[Reinholdt's Office - Catlamity]
"I'm sure I'll think of something," Rein says, though he'd rather not be thinking at all. At least names are something simple and pure he can focus on when the darker thoughts seep in.
In the meantime, Rein produces and slides over a handkerchief towards Kitsuki. "Yeah... yeah. I mean... I'll start by selling all those gems I pulled off that guy's tomb from the temple. They're worth a rather significant amount. A warlord's fortune. I always did wonder why you didn't ask for a cut." Now he knows. Or remembers.
HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
► SHOW SPOILER
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Reinholdt's Office - Catlamity]
Kitsuki takes the handkerchief with a small thanks and wipes her eyes. "Oh... I never even thought about that. I'm sure that would help so much." Kitsuki smiles as a small wave of relief washes over her. "Thank you, Rein."
"And, if there's anything, anything I can do to help with Carlie, please let me know. I don't know what that could be, but I'm not forgetting that this is a burden on you too." She emphasizes.
Kitsuki takes the handkerchief with a small thanks and wipes her eyes. "Oh... I never even thought about that. I'm sure that would help so much." Kitsuki smiles as a small wave of relief washes over her. "Thank you, Rein."
"And, if there's anything, anything I can do to help with Carlie, please let me know. I don't know what that could be, but I'm not forgetting that this is a burden on you too." She emphasizes.
~Images by Soushiyo
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Reinholdt's Office - Catlamity]
Reinholdt runs his hand through his hair. "It will probably take a cleverer man than me to figure out what you could do too, but if I think of something I'll let you know. Well something other than talking to Obriane." And even that's a gamble that could actually make things worse.
"I'll be in touch in a couple of days to tell you breaking the news goes and I guess we'll just proceed from there."
Reinholdt runs his hand through his hair. "It will probably take a cleverer man than me to figure out what you could do too, but if I think of something I'll let you know. Well something other than talking to Obriane." And even that's a gamble that could actually make things worse.
"I'll be in touch in a couple of days to tell you breaking the news goes and I guess we'll just proceed from there."
► SHOW SPOILER
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Reinholdt's Office - Catlamity]
Kitsuki nods. "Okay. I'd better get going now too. I've got Ana waiting for me." She does one more check to make sure her eyes are dry and puts the handkerchief down on the desk. Then she pushes herself to her feet. No mean feat at this point. "I'll... talk to you soon, then."
Kitsuki nods. "Okay. I'd better get going now too. I've got Ana waiting for me." She does one more check to make sure her eyes are dry and puts the handkerchief down on the desk. Then she pushes herself to her feet. No mean feat at this point. "I'll... talk to you soon, then."
~Images by Soushiyo
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Reinholdt's Office - Catlamity]
"You can keep it if you want," Rein offers quietly. "Yeah, I'll be in touch." He gets the door for her, pressing a secret button on his desk that causes it to open by itself. It doesn't use it very often. A lot of people get startled when they knock on a door and the door just swings itself open. But at least it's helpful for obscenely pregnant foxgirls.
"You can keep it if you want," Rein offers quietly. "Yeah, I'll be in touch." He gets the door for her, pressing a secret button on his desk that causes it to open by itself. It doesn't use it very often. A lot of people get startled when they knock on a door and the door just swings itself open. But at least it's helpful for obscenely pregnant foxgirls.
► SHOW SPOILER
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Reinholdt's Office - Catlamity]
"Sure." Kitsuki palms the handkerchief. She lets out a little sigh, then gives Rein a wan smile. "See you." Then she turns and leaves.
"Sure." Kitsuki palms the handkerchief. She lets out a little sigh, then gives Rein a wan smile. "See you." Then she turns and leaves.
~Images by Soushiyo
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Quiet Dinner]
The two year old Manja has been hoisted upon Felandria or GLoG for the evening at Rein's insistence. It's a small affair, dinner for two at home, kept simple with the overtures of romantic.
So completely unlike Rein. Yeah, he'll make Harley's favorite meal from time to time, get chocolate covered strawberries for her, even suggest exciting sensuous nights alone. But his dates are usually grander in scale and preluded with an evening out on the town getting into mischief, mayhem, and fun. They're an adventure.
This though? This is quiet and homey. It's not bad by any means. Just so very... normal. Maybe Rein's just getting old, tired, and bored of adrenaline?
Or maybe it has something to do with how nervous he's seemed all night.
The two year old Manja has been hoisted upon Felandria or GLoG for the evening at Rein's insistence. It's a small affair, dinner for two at home, kept simple with the overtures of romantic.
