The little magic box took some getting used to. Unfortunately for Alanna, patience was not a skill she came by naturally. But thanks to her training as a knight, she at least refrained from throwing the damned thing into the ground and stomping on it. The box, or tableet as the person inside of it called it, was her key in understanding this new world. Any questions she had, and she had many, the tableet was able to answer.
First and foremost, she needed to explore. The tableet had informed her of a meeting she was set to have with an assistant of sorts. It would be wise to know exactly where that was so that she would not be late when the chosen time came.
Using the tableet to navigate her way around Atlantis, Alanna slowly came to know the city in which she had been brought to. Taken without her permission was a better way of putting it but until she could get to someone of higher authority, it was best to not speak her thoughts on that.
Her exploring led her everywhere but it was her stomach and her nose that got her to the market where all the food was. Without any coin or currency or anything really of value to trade, she had to let her stomach growl in disappointment as she continued looking around.
Distracted by the tableet and the new buildings and the smell of food, she almost didn’t notice when the bottom of her dress got caught by a rose bush. It seemed odd for such a plant to be growing on its own but Alanna thought nothing of it and knelt down to free her dress. One of the thorns nicked the palm of her hand and she was hit with a sudden and strong desire to pick the very flower that had pricked her. As if in a daze, she walked away and nearly bumped into someone.
“I have this for you,” and she held out the rose to the stranger, stuck in a fog until the flower had left her hand.
Peter had been in Atlantis long enough to be used to the strange occurrences. People often turned into things or felt compelled to engage in strange behaviors. Most of it was endearing and this sort of silliness was certainly welcome after having had several of their people - including two of his own siblings - stuck in an arena where the only way out was to die. Peter had been outside the city on a covert mission and hadn’t been forced to watch as most of Atlantis’ residents had been, but he’d heard enough to be happy to see a little whimsy again.
“Thank you,” he told the young woman graciously, giving her a slight bow as he accepted the flower from her. Even dressed in modern clothing as he did in Atlantis these days, Peter managed to convey that air of High King. As the saying went, once a king or queen of Narnia, always a king or queen of Narnia. He couldn’t help behaving in a kingly manner, even here so far away from the kingdom he’d once ruled. It was the same for his siblings; even Susan had a regal air about her, despite having forgotten Narnia herself.
He recognized the redhead only as someone he’d not yet met before and as he straightened up, he introduced himself. “I’m Peter,” he offered. “What’s your name?”
She was so thoroughly embarrassed, she wished that she could disappear into the ground. Be swallowed up by a dark hole and just be gone. There was no reason why she had felt with such an urging to give this flower, this beautiful rose that was a symbol of pure love and affection, to a stranger. Not just any stranger -
-a boy.
Well. A young man, she noticed. With striking looks and kind eyes. He didn’t cause a scene or make a grand gesture when she handed him the flower but instead reacted calmly as if such a thing were normal for him. Was it? Was he a wizard? Who conjured up people to give him flowers …probably not. He thanked her and then even introduced himself. She supposed that was only a natural reaction to being gifted a flower.
She stood as tall as she could (which wasn’t near enough to Peter’s height) and held out her hand to give a firm and hearty handshake as she had been taught by George an old friend. “Alanna.” Then, straight away, she had to ask, one eyebrow raised as she regarded the young man suspiciously. “Was that you?”
Of course, she could have been more specific but as blunt as her question was, she thought maybe asking him straight out if he was a good or bad wizard would not be a good idea.
“It’s lovely to meet you, Alanna.” If it hadn’t already been obvious that she was new, her question would have given her away and he couldn’t help a slight chuckle. Those who have been around awhile knew that these things just happened in Atlantis. There wasn’t always a rhyme or reason to them and they tended to vary in the level of ridiculousness. The newer arrivals were easily spotted in how the strange magic of the place took them by surprise.
“It was Atlantis,” he explained. “You’ll soon learn that there is a great deal of strange magic here. Quite often, things just happen. Eventually, you learn to just go with it.” He paused before adding. “Welcome. I’d be honoured to give you a tour of the city.”