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[Gullara]

[Recuperating]

Eliseo smiles encouragingly. "Oh yeah, definitely. That sounds really nice." With that he starts to guide the way to the living room.

They actually weren't far away. When they step in the room, Nadia is watching the entrance for them. "Hey, do you two need something?" She asks. Eliseo's mom is settled with a blanket over her lap, watching some show. Her ahnds are settled over her prodigious belly.

[Arkhosia]

[Recuperating]

Ana nods and gives Eliseo's hand an affectionate squeeze before they continue on. She greets Nadia with a shy little smile. "Um- hey Nadia? Would it be okay if I stayed over for a few nights? Just um, what with everything that's happened." If a space exists to talk in after this, Ana will add with a nervous fidget, "I-If Irena's okay with it too, I mean. I can like, help with Pip if you two want."

[Gullara]

[Recuperating]

Nadia spares a glance for Eliseo, but otherwise keeps her attention on Ana. "If that makes things easier for you, we have plenty of space for you. It wouldn't be a burden. Just make sure your parents know." Nadia replies graciously. "Irena will be perfectly fine with it. And you don't need to worry about earning your keep, either. If you want to help with Pip, we'd appreciate it, of course, but never feel obligated."

[Arkhosia]

[Recuperating]

"Y-yeah, I... think it would. Thank you." This time the smile Ana offers is a bit more genuine and heartfelt. "I'll talk to Kitty about it - uh, once she's done with Irena, I mean."

[Gullara]

[Recuperating]

"I'll make sure that she doesn't leave before talking to you." Nadia adds helpfully, since she expects the teens to vanish again. "Before you two run off, though, Eliseo can you grab me the cold pack out of the freezer? And a towel too?" She asks.

"Oh, yeah sure. One sec." Eliseo gives Ana a smile and a shrug then hurries off to do that small errand.

With him gone, Nadia says, "Do you mind if we chat for a minute, Ana?"

[Arkhosia]

[Recuperating]

"Um - y-yeah. I mean, sure." Oh dear. This isn't the part where Nadia reveals that she's secretly angry with her for everything that Eliseo got caught up in is it? No - she's just being jittery and awful again. Nadia just said she could stay and it wasn't a problem. She wouldn't do that if she didn't trust her anymore - right? Ana looks off to where Eliseo's disappeared from sight and fidgets with her promise ring. "I... didn't do something wrong, did I?"

[Gullara]

[Recuperating]

"Of course not honey. Honestly I'm a bit worried about you. Eliseo told me about what happened the other night, and I wanted to check in with you." Nadia begins, watching Ana with a careful eye.

[Arkhosia]

[Recuperating]

"...oh." Ana swallows nervously and takes a seat on the couch next to Nadia. She glances back to her briefly, then seems to avoid meeting her eye. "There's... nothing really to talk about. I'm- fine, really. Just, y'know. Feeling... lonely, I guess."

[Hraithre]

[Home (mansion?) of one Gaul DeGalles]

Sometime ago, Gaul DeGalles, living cartoon and CEO of HAMMERSPACE Co., chanced up on a peculiar horse prancing through the streets of Inside. He caught that horse, and it lead him to the scene of a catastrophe, that of a Reaper fighting a horrible evil spirit.

For saving the Reaper's life, Gaul bartered himself a weapon, a gun capable of protecting him from evil spirits, to be made and delivered in two weeks' time. Now the heavy sound of metallic hooves echoing through the streets precedes the arrival of the hell-horse, carrying with it a steel suitcase with an elaborate skull-themed cover.

The suitcase is, in truth, a suit of armor folded around itself. It is also alive, having been imbued with the spirit of Ser Persyval. Inside the suitcase, there is both a pistol and a dagger. There are no notes, but the method of delivery and the nature of decorations should leave no question as to who this all is from.

[Keeper]

Disasters

"All the more reason you shouldn't have left the apartment-" There's a moment of panic as Jaahlyn realizes that she had said exactly the wrong thing. "-but I understand. Sitting around when you can't use your hands is frustrating." Which was why she started to just try to eat everything when being a goat for far too long. It was not the best habit.

"But try to think back, how did you make Jay in the first place? Maybe we can reverse-engineer it somehow?"

Disasters

"Well, Shadows described how Mehet are. And what that guy was into. So we just kind of took that, and gave it wings, and went from there? Strong, curvy, the kind of person who likes competition and dudes and manual labor. It went by pretty quick to be honest."
It did take two iterations. But they really did get it all done in under an hour. She doesn't know how long these things normally take.

[Gold]

[Gaul DeGalles' Mansion]

Having heard the sound of the hooves coming towards his mansion, Gaul was peering out of one of the windows on the top floor, cupping his hands around his eyes like binoculars.