So completely unlike Rein. Yeah, he'll make Harley's favorite meal from time to time, get chocolate covered strawberries for her, even suggest exciting sensuous nights alone. But his dates are usually grander in scale and preluded with an evening out on the town getting into mischief, mayhem, and fun. They're an adventure.
This though? This is quiet and homey. It's not bad by any means. Just so very... normal. Maybe Rein's just getting old, tired, and bored of adrenaline?
Or maybe it has something to do with how nervous he's seemed all night.
► SHOW SPOILER
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Thursday Violist
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Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Quiet Dinner]
Harley is pretty glad that it's just something simple and quiet.
Especially after the past several months. The shapeshifter had been very busy in Riverside, trying to manage the press and everything after the demon incidents that happened.
"...and then I asked them what led them to believe the chocolate was haunted," Harley says, shaking her head with an exasperated look on her face, "so they handed me some of it and fled the room. Can you believe it?"
Just a ponytail, long skirt, minimal make-up...
Pretty simple. Quiet. Nice, this time. Not something she has to put a lot of energy into, since she doesn't have that much energy left. Plus! No baby to occupy her mind.
Harley is pretty glad that it's just something simple and quiet.
Especially after the past several months. The shapeshifter had been very busy in Riverside, trying to manage the press and everything after the demon incidents that happened.
"...and then I asked them what led them to believe the chocolate was haunted," Harley says, shaking her head with an exasperated look on her face, "so they handed me some of it and fled the room. Can you believe it?"
Just a ponytail, long skirt, minimal make-up...
Pretty simple. Quiet. Nice, this time. Not something she has to put a lot of energy into, since she doesn't have that much energy left. Plus! No baby to occupy her mind.
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Quiet Dinner]
"No," Reinholdt says, slowly picking at his half-eaten food. "Well yes. If it's white chocolate. That will send anyone running." And it's been scientifically proven that white chocolate is 90% more likely to be haunted.
Rein nibbles his lip. He knows he's going to have to say those dreaded words eventually. But... it's super rude to interrupt someone's story, right? Right. "So what did you do?"
"No," Reinholdt says, slowly picking at his half-eaten food. "Well yes. If it's white chocolate. That will send anyone running." And it's been scientifically proven that white chocolate is 90% more likely to be haunted.
Rein nibbles his lip. He knows he's going to have to say those dreaded words eventually. But... it's super rude to interrupt someone's story, right? Right. "So what did you do?"
► SHOW SPOILER
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
Fel considers the question momentarily.Beans wrote: ↑Aug 24, 2022 12:45 pm [Hallways]
Staphis smiles wryly. "Depending on your interest in curricular schema, it may be frightfully dull---but I'll hardly refuse a third pair of hands on the project. At some point I'll want to do a detailed interview on how you learned the sorcerous arts, but not right away... anything else I need to get settled?"
Well, there’s the matter of your gift bag, we shall grab that for you shortly, but we should continue the tour so you’re oriented with the facility and you don’t get lost.
Plus we might meet some of your new colleagues along the way.
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Thursday Violist
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Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Quiet Dinner]
Harley shakes her head, since she has a food in her mouth and she needs to swallow first
"Milk chocolate. With walnuts." Definitely not white chocolate, which greatly reduces its chance of being haunted.
She continues the story. "No ghosts immediately showed up, so after that I chased one of them down. I get that I probably should have just asked more questions, but I broke off a piece of the chocolate and stuck it in his mouth. Honestly? Just the thought that the chocolate might be sentient gave me flashbacks and I didn't want to ruin chocolate for myself."
Harley gives a short laugh.
"Turns out the chocolate was haunted, after all. And oh, boy, my ribs were very sore after that."
Harley shakes her head, since she has a food in her mouth and she needs to swallow first
"Milk chocolate. With walnuts." Definitely not white chocolate, which greatly reduces its chance of being haunted.
She continues the story. "No ghosts immediately showed up, so after that I chased one of them down. I get that I probably should have just asked more questions, but I broke off a piece of the chocolate and stuck it in his mouth. Honestly? Just the thought that the chocolate might be sentient gave me flashbacks and I didn't want to ruin chocolate for myself."
Harley gives a short laugh.
"Turns out the chocolate was haunted, after all. And oh, boy, my ribs were very sore after that."
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Quiet Dinner]
That's a good reason to not want to test to see if chocolate is haunted. It would quickly ruin a lot of potential sweets in the future. Good for the teeth though.
