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[aptoautmorior]

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accidental child acquisition

[dornesviper]

"What are you doing down there?" Oberyn's tone is amused, the kind that should come from a man who doesn't seem to take anything seriously. A quick smile, an easy laugh, but with eyes that missed nothing without being hostile.

But he's watching Hanna's eyes.

Because his daughters all have his eye, never mind the color, and her's aren't the same. But there's something familiar to them.

[aptoautmorior]

Hanna startled awake, instantly scrambling to her feet, one hand already searching through the sand within reach for a rock or a stick, something, anything to defend herself with. It was hard to say whether she'd swum to shore under her own power and hauled herself up past the high tide line before passing out, or whether she'd simply been swept in with other detritus overnight.

Either way, she'd been lying there long enough to dry out, clothes and hair lightly crusted with salt rime, though most of it fell away in clumps and flakes as she moved. She didn't bolt, though that was only because she wasn't yet sure where she was or if she had a clear path to do so. She hadn't found a weapon, but in moving she'd realized that her right arm wasn't working right, which probably meant the shoulder had been dislocated.

It took her a long moment, the span of a few wildly-thudding heartbeats to realize that he he wasn't actually coming after her, and a moment more to actually realize that he'd already asked her a question. Her brow furrowed, "I think I've been in an accident." She remembered hitting the water, the way the moon had seemed to scatter and distort as she sank, and she remembered snatches and flashes of what had happened to send her into the water, but nothing clear enough to make sense of, which probably meant that she'd hit her head as well.

[dornesviper]

Oberyn stepped backward, a rocking shift to his back foot and pulling the front foot back. He wasn't abandoning the child, but he did give her a little space. Still, he watched her - the sand and salt-covered hair and skin, the movements of her right arm.

"Yes, I think you have too. Were you on a ship?" He wondered if she had parents, and how he'd feel if it was one of his daughters. He even dropped into a semi-crouch so he wasn't towering over her. "Here, come over here. I studied at the Citadel, forged some Maester's links. Let me take a look at your arm." He was very sure he knew what was wrong with it.

[aptoautmorior]

"Fishing trawler." She answered easily enough. Certainly they'd done some smuggling as well, but she'd been on enough boats to know that most of them did that and few of them talked about it, so she wasn't going to mention it either.

The fact that he'd retreated was a plus, enough to downgrade his threat level even despite the ease with which he moved, that was the kind of thing she'd come to notice and even recognize after so long on her own. She wasn't sure what the Citadel was, but could guess it was some kind of medical college, and had no idea what he meant by links, and so while he was less of a threat, she wasn't yet ready to trust him that far, which was why she said: "It's dislocated, I can put it back myself if I have something to push against." But large enough rocks were few and far between in the area, and furniture or walls were definitely nonexistent.

[dornesviper]

Oh, he was well aware that almost all ships did at least a little smuggling. He should likely care more than he did, but he was always a bit wild.

The Citadel was not just a medical college but the highest center of education, with a link in each chain forged after mastering the subject. Oberyn had gotten through four subjects before he'd gotten bored. "That's what I was worried it might be. The longer it stays out of place, the harder it will be to push back in place. Do you want me to help you?" He was impressed but a little alarmed that she was so calm about it.

[aptoautmorior]

She considered him for a long moment, supporting the right arm with her left hand at her elbow, just as the stepping back had made him less of a threat, asking instead of just doing -or ordering- did the same, but even still she had to ask: "Why do you want to help me?"

She had learned that people who reacted badly to that kind of bluntness weren't the kind of people who actually wanted to help her, and while she wasn't preparing herself to bolt if he gave the wrong answer, there was still a wary readiness to her, almost as if coiled and waiting to spring.

[dornesviper]

Oberyn watched, his eyes appraising the entire time. The Red Viper studied everything and missed little. A low born girl, just as likely a bastard, it pulled at his heart.

Her question was smart and her took a moment to put his words in order. "Two reasons," his hands gestured, "no three. One. I have eight daughters myself, I would like to believe they couldn't be harmed but it they were I would pray to the gods for someone to help them. Two, I'm a Dornishmen. We don't hurt little girls in Dorne. Three, your a brave girl. Strong. Smart. It's what we respect. Our Queens are built on such women." There is open respect for said Queens in his voice, just as they'd been warmth when he spoke of hid daughters.

