( content warnings: may reference canon themes of torture, human experimentation, murder, and death. river is a mind-reader, but this shouldn't be an issue for now since powers are nulled on arrival. I'll work on getting an opt-out/opt-in post set up soon!!
she's post-firefly, pre-serenity. I haven't 100% decided on a faction yet so I'm trying a bit of everything. （╹◡╹）♡ hover over any chinese text for a translation! )
★ thorne
[ from darkness to daylight, river opens her eyes and finds herself at a loss for what's real and what isn't in a totally different way from the chaos she's used to.
now, usually sunlight means open sky and fresh air, something they can't get enough of as space-farin' folk. but this is different, because there are hands on her naked body and strange men trying to tell her something she doesn't understand, things she can't begin to comprehend with a mind that's still drowning in the abyss of nothingness.
so the first thing she does is quite reasonable, by all accounts: she screams. for a good long while, river can be found by the fountain, hiding behind the lip of it while calling everyone around her liars and thieves and spewing rapid-fire chinese that is surely plagued with insults. she may even climb back inside of the fountain, splashing around in the water as she searches for the way back home, never you mind the freezing temperatures. all the while, the poor apprentices are simply trying to get the screaming naked girl into some clothes. woes be for a rough landing!
eventually, though, she'll realize no one is trying to hurt her and settle enough to let the mages guide her through the castle. such a beautiful thing with fantastical tales of magic and strife and some higher purpose they're meant to serve; none of it means a thing to a girl that hasn't been convinced this isn't an elaborate dream. she'll wander the hallways, bare feet against the cold ground and fingertips trailing along the walls as she takes in everything around her.
it's then that she'll notice, after the earlier screams have passed, that this world seems eerily blissfully silent. she may not even notice your character coming, eyes wide as they are tracing the designs along the walls and ceilings - apologies in advance for any accidental collisions. ]
☼ free cities
[ a hot, dry, bustling desert landscape is something river is well familiarized with by now, and something about that gives her an ounce of intrigue alongside her innate fear of being kidnapped to some far off land. are they on a planet she's never heard of? does this mean she could find serenity if she searched hard enough? it's too soon to say, but the potentiality of it leaves her thrumming with nervous energy.
she'll be bouncing around in the wagon, eager to see all that she can through the windows and clamoring from seat to seat as she finds things that catch her interest. pardon her manners if you happen to be riding along at the same time, as river won't stop to consider how she might be inconveniencing others. a scientific mind blown wide open by the addition of magic - how could she not be fascinated?
by the time they drop her off at the barracks to dress and settle in, she's chomping at the bit to go explore. but she takes one look at the militaristic uniform and declares it zhū shǐ; there must be something better around here. river looks around the cramped quarters, marveling at the abject silence coming from the walls and their inhabitants, then decides the best course of option is just to look.
so anyone with the misfortune of being one of her bunkmates may come back to find a waifish girl wearing only a robe and manic eyes as she tears through everyone's belongings and throws things around haphazardly. more than looking for anything specific, the search is half the fun - for her, at least. no fun for anyone else having their things thrown about and pilfered, sorry. :( ]
☾ solvunn
[ the screaming and crying and general hootin' n' hollerin' of transdimensional temporal displacement is enough to overwhelm all on its own. but the last time river was in the hands of god-fearing folk didn't end quite so well for her ( or simon, oh simon, bié diū xià wǒ, gēgē! ). if only she could hear them and know their good intentions, but she can't, there's silence beneath the pretty words they say and all she can do is behave and follow.
it's cold, after all, and running away into unknown territory while wet and naked won't get her very far. she accepts their clothes, thick and cozy like nothing she's felt before, and listens with only one ear on the way to the settlement. the land is beautiful, so far removed from the bottled up mènghuàn they sell across the 'verse as she knows it.
they speak of magic and she starts to believe it, if only for the sake of the flowers and the ocean breeze, an abundance of nature that makes a lost little girl feel right at home in the madness of it all. river ignores the greetings of any locals to make kind with the flora and fauna instead, which is where people can find her, wandering aimlessly while talking to any plants or animals she comes across.
asking questions, holding one-sided conversations, peering into the eyes of any livestock that don't walk away as soon as she approaches - anyone close enough to her quiet rambles will catch the gist of the conversation. with a childlike sincerity, she tells them: ]
This is a beautiful place to die.
