Karla
**Joseph Everard, Ibethiel**
**The Forests of Ibethiel**

Joseph eventually found the river that he remembered was nearby and he stooped to fill his pot with the water. Once he filled it a decent amount, he washed his hands of the feathers and grease that was on his hands in the river. He'd boil the water so it'd be safe to drink.

Joseph picked up the pot, pretty heavy now with the water, and began to stumble back to camp. He pushed aside some trees and entered the camp. The big man blinked in slight surprise as he saw a silhouette by the fire and cursed himself for leaving his crossbow with them. He froze on the edge of the tree line.
Cassie
Beatrice Ashdown, Ibethiel 
The Forests of Ibethiel

Beatrice sighed at the peacefulness of his setup. It was away from all villages, similar to her home. Innocently, she crept along his supplies and gently took a look at his crossbow. It was scary. A weapon. Made for killing. She sighed and closed her eyes.

All humans, even herself, were capable of murdering and lying. Beatrice's index finger lingered on the crossbow as she inhaled deeply. "My dear." She whispered softly and turned to go back to her home. The pond. As she fully turned, her eyes fell upon the man that had left his things. Staring at her. "Oh, dear." Beatrice softly whispered as she backed away.
Karla
**Joseph Everard, Ibethiel**
**The Forests of Ibethiel**

Joseph quickly realized that he was not the one in danger, and she thought *She* Was. Why was she at his camp? Who knows... But he meant her no harm. The lumberjack opened his hands and put them facing away from him to show he had no weapons, he wasn't a threat.

"Hello," The man said, voice cracking from disuse. "Don't worry... I'm not going to hurt you." He took one small step forward out of the forest so she could see him better. To be fair, he didn't look the most unthreatening in the world, with a giant frame and bloodshot eyes from lack of sleep. However, you could sort of tell from his voice and mannerisms that he was a good sort.
Cassie
Beatrice Ashdown, Ibethiel 
The Forests of Ibethiel

Beatrice took the man's appearance in as her long brown waves fell to her waist. She honestly had no trouble sleeping, due to the fact she had been at it for two years. After all of her time spent in the ponds and lakes, she had managed to find that the grass in clearings were comfortable enough to be her bed. 

Beatrice's hair fell in front of her face as her head moved in the direction of the crossbow. He'd shoot her if he came closer. As the man walked towards her, the young woman dropped to the floor and grabbed the weapon into her arms. With the arrow pointed towards the sky and her eyes squeezed shut, Beatrice took a deep breath. "I will shoot if I feel threatened." The young woman looked ridiculous sitting in the forest floor.
Karla
**Joseph Everard, Ibethiel**
**The Forests of Ibethiel**

By the gods! Maybe she was dangerous... But he's not sure if it looked like she could shoot that well. Still, he erred on the side of caution and took another step back.

"Alright, I believe you. I won't come any closer." Joseph kept his hands in front of him as he stood still. "I already told you I don't want to hurt you." He looked towards the crossbow. "Now, don't shoot. I'm just setting down my axe." 

He carefully moved towards his belt, very very slowly, and then undid the catch on his axe, before letting it fall to the ground. "See?" He kicked the axe behind him.
Cassie
Beatrice Ashdown, Ibethiel
The Forests of Ibethiel

Beatrice gently placed the crossbow in front of her as she stared at the man. He didn't seem like much of a threat. But no one really does. It only takes one stab to the back to murder. 

"You better! I've been training for years!" Beatrice lied and held her breath as she sat in front of the fire. Perhaps it was time for her to have come across someone who wasn't a figment of her imagination. 

Beatrice slowly stood up and allowed her long, white, dress to flow to her ankles. The cuts and bruises along her skin contrasted with her pale skin as she carefully walked towards the man. "Don't move." She warned as she bent down and picked an arrow up.
Karla
**Joseph Everard, Ibethiel**
**The Forests of Ibethiel**

Adrenaline was pumping through Joseph's veins and it took all his self-control to stay still as the scarred girl walked towards him with the sharpened flint arrow. He swallowed a little, but he knew he could overpower her if anything bad happened. Would it trigger a seizure? Who knows. 

"Sure," He said evenly. Should he really have thrown his axe away? We'll see, I suppose.
Cassie
Beatrice Ashdown, Ibethiel
The Forests of Ibethiel

It wasn't fair. She was the predator and she had preached about the feeling of lack of control, blaming her master. Why wasn't she in control now? She held the man's life in her hands for Christ's sake. A gentle breeze ran through her hair as she looked down at the arrow. Would he want to be an ally? 