"Hah. Serves em right. That's funny. Ah-hah... and speaking of funny, we should talk." Reinholdt says, putting his fork down.
"Do you remember how I've been having those nightmares that have made it hard to sleep?" Reinholdt asks. If he chews his lip any harder, it's going to bleed.
That's a good reason to not want to test to see if chocolate is haunted. It would quickly ruin a lot of potential sweets in the future. Good for the teeth though.
"Hah. Serves em right. That's funny. Ah-hah... and speaking of funny, we should talk." Reinholdt says, putting his fork down.
"Do you remember how I've been having those nightmares that have made it hard to sleep?" Reinholdt asks. If he chews his lip any harder, it's going to bleed.
► SHOW SPOILER
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Beans
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Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Hallways / Tour]
Staphis nods as they continue. "I certainly shan't decline a gift bag. And it'd be a boon to get to know some of the people I'll be working alongside; no academic should be an island if they can help it. Some of the best advances are cross-pollinated between differing fields."Felandria wrote: ↑Sep 06, 2022 6:31 am Fel considers the question momentarily.
Well, there’s the matter of your gift bag, we shall grab that for you shortly, but we should continue the tour so you’re oriented with the facility and you don’t get lost.
Plus we might meet some of your new colleagues along the way.
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Thursday Violist
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Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Quiet Dinner]
And to think, if she had eaten it then, the chocolate strawberries here would be ruined, which would ruin this dinner.
And Harley would feel awful if she ruined this date just because of a fear of haunted chocolate.
"Oh? Okay." She nods. "I remember that."
"You ever figure that out?" Harley asks, not chewing her lip at all. "Or you think they might be magical in origin?" If he's bringing that up, it either means he finally solved the issue and no longer has the nighmares, or he decided that she's the best person to help with them.
And to think, if she had eaten it then, the chocolate strawberries here would be ruined, which would ruin this dinner.
And Harley would feel awful if she ruined this date just because of a fear of haunted chocolate.
"Oh? Okay." She nods. "I remember that."
"You ever figure that out?" Harley asks, not chewing her lip at all. "Or you think they might be magical in origin?" If he's bringing that up, it either means he finally solved the issue and no longer has the nighmares, or he decided that she's the best person to help with them.
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Quiet Dinner]
And nothing could ruin this dinner.
"Well... I may have exaggerated the nightmare aspect really. They're more like... wet dreams. Extremely wet dreams. A deluge even." Much like the amount of sweat that's on Rein's face right now.
"Only I've very recently discovered they aren't simply recurring dreams. They're repressed memories. From the time I went with Kitsuki and Obriane to that cursed spirit temple." More than half a year ago now.
"And Kitsuki's pregnant." Reinholdt's stomach ties itself into knots as he goes silent, getting most all the things out there at once instead of feeding the news piecemeal to Harley with the 'it gets worse' mentality.
And nothing could ruin this dinner.
"Well... I may have exaggerated the nightmare aspect really. They're more like... wet dreams. Extremely wet dreams. A deluge even." Much like the amount of sweat that's on Rein's face right now.
"Only I've very recently discovered they aren't simply recurring dreams. They're repressed memories. From the time I went with Kitsuki and Obriane to that cursed spirit temple." More than half a year ago now.
"And Kitsuki's pregnant." Reinholdt's stomach ties itself into knots as he goes silent, getting most all the things out there at once instead of feeding the news piecemeal to Harley with the 'it gets worse' mentality.
► SHOW SPOILER
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Thursday Violist
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Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Quiet Dinner]
As Reinholdt continues speaking and explaining, Harley reacts in a continuously-progressing manner.
Okay, not nightmares but a different type of dream. That's normal. She sets down her silverware and everything so that she can listen more intently. See where he's going with this. "Okay..."
Very recently? How recently, exactly? Harley puts her elbow on the table, her chin on her palm, and starts tapping her cheek with a finger. "Huh."
How long ago was that? she wonders. Was it before they met...? No, wait, she remembers. That was (relatively) recently.
Maybe it was a clone of his? Harley justifies, reminding herself that she promised she would do her best to not get jealous or mad at anything any of his clones would do, even though it's not easy to stop how she feels. Her finger starts tapping her cheek faster.
...
No, he would've immediately said if it were a clone.
"pregnant"
Harley's finger stops.
Not because the nervous tapping energy stopped, but rather because of wincing in pain: her finger turned into a sharp claw and pierced her cheek.
She doesn't say anything, forgetting to even breathe until she feels the blood drip to her chest.
In a measured tone, she says, "I-I see."
