The Estate, Sidra, Glacia, Monday Evening (Fandom Time)

[trigons_child]

Raven missed the rooftop of the dorms back in Fandom, but she'd found an adequate replacement at Karla's estate. Wrapped in her cloak and staring up at the stars or out at the lights of the city, it almost felt like she was back to a time when life was simpler. Well, mostly.

She'd been on edge for weeks now, her emotional state veering between highs and lows. She hadn't felt this out of control in awhile, since the war had ended. She knew she should go see Dr. Lecter again, but while he wasn't afraid of bumping into her demon side, she worried what she might do. She'd used her gifts to kill again, had tapped deep into the powers her father had bestowed upon herself and her brothers. Except this time it hadn't made her sick to do it, and she had a feeling that was a bad sign.

She'd retreated to the roof to try to put a little distance between her and the emotions around her. Centering herself, however, wasn't happening. Brooding? Perhaps.


[Open for anyone in Glacia, texts, or phone calls!]

Comments

[furnaceface]

To say that Jono sent a lot of time just sitting quietly on the roof these days would be somewhat inaccurate. Jono spent most of his time in Glacia running around, working too bloody hard to be considered healthy, and that was how he wanted it. But when there was a lull, yes, he'd drag his sorry self up to the roof, and he'd even bring a kitten along with him when he did so.

Joni therapy was still the very best therapy.

He paused once he stepped outside, tilting his head a little at the familiar figure that was already sitting out here. And then he gave his shoulders a little shrug and walked over to stand nearby. He wouldn't presume it was okay to sit down next to her, not just yet, but he did want to at least make his presence known.

//Evening, luv,// he said, one hand reaching down to scratch Joni behind the ear as she peered out from his jacket pocket. He was wearing his old long coat, repurposed by one of Momoko's friends so that it would fit him again. He liked it more than he'd care to admit, if only because the cat could fit quite comfortably in its pockets. //Is this a private roof party, or would you mind some company tonight?//

[trigons_child]

Raven had felt him come up to the roof, but she hadn't looked up until he spoke. "Hello, Jono," she said, attempting -- and failing -- at a smile. "You are welcome to sit, but I do not know how good of company I am tonight."

[furnaceface]

//Well, then it's fortunate I didn't come up here looking for company,// Jono replied, taking note of that smile that fell more than a little short. He thought he knew that feeling, at least a little. He'd been fairly exhausted, lately. //Hold this for a moment?//

Yes, he was already playing dirty and offering her the cat. So that he wouldn't sit on her, of course.

[trigons_child]

Not fair, Jono. Not fair. Kitties had a way of ruining a good brood.

"Hello, Joni," Raven said fondly, her smile a little bit more genuine as she carefully took hold of her. She kissed the top of her head and scritched her beneath the chin. "How are you enjoying Sidra?"

[furnaceface]

//She's been getting along quite well around here,// Jono shared, sitting himself down beside Raven and letting her cuddle the cat for a while. //Plenty of drapery to climb and feet to trip up. It's as though they built the estate with her in mind, really.//

Joni was already working her way up to a mighty little purr. Raven was one of her favourites, after all.

//The staff would call it 'getting in the way,' but don't let that fool you. Joni knows it's really actually 'making friends.'//

[trigons_child]

"And she is so good at it, are you not?" Raven said. The cuddling was already making her heart feel a little bit lighter at least. Time with Philia did the same, but cats had the bonus of purring.

"How are you doing?" she asked, glancing over to Jono. Visiting various places around Glacia had been rough on them all.

[furnaceface]

//Tired,// Jono admitted with a shrug. //It's been a hectic week. Julian tapped me in a few days back to deal with some damage control on the security front, and then there was Yllestad directly afterwards.//

There was a twist of discomfort as he mentioned the first, and a general wash of exhaustion as he moved on to the second. He was about ready for the week to be through.

//Pretty sure I volunteered to go on some sort of rescue mission with an old student of mine, on top of that. I'll learn to pace myself one of these days. Eventually.//

[trigons_child]

The first made her flinch, and she tried to cover it by bending her head over Joni and cooing softly to her.

"Well, I hope that it goes well for you," she said. Telling him to be careful was unspoken, and, well, pointless, given the kind of rescue missions they'd both been on in the past.

"Perhaps after that you can take a vacation," she suggested. "You more than deserve one."

