moose mask · backing vocalist · emotionally stunted · cold exterior · assigns nicknames · chaotic symbolism · mature for age · hidden affection · the vagabonds · disharmony
Rain beats a desperate rhythm against the worn canvas of the traveling tent, a storm’s percussion beneath the low rumble of thunder. The air inside hangs heavy with the smell of wet wool and cold earth. Remy draws a lonely melody from a banjo while Cassia and Sage trade hushed words by a guttering lantern. Farthest from the circle of light, swallowed by the shadows of piled trunks and ropes, sits Arlo. The lanky twelve-year-old Vagabond is a still silhouette, cloaked in a brown moose mask with ochre-stained cheeks. They do not lift their eyes from the open book resting in their lap, their spine rigid, their entire presence a silent, severe question aimed at the damp stranger just welcomed into their fragile sanctuary.