She reaches to the table, grabs a napkin, and takes a deep, slow breath.
And then wipes at the blood, moving upwards.
Holding the napkin to her cheek (to stem the flow until she has both time and mental willpower to close it), Harley thinks about how she should respond.
"...and? Is that all?" Or is there more he needs to say?
She swaps which hand is holding her cheek and puts her finger into her mouth to buy more time before responding. She can't speak while licking blood off her finger, obviously!
And if there's any awkward silence, Harley's afraid that she would be the first one to crack and speak and maybe say something she would immediately regret.
Great plan, she thinks, complimenting herself. Now he has no choice but to continue speaking and explaining himself, since she obviously can't speak right now.
As Reinholdt continues speaking and explaining, Harley reacts in a continuously-progressing manner.
Okay, not nightmares but a different type of dream. That's normal. She sets down her silverware and everything so that she can listen more intently. See where he's going with this. "Okay..."
Very recently? How recently, exactly? Harley puts her elbow on the table, her chin on her palm, and starts tapping her cheek with a finger. "Huh."
How long ago was that? she wonders. Was it before they met...? No, wait, she remembers. That was (relatively) recently.
Maybe it was a clone of his? Harley justifies, reminding herself that she promised she would do her best to not get jealous or mad at anything any of his clones would do, even though it's not easy to stop how she feels. Her finger starts tapping her cheek faster.
...
No, he would've immediately said if it were a clone.
"pregnant"
Harley's finger stops.
Not because the nervous tapping energy stopped, but rather because of wincing in pain: her finger turned into a sharp claw and pierced her cheek.
She doesn't say anything, forgetting to even breathe until she feels the blood drip to her chest.
In a measured tone, she says, "I-I see."
She reaches to the table, grabs a napkin, and takes a deep, slow breath.
And then wipes at the blood, moving upwards.
Holding the napkin to her cheek (to stem the flow until she has both time and mental willpower to close it), Harley thinks about how she should respond.
"...and? Is that all?" Or is there more he needs to say?
She swaps which hand is holding her cheek and puts her finger into her mouth to buy more time before responding. She can't speak while licking blood off her finger, obviously!
And if there's any awkward silence, Harley's afraid that she would be the first one to crack and speak and maybe say something she would immediately regret.
Great plan, she thinks, complimenting herself. Now he has no choice but to continue speaking and explaining himself, since she obviously can't speak right now.
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Quiet Dinner]
That's good. This is good. Harley's putting the knifes down. It's a good sign. No knives mean- oh.
Right.
Her entire body could be knives. It's easy to forget that Harley is as dangerous unarmed as Rein is. He waits tensely for her response, gripping the table slightly, but it doesn't come. Not really. Instead, Harley's just going to hand Rein more and more yarn with which to hang himself. Any time the awkward silence even threatens to take hold, Rein's mouth opens to dispel it.
"Well, that's, umm, the gist of it," Reinholdt starts before changing his mind. "Well there was this bad mask that got away, but it's what Obriane wanted so..."
Reinholdt squirms in his seat. "And Obriane is... well she's just... so much more than she is, you know? The Obriane within her is... radiant? Like there's glorious and then there's... incandescent." There's a hint of a reverent smile on his lips talking about Otherbriane. It's entirely out of place, but it also fades as he rubs the back of his head in frustration. "There aren't really proper words to properly express it. I'm still not entirely sure myself. But she's impossible to say no to and umm..."
Boy it's hot in here. Rein rubs his forehead with his sleeve. "I sh-should have anyways. Oh Harley, I'm so so sorry."
That's good. This is good. Harley's putting the knifes down. It's a good sign. No knives mean- oh.
Right.
Her entire body could be knives. It's easy to forget that Harley is as dangerous unarmed as Rein is. He waits tensely for her response, gripping the table slightly, but it doesn't come. Not really. Instead, Harley's just going to hand Rein more and more yarn with which to hang himself. Any time the awkward silence even threatens to take hold, Rein's mouth opens to dispel it.
"Well, that's, umm, the gist of it," Reinholdt starts before changing his mind. "Well there was this bad mask that got away, but it's what Obriane wanted so..."
Reinholdt squirms in his seat. "And Obriane is... well she's just... so much more than she is, you know? The Obriane within her is... radiant? Like there's glorious and then there's... incandescent." There's a hint of a reverent smile on his lips talking about Otherbriane. It's entirely out of place, but it also fades as he rubs the back of his head in frustration. "There aren't really proper words to properly express it. I'm still not entirely sure myself. But she's impossible to say no to and umm..."
