward: ]

You would do this for a stranger?

[endlesswar]

[Now, now. That's no way to be, he scolds himself. Too much, too fast. And yet no outright words of refusal. No dagger glances.]

Are we truly strangers?

[Because it doesn't feel that way. There is an energy between them. Surely that was what drew his gaze to her. And the rest? Is it fated?]

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[ A laugh huffs out of her and she turns back to him, sunlight catching on gold curls when she turns. ]

Yes, we are. I don't even know your name. I don't know your house, your family, where you come from...

[endlesswar]

[They mock him as they bounce and move out of his reach.]

Francis, son of Giulia Castle and Khal Jakah.

[Which...isn't exactly a house or a name. In most circumstances he would be a Sand. The laws of Dorne and friendships have deemed him to be heir to the old and loyal house. So minor, would a Lannister even hear of it?]

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[ She doesn't recognize the house but she does recognize one part: ]

"Khal"? Like the Dothraki?

[endlesswar]

The very same. Yes.

[As a matter of fact. He walks closer to water's edge. It really is crystalline. Looking at it makes him wonder how her eyes would compare. It'd be best if they were side by side.]

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[ She stares at him for a long moment before looking away again, ]

And do you live as a Dothraki?