#andrei is ~7 at this point! not as jaded as he will be and much more hopeful about (and fixated on) brigid being alive

[ulircursed]

It happened out of the blue one morning: a huge gaggle of young children toddling all over the Monastery! It doesn’t take long for someone to fill you in on the nitty gritty: that these are indeed the same students and staff everyone knows, and no they don’t know how this happened to make them like this... [Grants Any Skill +1]

Andrei does not wake up in his familiar room in Yngvi castle. He doesn't wake up in any room at all, actually. Instead, he's staring up at the morning sky, even though he knows for sure he went to sleep in his own bed last night. It's like a dream, but it feels too real to be one. He's not at home anymore.

Did I get taken by the pirates too?

The thought alone is enough to startle him into sitting up, heart suddenly pounding as he takes in his surroundings. There's a big castle in the distance, and it doesn't look like any of the ones he's ever seen in the maps and books of Grannvale's other castles.

Wherever he is, he's far, far away from anywhere he knows. The terrifying thought hits Andrei all at once, and his lip trembles, tears building in his eyes.

(You can't be scared. You're not supposed to be scared. Scaredy-cats won't ever be strong enough to rescue Lady Sister Brigid!!)

Resolutely brushing his tears away with a sleeve, Andrei pushes himself up onto his feet, hands clenching into fists as he tries to summon up all his brave feelings. He has to find a way back home. And if this is really where the pirates are, then... then maybe all the better!

Maybe he'll be able to find Lady Sister here, and they'll get to go home together.

Clinging onto all the hope in his heart, he sets off towards the castle.

paint me a future in pastel hues

⤷  mission board: anniversary 2024 — any skill +1