Now, Gaul appears in the mansion's front doorway, dressed in his usual outfit including his distinctive gold trousers, jacket and top hat. "Well, look who it is! One of the best things I ever rode," he calls excitedly, stepping off the front porch with open arms to greet the hellhorse.

Walking down the path towards the beast, Gaul spots the fancy suitcase it's towing. "Figured you weren't just here to see my face again," he quips as he moves to grab the object.

Provided there's no interruption or prevention, he'll tip his hat to the horse before retreating back to the porch and sitting upon the steps to crack the suitcase open. After having done so, he'll inspect both weapons thoroughly, though he seems to be more interested in the pistol than the dagger.

[Gullara]

[Recuperating]

Nadia nods. "I understand." She watches Ana carefully, noting her mood and demeanor. "You know that it's okay to not be fine after a situation like this, right? To experience something like that in your own home, it's violating. How do you go to sleep the next night without thinking it could happen again?" She pauses.

[Arkhosia]

[Recuperating]

"...yeah. Yeah, it's... I know." Ana struggles to a moment, wavering on what to say and whether she can force the words beyond her internal monologue. "It just... hurts when it keeps happening, y'know? Like all I'm good for is making people piece me back together."

After a pause, the foxgirl looks back to Nadia. She studies her face for a moment, as if cottoning on that there's something more personal behind Nadia asking that question than wanting to know an answer. She's pretty sure it's rhetorical, but manages to scrape up the strength to answer anyways. "I dunno. I still haven't been able to." It's hard to miss the shadows under her eyes.

[Hraithre]

[Gaul DeGalles' Mansion]

The horse nickers and turns so Gaul has easier time taking the suitcase from it. When the living cartoon retreats to the porch to open it and admire what's inside, the beast doesn't go anywhere. It stands there, looking at him with burning red eyes.

The pistol resembles a Glock 17, a fairly basic 9mm caliber self-loading service gun. But it's much heavier, being entirely made of steel alloys. The magazine apparently can hold 17 bullets, but none have been supplied with the gun.

[Gold]

[Gaul DeGalles' Mansion]

Gaul doesn't take notice of the horse's continued staring. Instead, he takes the gun in his hand, feeling its weight - "Heavy sort, isn't it?" - before clearing it and filling its magazine with regular 9mm bullets he procured from inside his jacket.

"Time to take this thing for a test run." Having loaded the weapon, Gaul spots a regular crow flying overhead, takes aim, and fires without any further hesitation.

[Gullara]

[Recuperating]

"...yeah. Yeah, it's... I know." Ana struggles to a moment, wavering on what to say and whether she can force the words beyond her internal monologue. "It just... hurts when it keeps happening, y'know? Like all I'm good for is making people piece me back together."

After a pause, the foxgirl looks back to Nadia. She studies her face for a moment, as if cottoning on that there's something more personal behind Nadia asking that question than wanting to know an answer. She's pretty sure it's rhetorical, but manages to scrape up the strength to answer anyways. "I dunno. I still haven't been able to." It's hard to miss the shadows under her eyes.

[Recuperating]

"It gets better. Things might never go totally back to normal, but you find a new normal that's comfortable in its own way." Nadia pauses for a moment, considering her next words, before she goes on. "When Eliseo was very young someone kidnapped him; right from under our noses. We got him back, of course, but it was hard to sleep after that. Every security system we have is because of that. Not to keep track of you kids." She manages a small smile at the joke. "Irena insisted on them; I never disagreed. It was one thing we did to cope. It was important that I wasn't alone with it. I could always talk to Irena and rely on her for support. There's no use trying to go it alone. The people that love you want to support you."

[Arkhosia]

[Recuperating]

"Wait - really? Gods, that's-" Ana looks at Nadia with newfound clarity. She had never thought something terrible like that could have ever happened to her boyfriend or his family. They had always seemed so... perfect, so comfortable. Nadia exuded ease, calm and control in contrast to Irena's messy energy and the constant bustle of her own chaotic home. To know that she'd gone through such a violating experience was as if the lenses between them had come into focus.

"You're right, I guess. I mean, you've... seen how my life has been these past few years. I don't know if I could've made it this far without you and Kitty and Eliseo." The kitsune sighs. "Until now, I've had a hard time feeling like anyone else could really ever understand me. Everything I've just went through. I mean - Eliseo was there but it wasn't his home, and Kitty didn't have the night I had before that, and none of them were the reason it even-" Ana squeezes the sides of her arms and takes a moment to stabilize herself. She tries to ease the mood with an unsteady laugh. "Sorry. Gosh. I really am just held together with duct tape lately now, aren't I?"