Boy it's hot in here. Rein rubs his forehead with his sleeve. "I sh-should have anyways. Oh Harley, I'm so so sorry."
► SHOW SPOILER
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
Precisely, when people with different skill sets work together on a common goal, anything is possible!Beans wrote: ↑Sep 07, 2022 1:35 pm [Hallways / Tour]
Staphis nods as they continue. "I certainly shan't decline a gift bag. And it'd be a boon to get to know some of the people I'll be working alongside; no academic should be an island if they can help it. Some of the best advances are cross-pollinated between differing fields."
Now, onward to the labs!
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Beans
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Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Tour]
"I'll make sure to advertise my availability---much as I'm here to carry out my own research, being an execuloth does make me quite good at managing and organizing others' output."
Staphis follows along to the labs; once there, she's soon able to find the sort of workspace she needs.
"I'll make sure to advertise my availability---much as I'm here to carry out my own research, being an execuloth does make me quite good at managing and organizing others' output."
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Thursday Violist
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Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Quiet Dinner]
Harley removes her sharp finger from her mouth and sets it on the table.
"So you're saying Obriane seduced you, and it's all her fault, and you had no choice but to go along?" she says in a tone more accusatory than she had intended.
No, that's not the way she wanted to phrase it, and that's not the tone she wanted to use.
Harley balls her fist and pricks herself at the base of her thumb, to ground herself again.
She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. In, out.
Should she just get mad right now? Flip the table? Maybe yell a little, get everything out now, and then make up later?
Or would it be better to just leave, get some distance and air, and then revisit the conversation after she's been able to think about it?
Harley stands up and relaxes her fist.
Was it partially my fault? she wonders. Is she not good enough? Should she have done something different?
Harley does her best to hold back tears, because she definitely doesn't want to show any weakness right. now. Especially not right now.
So she moves behind her chair, places her free hand on the back of the chair, and looks down at the chair seat.
"So what do you want to do now? Or, where should we go from here? Do we need to rethink or redefine our relationship? Am I -"
Harley stops herself.
She pricks her thumb again, this time higher, near the fingernail.
She's just hoping he'll stop her, and say something that'll solve everything, like 'haha just kidding it's just a joke' or 'don't worry everything's fine' or 'i love you' or 'i hate you and you're an awful person and i never want to see you again and i'm going to elope with Obriane right now' or...
...
She should just shut up and let him talk. "So, you've had, what, six months to think about this?" As Harley tries to measure her tone again so it doesn't slip back into accusatory, she adds, "Obviously I'm not exactly of sober mind right now..." She swallows. "So...where do you see this going? What have you decided since then?"
Harley removes her sharp finger from her mouth and sets it on the table.
"So you're saying Obriane seduced you, and it's all her fault, and you had no choice but to go along?" she says in a tone more accusatory than she had intended.
No, that's not the way she wanted to phrase it, and that's not the tone she wanted to use.
Harley balls her fist and pricks herself at the base of her thumb, to ground herself again.
She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. In, out.
Should she just get mad right now? Flip the table? Maybe yell a little, get everything out now, and then make up later?
Or would it be better to just leave, get some distance and air, and then revisit the conversation after she's been able to think about it?
Harley stands up and relaxes her fist.
Was it partially my fault? she wonders. Is she not good enough? Should she have done something different?
Harley does her best to hold back tears, because she definitely doesn't want to show any weakness right. now. Especially not right now.
So she moves behind her chair, places her free hand on the back of the chair, and looks down at the chair seat.
"So what do you want to do now? Or, where should we go from here? Do we need to rethink or redefine our relationship? Am I -"
Harley stops herself.
She pricks her thumb again, this time higher, near the fingernail.
She's just hoping he'll stop her, and say something that'll solve everything, like 'haha just kidding it's just a joke' or 'don't worry everything's fine' or 'i love you' or 'i hate you and you're an awful person and i never want to see you again and i'm going to elope with Obriane right now' or...
...
She should just shut up and let him talk. "So, you've had, what, six months to think about this?" As Harley tries to measure her tone again so it doesn't slip back into accusatory, she adds, "Obviously I'm not exactly of sober mind right now..." She swallows. "So...where do you see this going? What have you decided since then?"
Last edited by Thursday Violist on Sep 16, 2022 2:39 am, edited 1 time in total.