[furnaceface]

//Lord, I can't remember the last time I had a vacation that I actually treated as one,// Jono admitted, shaking his head a little, bemused. //But the timing's off, now. I'm running to the island with Karla on her teaching days, and we're going to need extra security around the Estate for a while. I'm pulling extra shifts until we can be absolutely certain the grounds are secure.//

Most of them were spent thumping his forehead against a wall while he did psionic patrols looking for people who didn't belong, granted, but spreading his consciousness that thin for so long at a time was exhausting. For the first time in a long while, he'd been sleeping like the dead when his shifts were through.

//You could use one yourself, though. You've seemed on eggshells since the carnival.//

[trigons_child]

"I probably will not be allowed to take a vacation for quite some time," Raven said. Due in no small part to that necessary extra security because of her mistake.

She let Joni wriggle free of her hands and sneak into the folds of her cloak. She had pockets in there, too, Jono, and she wasn't going to give Joni back now. So there.

She did nod absently at Jono's eggshell comment. "Yes, I have been on edge for several weeks," she said. "It is difficult for me to relax these days."

[furnaceface]

Jono was going to be needing that back when you were done with it, Raven.

//Want to talk about it, luv?//

Normally, he wouldn't have blinked at finding out that the people who tried to kill Karla were dead. But when he'd heard that it was Raven who had killed them...

Well, he'd been worried lately, himself. He remembered what she'd done to the man who had hurt him and started the witchblood fire, after all. He could just imagine how somebody who hurt Karla would suffer.

[trigons_child]

"I know you know about the attempt on Karla's life," Raven said softly. "Do you know the details? Do you know what I did?"

She'd been dreaming about it a lot since then. Sometimes she was horrified at what she'd done. Sometimes she took far too much enjoyment in it.

[furnaceface]

//I know there were no survivors,// Jono replied, eyes turned out toward the lights of the city. //Morton gave Julian and I the run-down when we finally made it back to Sidra. At best guess, I'd have to say you did almost the same as you did to that other one, that bastard who lit the fires.//

He was carefully withholding judgment at the moment. He hadn't been there, maybe he was mistaken. And besides, he wanted to hear it in Raven's own words.

[sharp_as_knives]

After the assassination attempt, Hannibal had half-expected Raven to call him to work through her guilt about killing again. That she hadn't could possibly be taken as a good sign...if he didn't know her rather better than that by now.

So, after giving her a bit of time, he was calling her. Like the good friend/therapist/encourager-to-homicide that he was.

[trigons_child]

BUT HANNIBAL WOULD BE SO PROUD OF HER.

Her phone buzzed in a pocket of her cloak, and she pulled it out to see who was calling. It was almost like Hannibal had read her mind. She took a breath to try to compose herself so she sounded normal before answering the phone. "Hello, Dr. Lecter."

[sharp_as_knives]

ONLY IF SHE GAVE UP THE GUILT.

"Hello, Raven." Hannibal smiled so it would come through in his voice. "How are you doing?"

[trigons_child]

"I have been better," Raven said vaguely. Hey, it wasn't a lie!

"It has been very...active here." For lack of a better word.

[sharp_as_knives]

"I heard about the attempt," Hannibal answered gravely. "How long has it been there?" Roughly double the time, he knew, but it never hurt to ask for specifics. "Has there been any progress made towards proving who was behind it?"

[trigons_child]

"It has been a month since the attempt," Raven said. A month since she'd killed several men. If he knew about the attempt, she wondered if he'd been told about that part.

"I do not know if anything new has been discovered about who was behind it, but I strongly suspect it was Karla's uncle."

[sharp_as_knives]

"As do I, although I know much less of Glacia's politics." Hannibal paused.

"Do you want to speak about it?" he asked calmly.

[trigons_child]

After a momentary awkward silence, Raven said, "I know that I should, but I have been trying very hard not to."

[sharp_as_knives]

"Why?" Hannibal asked. "Because speaking of it makes it more real? Or because you're afraid of being judged?"

[trigons_child]

"Both, I think," Raven said softly. "I want to forget what I did, but...I also do not regret it, either, and I think that is what frightens me the most."

[sharp_as_knives]

"Tell me about not doing it, then," Hannibal suggested. "What would have happened if you hadn't?"


[OOC: Bedtime! SP?]

[trigons_child]

Raven closed her eyes and tried to imagine it. "We were outnumbered, and injured," she said. "I had healed the worst of Karla's wounds, but she was not yet at full strength. I could have tried to pacify them, or contain them in my Soul-Self, but I did not know what Jewels they wore, and if but one managed to resist my powers...."

Then Karla would be dead.

[I must sleep, too. SP is love! :) ]