Gently, she placed it beside his axe and straightened up. Her eyes made way to his and she forced herself to look him into his eyes. "No advances." She noted aloud and walked back to the fire. "How odd. Men advance." She clicked her tongue and sat back down for warmth. "You may come." One thing was certain, she had a quirky personality.
Karla
**Joseph Everard, Ibethiel**
**The Forests of Ibethiel**

Joseph blinked slightly. "Advances?" He said blankly. His eyes widened in understanding. "Oh." He smiled a little. "Of course not." The big man nodded when she said he could come closer and he sat back down at the campfire that was recently his. 

He said nothing as he picked up his carving knife and his carving and began to continue his work in silence, waiting for her to say something. She would have gone away if she wanted to be alone, or maybe she wanted some food. Well the bird was all he had. Who knows.
Cassie
Beatrice Ashdown, Ibethiel 
The Forests of Ibethiel 

The wind picked up slightly, causing the fire to rage on to a new light. Beatrice felt her arms slump as she pulled her frail knees to her chest. It was almost as if she looked malnourished for a woman of the time. But she simply had the weight of a good health. Well, maybe just below.

Beatrice watched the man as he carved with his knife. He could be doing that to her at the moment, but he was simply sitting. "Why are you alone?" Her demand for answers was sudden, but she doubted it's surprise factor. She watched him for any sign emotion.
Karla
**Joseph Everard, Ibethiel**
**The Forests of Ibethiel**

"Why am I alone?" He repeated in confusion. He smiled wryly. "I'm out of a job. Looking for employment. Traveling around, seeing what there is to see." He didn't mention his old wife. The wound was too fresh, too new.

As he thought of her, the knife sunk in just a little too deep into the carving and he sighed in disgust as the fire had a deep divot in it. He threw away the piece of fire wood and now that he was out of wood, his calloused hands drummed and moved incessantly on his knees. The carving seemed to almost be a coping mechanism for when he was stressed.
Cassie
Beatrice Ashdown, Ibethiel
The Forests of Ibethiel 

Beatrice listened; She was all ears for whatever he would say. The fire cackled as they spoke to one another. There was something comforting about the fact that someone else had come out to live in the forest due to lack of a job. 

"Jobs aren't too hard to find, are they?" She pressed and made sure her dress covered her legs completely. She'd been fairly reserved, since the incident. Nothing had changed. Two years later and she held the wound, almost like a cut in need of stitching. She simply turned her head to stare at him as she waited for an answer. "Unless you're not a kind man."
Karla
**Joseph Everard, Ibethiel**
**The Forests of Ibethiel**

Joseph grimaced. "They're not hard to find for an educated." He chuckled softly. "Hell, I don't even know how to read... There isn't much demand for people like me, and I'm too unstable with money to start a business. Not to mention, I wouldn't have a goddamn clue." 

He thought for a minute. "I don't know if I'm kind, but I'm not a killer. Mercenary work doesn't suit me." He clamped his mouth shut somewhat abruptly. He hadn't really opened up to anyone in a while. But here he was, trading small talk with a girl who could have killed him. The world is strange.
Cassie
Beatrice Ashdown, Ibethiel
The Forests of Ibethiel 

Beatrice smiled as the man spoke, finding everything he said to be soothing and remindful of her home. Softly, she hummed once he had quit talking and stared at the fire. "I apologise. For trying to kill you." She whispered and held her hands together. 

"But you must understand. The men that come through have been savages." She turned her head to look him into his eyes. "I in no way consider myself to be a killer of any sorts." She muttered seriously. The young woman was wise beyond her years, to which was obvious. But she couldn't trust stragglers, especially men.
Karla
**Joseph Everard, Ibethiel**
**The Forests of Ibethiel**

Joseph shrugged it off casually. "I'd have done the same. Don't worry." His adrenaline was still rushing though, and he wasn't quite sure if he could trust her. He was leaning towards yes? 

"And yes, I understand." Probably some first hand experience. He was tempted to ask, but that's personal. "Good to know on the killer part as well. With all luck, I won't find a dagger in my back in the morning." The man's words were serious, but his tone made it clear he was joking around. "How'd you get here?" His bloodshot eyes met hers curiously.
Cassie
Beatrice Ashdown, Ibethiel
The Forests of Ibethiel 

"A man I worked for sealed my fate." Beatrice felt her eyes grow cold as she stared at the man sitting beside her. "He revealed things about my mother, things you wouldn't believe." A shudder coursed through her body at the mere thought. 