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Quiet Dinner]
"No no, there's this other Obriane and she suggested... what I mean is... umm... it's complicated?" Reinholdt's tripping over his own words and his leg is nervously bouncing in place. His chest felt really tight right now. Harley was clearly trying to hold herself back from aggressively accusing and screaming at him and he kind of wished she just would. Tear him apart verbally, then physically. Anything to make him stop feeling like the worst person in the world.
Reinholdt shakes his head as Harley asks if he wants to redefine their relationship. "No... I, no I don't want any of that. I-If you do... I understand. But... I don't want to stop being with you. And-and I'll do anything to make it right. Whatever it takes," Reinholdt insists, making exceedingly dangerous promises.
Still he averts his eyes. "No... Yes... sort of. I... didn't think this had happened at all until yesterday. I thought it had all been a dream... I just... I don't know why. I insisted to Kitty that Obriane sit down and talk to us about it. That's... about all I've figured out." Harley must be exceedingly eager to sit down and talk with Obriane and Kitty right now. "I... I didn't want to make any decisions without your input. A-all I know for sure is that they're keeping the kids." Huh. That's plural.
"No no, there's this other Obriane and she suggested... what I mean is... umm... it's complicated?" Reinholdt's tripping over his own words and his leg is nervously bouncing in place. His chest felt really tight right now. Harley was clearly trying to hold herself back from aggressively accusing and screaming at him and he kind of wished she just would. Tear him apart verbally, then physically. Anything to make him stop feeling like the worst person in the world.
Reinholdt shakes his head as Harley asks if he wants to redefine their relationship. "No... I, no I don't want any of that. I-If you do... I understand. But... I don't want to stop being with you. And-and I'll do anything to make it right. Whatever it takes," Reinholdt insists, making exceedingly dangerous promises.
Still he averts his eyes. "No... Yes... sort of. I... didn't think this had happened at all until yesterday. I thought it had all been a dream... I just... I don't know why. I insisted to Kitty that Obriane sit down and talk to us about it. That's... about all I've figured out." Harley must be exceedingly eager to sit down and talk with Obriane and Kitty right now. "I... I didn't want to make any decisions without your input. A-all I know for sure is that they're keeping the kids." Huh. That's plural.
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Thursday Violist
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Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Quiet Dinner]
Oh, so there's another Obriane. This just...Harley closes her eyes. This part definitely needs an explanation. And, like, a good explanation. Not one that's getting tripped over itself.
She just listens to him and his extremely dangerous promises.
"Oh." Only yesterday.
That...
Well, admittedly, compared to thinking he was completely aware but this whole time was just pretending it was only a dream for several months, being told literally the day after is something different.
True or not, that made the devil on her shoulder lose a lot of steam.
Harley stands up and paces around a little.
And since she's finally had the mental acuity to close the wound on her cheek, she finally moves the down.
Gesturing at her face and chest, she says, "Excuse me, need to go clean up. Be back in a few minutes." She turns around to leave the room, to find a bathroom. Not because she needs to clean up, but because she wants to think.
Assuming Reinholdt doesn't stop Harley from leaving, she'll spend most of the next several minutes staring at herself in a mirror and splashing herself with water and thinking about, well, a lot of things. Mostly negative things about herself while her reflection insults her, but not just that. She's actually a little productive and thinks about the matter at hand.
And then, returns with a wetter face and no make-up and the only sign that her finger basically turned into a knife earlier is a little blood on her top.
She moves to sit back down again at the chair. Clears her throat, and intends to get through all the productive things she's thought about while staring in the mirror. And she looks down at the table. "Thanks for telling me. It's good that they're keeping them. And...thanks for insisting she talks with us. Just..." The likely-still-distraught woman runs her hand back to make sure her ponytail hasn't come loose, and she looks up. "...I don't want to be a mess when that happens, so let's make sure we make up and sort things out before then."
Oh, so there's another Obriane. This just...Harley closes her eyes. This part definitely needs an explanation. And, like, a good explanation. Not one that's getting tripped over itself.
She just listens to him and his extremely dangerous promises.
"Oh." Only yesterday.
That...
Well, admittedly, compared to thinking he was completely aware but this whole time was just pretending it was only a dream for several months, being told literally the day after is something different.
True or not, that made the devil on her shoulder lose a lot of steam.
Harley stands up and paces around a little.
And since she's finally had the mental acuity to close the wound on her cheek, she finally moves the down.
Gesturing at her face and chest, she says, "Excuse me, need to go clean up. Be back in a few minutes." She turns around to leave the room, to find a bathroom. Not because she needs to clean up, but because she wants to think.