[aptoautmorior]

While geography hadn't been her strongest suit, she felt like she should know someplace that still had a monarchy, but she couldn't place just where Dorne might be. But she knew it was best to put that aside to puzzle over later, and it was clear that he meant what he said, which was why she just nodded once, quick and decisive, "Alright. I would appreciate the help."

There was a bare pause before she added: "My name is Hanna."

[dornesviper]

He would be shocked and a little insulted she didn't know Dorne but his pride could survive it. He'd teach her about it anyway, the land that fought dragons and won.

"Would you like a stick or piece if leather to bite on?" He didn't way her hurting her mouth.

"Prince Oberyn Martell, of Sunspear." A proper if shortened introduction.

[aptoautmorior]

The introduction really didn't clear things up any, but would be added to the 'worry about later' list, especially since he did, it seemed, know what he was doing.

Even so she shook her head at the question, "I'll be alright, though I will probably kick." Which was why when she stepped closer, she made sure to stand at an angle so that she wouldn't actually kick him for helping.

[dornesviper]

Oberyn himself nodded, moving to have proper leverage whine staying clear of her feet. But also in position to catch her should she loss her balance.

"Ready?" On her indication, he counted down from three, using the count down to get his hands in place, and pulled her shoulder out to align it then in -hard - to seat it. He wasn't sweating (yet) but it was a rough procedure. Efficient and sure, buy it took muscle and grit.

[aptoautmorior]

As predicted, she did kick, but only once her arm was back in place. She also yelped, just once, high and sharp, at the first tension, the sound followed by a hiss that was far more like an angry cat than a teenaged girl as the joint popped back into place.

She did pale further, for a moment, but with a slow-steady breath in through her nose and out through her mouth she stabilized again relatively quickly, though her voice was a little tight when she said: "Thank you."

[dornesviper]

His heart aches for the sound, knowing he's causing pain but also knowing it's going to help. It wasn't was he'd have preferred. Which would have been to give the girl milk of the poppy save once she was asleep to use his heel to float it back in place. But he could also tell she wouldn't allow it.

So he did it a rougher way, second best, and kept a hand on her until she was steady on her feet before letting go. "You're welcome. You're a tough girl. I'm going to assume your hunger too."

[aptoautmorior]

That probably hadn't been meant to confuse her again, but she definitely had to think about that one, too, finally nodding, because she couldn't remember the last time she'd eaten, presumably she'd had dinner before the noise and the fire and going overboard, but she didn't remember it, or breakfast beforehand for that matter.

Which was why, truthful as she'd been so far, she followed that nod with: "I don't remember the last time I ate."

[dornesviper]

Had he not found Obara....

Oberyn shook his head slightly and stepped round to offer her his right arm to protect her injured one. Little girls sometimes liked to play at being adults. "I know a comfortable inn nearby. Smells of horse and dirty leather but fried fish is some of the best you'll ever eat and the cod baked on salt is wonderful. Shall we?"

[aptoautmorior]

As she accepted that offered arm there was a smile, the first one yet, tone still matter-of-fact as it had been so far, though there was a thin undercurrent of amusement to it as she replied, "I don't mind the smell of horses, I've slept in lots of barns. And I like fish, even though I've been on the trawler for weeks I'm not tired of fish yet."

Mostly she figured he'd proven trustworthy so far, and she could continue to trust him for the time being.

[dornesviper]

He patted her hand as she took his arm and smiled, but kept his steps tight so she didn't have to take such large steps. "That's good, at least liking fish. Sleeping in barns isn't bad either but children should have to move around that much."

Oberyn was a lot of things - and he did fight very dirty - but he meant what he said about not hurting little girls.

[aptoautmorior]

"I grew up in the same place when I was a child, I've only begun moving recently, after my father died." She shrugged, mostly with the uninjured arm, "And sleeping in barns is better than sleeping in a derelict, or an off-season bear's burrow, or just on the ground under a sequoia, and I've slept all of those places, and lots of others that are worse than a barn."

A little shake of her head, "Besides, there's usually horses in barns, and I understand horses better than I understand people. They like me better, too."