[Earl of Purple]

Gaul DeGalles' Mansion

The gun clicks, and doesn't fire. The firing pin didn't move forwards. The bird remains unshot. "I am not for shooting innocent wildlife. I would prefer it if you did not try. There are plenty of other targets you could choose if you wish to test my accuracy. I am Ser Persyval; this gun, and the rest of the equipment here, was made in part from my armour." Hopefully Gaul DeGalles will also introduce himself, and take the advice.

[Gullara]

[Recuperating]

Nadia puts her arm over Ana's shoulders and pulls the girl against her. "It's okay, you're allowed to struggle. If you want to talk to me, I'll listen, and others will too." Nadia purses her lips in thought, but then decides on something. "If you don't mind me being frank, you might want to consider getting professional help, too. A psychologist might be able to help you unpack this better than any well meaning loved ones."

[Arkhosia]

[Recuperating]

"Thanks. I... that means a lot." Ana lets out a sigh. "And I think you're right. I need to talk to my moms about that. I've been thinking about it, but. I wasn't really sure if I was ready for it just yet." There's a pause. She giggles. "Y'know, um - I was worried you guys would be angry at me. For, uh, everything. This wasn't what I expected."

[Gullara]

[Recuperating]

Nadia smiles. "Ana, if I'm ever mad at you it'll be for something you chose to do. And even then you can probably foist it off on Eliseo."

Speak of the devil, Eliseo enters the room right after this. He pauses in the entryway, looking slightly confused for a moment before he closes the distance. "Talking about me?" He glances between them.

[Arkhosia]

[Recuperating]

"Pffha!" Ana grins broadly at that, and her smile gets a little wider when Eliseo steps in. "Oh, just about how you're the perfect excuse if I ever get into trouble again," she teases, seemingly in better spirits.

[Gullara]

[Recuperating]

Eliseo smiles automatically when he sees Ana in a better mood. "Is that so? Sounds like a conspiracy to me." He accuses.

"Maybe if you were less of a troublemaker it wouldn't seem so plausible." Nadia retorts.

"This troublemaker just did you a favour, you know." He hands her the cold pack then for emphasis. Nadia just responds with a cheeky smile.

[Arkhosia]

[Recuperating]

"I'll argue for a commuted sentence." Ana smirks. She gets up and looks between him and Nadia. "Well, um - I think we were gonna watch something? I'll text mom about staying over."

[Gullara]

[Recuperating]

"That sounds fine. You two have fun." Nadia replies, with a parting smile for Ana in particular.

Eliseo leads the way out of the room, holding his tongue to ask one of the many question he has until after his mom is out of earshot.

[Shadowcaller]

Disasters

"Well, Shadows described how Mehet are. And what that guy was into. So we just kind of took that, and gave it wings, and went from there? Strong, curvy, the kind of person who likes competition and dudes and manual labor. It went by pretty quick to be honest."
It did take two iterations. But they really did get it all done in under an hour. She doesn't know how long these things normally take.

Disasters

Shadows? Right the angel. Good thing she knew about the Mehet herself or she wasn't sure if she had trusted that information.
"Okay... though manual labor to someone human involve the use of hands, right? Since I think that's the one thing I recall as most different between me as a satyr and me as a goat. The sensation of touching things with your fingers. So what if you try to invoke a powerful memory of something you've touched with your hands?" Jaahlyn suggests.

[Hraithre]

[Gaul DeGalles' Mansion]

The horse watches Gaul fail to shoot the bird and snorts in a manner that's best described as mocking. It then turns and begins trotting away, its work here done. If Gaul doesn't go out of his way to stop it, it will soon disappear behind a corner.

[Keeper]

Disasters

"Don't be silly, Jaahlyn. I don't have those." Jay blinks.
"Sorry, that was the mask. Uh. I can try that. I'll just have to think of something. Pretty big category of experiences. But I imagine you had a few things in mind."
Jaahlyn is a satyr. Jay loves her but she has a good idea where her mind goes when the innuendo is just begging to exist like that.

[Shadowcaller]

Disasters

"Erm... well, things like holding your parents hand or hugging them..." Jaahlyn starts. "But if you need something closer you can imagine holding my hand or feeling me up." A beat.

"...or feeling up your first girlfriend. Anything like that." She knew that Jim was shy talking about this sort of stuff but in this case it was important!

[Keeper]

Disasters

"Well, I guess I can try that next. I guess you'd have to close your eyes or something?"
The restriction of not being observed while doing this is only making this more annoying.
"And for the record I knew you'd say that." Once a satyr, always a satyr.