Assuming Reinholdt doesn't stop Harley from leaving, she'll spend most of the next several minutes staring at herself in a mirror and splashing herself with water and thinking about, well, a lot of things. Mostly negative things about herself while her reflection insults her, but not just that. She's actually a little productive and thinks about the matter at hand.
And then, returns with a wetter face and no make-up and the only sign that her finger basically turned into a knife earlier is a little blood on her top.
She moves to sit back down again at the chair. Clears her throat, and intends to get through all the productive things she's thought about while staring in the mirror. And she looks down at the table. "Thanks for telling me. It's good that they're keeping them. And...thanks for insisting she talks with us. Just..." The likely-still-distraught woman runs her hand back to make sure her ponytail hasn't come loose, and she looks up. "...I don't want to be a mess when that happens, so let's make sure we make up and sort things out before then."
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Quiet Dinner]
"Yeah. Yeah, take all the time you need." Reinholdt slumps in his chair after Harley steps out. He can't say this is going horribly, what with the lack of screaming and crying, but it certainly didn't feel that way. He needed to be clearer, more earnest. It didn't help he wasn't fully clear on things himself. How much of what happened was because of his buried lust for Kitsuki and how much was it just raw awe of seeing such a divine Obriane? Not that either was excusable. Ugh. He had one job, one single request from Harley in all of their relationship, and he couldn't even handle that. She deserved so much better than him.
Rein doesn't even remember when he buried his face in his hands, but looks up from them as Harley returns, awkwardly shifting to something resembling a respectable pose as he listens attentively to her words. For the first time since Kitty's visit, a glimmer of hope enters his eyes. She... wanted to work things out. Reinholdt could feel a pressure threaten to break and he does his best, most powerful blinking he's ever done to keep the tears at bay, though he does have to rub his eyes with the back of his hand.
"A-absolutely, yeah. We don't... we don't have to rush anything." Well give or take the kids that might be born soon and force their hands. "Whatever you need, whenever you need it, however you need it, it's yours. Like... like..." Reinholdt struggles to think of anything to might actually even amount to some measure of compensation. "Like... I know Riverside's been really tough for you lately. Do you want me to rig the election? I'll rig the election for you."
"Yeah. Yeah, take all the time you need." Reinholdt slumps in his chair after Harley steps out. He can't say this is going horribly, what with the lack of screaming and crying, but it certainly didn't feel that way. He needed to be clearer, more earnest. It didn't help he wasn't fully clear on things himself. How much of what happened was because of his buried lust for Kitsuki and how much was it just raw awe of seeing such a divine Obriane? Not that either was excusable. Ugh. He had one job, one single request from Harley in all of their relationship, and he couldn't even handle that. She deserved so much better than him.
Rein doesn't even remember when he buried his face in his hands, but looks up from them as Harley returns, awkwardly shifting to something resembling a respectable pose as he listens attentively to her words. For the first time since Kitty's visit, a glimmer of hope enters his eyes. She... wanted to work things out. Reinholdt could feel a pressure threaten to break and he does his best, most powerful blinking he's ever done to keep the tears at bay, though he does have to rub his eyes with the back of his hand.
"A-absolutely, yeah. We don't... we don't have to rush anything." Well give or take the kids that might be born soon and force their hands. "Whatever you need, whenever you need it, however you need it, it's yours. Like... like..." Reinholdt struggles to think of anything to might actually even amount to some measure of compensation. "Like... I know Riverside's been really tough for you lately. Do you want me to rig the election? I'll rig the election for you."
► SHOW SPOILER
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
That’s exactly the kind of team spirit I love to hear.Beans wrote: ↑Sep 13, 2022 3:00 pm [Tour]
Staphis follows along to the labs; once there, she's soon able to find the sort of workspace she needs.
"I'll make sure to advertise my availability---much as I'm here to carry out my own research, being an execuloth does make me quite good at managing and organizing others' output."
Just then, a small helper drone will arrive carrying a gift bag, it deposits it onto Fel’s hand.
Ah, here we go!
Your welcome bag, my dear.
Fel hands the bag to Staphis.
Inside, among other things, she will find a keycard granting access to various sections of the facility, a cool lanyard to hang it from, a tablet containing, in addition to the usual programs and games, a detailed map of the facility that will guide her around so she doesn’t get lost.
Also, an insulated travel mug, pen light, plushies of Reginald, Rein and Fel, a gift card to the Olympian, some movie tickets, a multi tool, and, of course, a greeting card welcoming her to HALO, that when opened, plays a jaunty welcome tune.
