i am wild.

   he’d been in the castle as a boy, when his father still had patience for him and when he hadn’t seen a single corpse. it hadn’t changed much, and the sand coloured walls made him shrink as if his father was still there, watching him. even as a boy, innocence was unattainable. he was raised knowing the horrors of the world, his father dictating each evil to him as if he were reciting the seven-pointed star. dry paint flaked from his easel when he opened it, and he kept his eyes on them when he spoke.

born to wealthy parents in dorne, a kingdom where wealth was harder to come by, grantaire was prime to have it all. his father was an acclaimed scholar, sought upon for his wise opinions and strong religious education. his mother was the heir to a vineyard, one of the largest to the land, thus grantaire could not want for anything. and yet, despite the free-thinking nature of the dornish, grantaire found himself disowned. not officially, that would cause his family a scandal even in dorne, but sent with little money to fend for himself under the guise of learning independence, grantaire was pushed away. 

   grantaire hops out of the truck, which hasn’t fully halted to a stop and disappears before he has the chance to turn and say thanks. he makes a note to look him up when he gets some wifi, but realizes he can’t remember anything about the entire journey here. the road is empty and long, the desert stretching around him for miles without end. he supposes this is as far as the driver could take him.

   his feet hurt by the time he gets to the gas station, lit by an eerie green, despite only seeming to walk a matter of metres. the 24 hour sign flickers, and no attendant is to be found. he reaches in his pocket for a cigarette, finds one but no lighter. he turns to the stranger that’s sitting on the bench in front of the store.

sam carefully put the book back on the shelf where he’d found it, then held his hands up in a placating way. he really didn’t want to anger this man anymore than he already had. he hasn’t met the love of his life, yet - hasn’t had the chance to break out of his shell yet. “i’m sorry, i’ll leave now. i’m sam, by the way, in case you needed to know that for some reason.” oh god, he’s babbling.

sam looks up at the sound of someone speaking, startled out of his concentration on the book he was reading. he’d been so focused on the world the book described that he hadn’t noticed the other approach, nor most of the lights in the shop going out. he closes the book with a soft sound, then turns to look at the other. “i’m very sorry, i honestly hadn’t realised…”