"He took advantage of my nude state." Beatrice muttered and looked away from him feeling the dirtiness of the betrayal, almost like it was dirt on her skin that needed to be scrubbed away. "I bathed. He came onto me. But no. No one would believe the maid. I was no longer of use. I vowed to never be a maid again. It's no more than a slave." Beatrice spat out the last sentence and stared into the fire. Men couldn't be trusted. But if that was true, why did she feel somewhat safe with this one in her presence. 

"My name is Beatrice."
Karla
**Joseph Everard, Ibethiel**
**The Forests of Ibethiel**

Joseph stared into the fire and his hands stopped twitching for a second. He looked down at his hands in awkwardness, then back up at her. "I'm sorry... I'm not going to pretend I know how that feels, but I appreciate the fact that you trust me enough to... Share." 

He almost felt ashamed. He had gone on about how hard his life was, but she had it so much worse. *My wife left me for another,* He thought, *And I thought that was awful, but she was assaulted. No wonder she's so frightened.*

He paused for a second after he had spoken, not sure what to say next. "Joseph."
Cassie
Beatrice Ashdown, Ibethiel
The Forests of Ibethiel

She hadn't even mentioned going to an orphanage and handing her sister over, getting the looks and the hatred from the nuns. Supposedly, a mother should never leave their child. If only they'd known the circumstances. Beatrice would never have left her sister or posed as a mother.

"It's okay. I have many blessings." She muttered and smiled as she picked up a stick and broke it into pieces. As the stick was tossed into the fire, she imagined burning her problems as she did to the stick. Her master's house going up into flames. Though she would never do such a thing to a family. 

Especially when her parents worked for them. "Please, do not pity." She hated that she had to ask that, but felt as if it were necessary.
Karla
**Joseph Everard, Ibethiel**
**The Forests of Ibethiel**

"Alright, if you say so." He kept staring into the fire. Tough topic to move on from, but he took out a small spare piece of wood that was an ongoing project. It was a picture of his wife, hair blowing in the wind. He had already finished the rough outlines and now needed to add the details.

He was painstaking whenever he made a cut, all his attention focused on his shaking hands which had been that way since the attacks. He needed this to be perfect. He didn't know why. Maybe if he showed her this one day, she'd come back to him once she saw how much he loved her. 

The silence was a deafening sort, broken only by crickets and wolves. Joseph needed to fill it. "So... What do you do around here?" He winced uncomfortably. Real smooth, Joseph. Nice topic change from literal sexual assault. "Sorry, sorry," He muttered after a couple seconds.
Cassie
Beatrice Ashdown, Ibethiel
The Forests of Ibethiel

Beatrice pondered his question. What did she really do? Nothing that seemed interesting enough to talk about. Maybe the man was just curious? ... Or maybe he wanted intel on her daily life. Beatrice sat silently and took a deep breath. She wanted to tell him something, rather than leaving him hanging?

"I normally walk the waters. Search for a place to call home other than the forest. It gets quite lonely out here some days." Beatrice sighed and tilted her heads. "Sometimes I swim in the pond, in search of fish. They have fairly large ones." A smile made way onto her face. 

"But I certainly don't have enough talent to do that." Beatrice peered over his shoulder, her interest sparking. A small smile made way onto her face and she moved back to her seat. "Who was it?" She wondered aloud as she stared at him, not expecting an answer.
Karla
**Joseph Everard, Ibethiel**
**The Forests of Ibethiel**

"My wife," He said, a little bit uncomfortably. "Well, used to be, I guess. She... She left," He shrugged. He changed the topic. "Yes, I can see the trees getting a little repetitive. A town would be nice." 

He looked around at the wilderness but shot the trees a glance with his eyes almost saying he didn't mean it. Joseph loved the trees, because of his job, his hobby, and the simple beauty of them. His grandfather was always teaching him about nature when he was a young lad, pointing out the birds and plants, and the love stuck with him through his life.
Cassie
Beatrice Ashdown, Ibethiel
The Forests of Ibethiel

"My master once said that no love is pure." She whispered and sighed deeply. "We're all bound to be left behind. By death, or by something worse. Though, what could be worse?" Beatrice shook her head and stared at the pit.

"I hate the useless lies of love that I've been fed." She whispered. Longing to have something as pure. Yet, it wasn't in her cards and the odds were stacked against her. As the man made is comment about the trees, Beatrice smiled. "But you seem to be in love with the forest." She'd observed him, and he seemed to be very comfortable.