[ cheers, mèimei. ]
✧ wildcard!
[ feel free to pitch your own starter if you like! river will be wandering about regardless of where she winds up, and she has no sense of personal space or propriety. she can be anywhere at any time for any reason - I'm game for anything! ]
river tam || firefly || the fool
she's post-firefly, pre-serenity. I haven't 100% decided on a faction yet so I'm trying a bit of everything. （╹◡╹）♡ hover over any chinese text for a translation! )
now, usually sunlight means open sky and fresh air, something they can't get enough of as space-farin' folk. but this is different, because there are hands on her naked body and strange men trying to tell her something she doesn't understand, things she can't begin to comprehend with a mind that's still drowning in the abyss of nothingness.
so the first thing she does is quite reasonable, by all accounts: she screams. for a good long while, river can be found by the fountain, hiding behind the lip of it while calling everyone around her liars and thieves and spewing rapid-fire chinese that is surely plagued with insults. she may even climb back inside of the fountain, splashing around in the water as she searches for the way back home, never you mind the freezing temperatures. all the while, the poor apprentices are simply trying to get the screaming naked girl into some clothes. woes be for a rough landing!
eventually, though, she'll realize no one is trying to hurt her and settle enough to let the mages guide her through the castle. such a beautiful thing with fantastical tales of magic and strife and some higher purpose they're meant to serve; none of it means a thing to a girl that hasn't been convinced this isn't an elaborate dream. she'll wander the hallways, bare feet against the cold ground and fingertips trailing along the walls as she takes in everything around her.
it's then that she'll notice, after the earlier screams have passed, that this world seems eerily blissfully silent. she may not even notice your character coming, eyes wide as they are tracing the designs along the walls and ceilings - apologies in advance for any accidental collisions. ]
she'll be bouncing around in the wagon, eager to see all that she can through the windows and clamoring from seat to seat as she finds things that catch her interest. pardon her manners if you happen to be riding along at the same time, as river won't stop to consider how she might be inconveniencing others. a scientific mind blown wide open by the addition of magic - how could she not be fascinated?
by the time they drop her off at the barracks to dress and settle in, she's chomping at the bit to go explore. but she takes one look at the militaristic uniform and declares it zhū shǐ; there must be something better around here. river looks around the cramped quarters, marveling at the abject silence coming from the walls and their inhabitants, then decides the best course of option is just to look.
so anyone with the misfortune of being one of her bunkmates may come back to find a waifish girl wearing only a robe and manic eyes as she tears through everyone's belongings and throws things around haphazardly. more than looking for anything specific, the search is half the fun - for her, at least. no fun for anyone else having their things thrown about and pilfered, sorry. :( ]
it's cold, after all, and running away into unknown territory while wet and naked won't get her very far. she accepts their clothes, thick and cozy like nothing she's felt before, and listens with only one ear on the way to the settlement. the land is beautiful, so far removed from the bottled up mènghuàn they sell across the 'verse as she knows it.
they speak of magic and she starts to believe it, if only for the sake of the flowers and the ocean breeze, an abundance of nature that makes a lost little girl feel right at home in the madness of it all. river ignores the greetings of any locals to make kind with the flora and fauna instead, which is where people can find her, wandering aimlessly while talking to any plants or animals she comes across.
asking questions, holding one-sided conversations, peering into the eyes of any livestock that don't walk away as soon as she approaches - anyone close enough to her quiet rambles will catch the gist of the conversation. with a childlike sincerity, she tells them: ]
This is a beautiful place to die.
[ cheers, mèimei. ]