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Thursday Violist
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Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Quiet Dinner]
Reinholdt should've taken' the opportunity to splash water on his face, too. That way he wouldn't have to blink so much, and he could just blame the tap water.
"To be clear, I am mad at you," Harley says. "It's just...not nearly as much as I thought I would be. She pauses, to gather a thought, and picks up a silverware. "Instead, it's mostly just a lot of self-loathing and uncertainty. I'll probably feel better after I -" go fight and maybe kill a bunch of monsters and whatever.
She puts down the silverware, and luckily realizes there's a really easy tangent that Rein gave her! Should've just gone straight after the tangent instead.
"Actually, I haven't announced this in case my secretary wants to pretend to be me and run for office - she's good enough at it, that's for sure - but I'm considering not running again. It feels like things just keep on getting busier and busier and I'll eventually have to choose between the office and Manja, so I want to head that off. Besides, all the anti-demon furor is reminding me of when I first went in Riverside, when...I think it was that guy from Northside? Or maybe it was a cooperative deal between the different governments, where they set up some anti-demon magic thing that ended up affecting way too many people including me. Besides."
Harley sighs, and lifts up a silverware again.
"I've been trying to lower the tensions there, but something in the air really reminds me of my teenage years, and that's just not really something I want to live through again." She tries putting her thoughts into words in a succinct way: "Being a mother's so much more fulfilling than a martyr."
Reinholdt should've taken' the opportunity to splash water on his face, too. That way he wouldn't have to blink so much, and he could just blame the tap water.
"To be clear, I am mad at you," Harley says. "It's just...not nearly as much as I thought I would be. She pauses, to gather a thought, and picks up a silverware. "Instead, it's mostly just a lot of self-loathing and uncertainty. I'll probably feel better after I -" go fight and maybe kill a bunch of monsters and whatever.
She puts down the silverware, and luckily realizes there's a really easy tangent that Rein gave her! Should've just gone straight after the tangent instead.
"Actually, I haven't announced this in case my secretary wants to pretend to be me and run for office - she's good enough at it, that's for sure - but I'm considering not running again. It feels like things just keep on getting busier and busier and I'll eventually have to choose between the office and Manja, so I want to head that off. Besides, all the anti-demon furor is reminding me of when I first went in Riverside, when...I think it was that guy from Northside? Or maybe it was a cooperative deal between the different governments, where they set up some anti-demon magic thing that ended up affecting way too many people including me. Besides."
Harley sighs, and lifts up a silverware again.
"I've been trying to lower the tensions there, but something in the air really reminds me of my teenage years, and that's just not really something I want to live through again." She tries putting her thoughts into words in a succinct way: "Being a mother's so much more fulfilling than a martyr."
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Quiet Dinner]
Reinholdt almost immediately reaches across the table to try and take Harley's hand. It's a little sudden, but he wants her attention as he stares into her eyes. "It's not you Harley. It's. Not. You. If you have to choose between yourself and me- Hate me. Please," Reinholdt begs of her. More than anything, he couldn't bear the idea of Harley beating herself up over his idiocy and weakness.
Rein won't hold her hand for longer than that if he did get ahold of it. She's still rightly mad at him after all. He is kinda glad that she didn't ask him to prove his feelings for her by rigging the election though. If he got caught, it would be the end of his career at HALO and the loss of all goodwill he's managed to accrue over these last years. He'd be back to THAT CAT in the world's mind and he's not sure he can handle that. Well, unless Harley had wanted it.
"I can't say I remember that magic, though if it was the early Riverside years, I avoided the place pretty distinctly on account of being wanted for offing the mob mayor of the place and splitting it into the mess it is today. Or I just didn't notice cause it didn't affect me. It does sound more and more dangerous by the day though, so I won't pretend it doesn't worry me when you go in to work." Reinholdt gives a slight smile as Harley concludes her thoughts on motherhood extremely well. "Maybe there's some way I can help with your office work to lighten the load for you and give you more time with Manja?" Oh no. If Rein interns in the office, he'll have to fetch everyone's coffee.
Reinholdt almost immediately reaches across the table to try and take Harley's hand. It's a little sudden, but he wants her attention as he stares into her eyes. "It's not you Harley. It's. Not. You. If you have to choose between yourself and me- Hate me. Please," Reinholdt begs of her. More than anything, he couldn't bear the idea of Harley beating herself up over his idiocy and weakness.
Rein won't hold her hand for longer than that if he did get ahold of it. She's still rightly mad at him after all. He is kinda glad that she didn't ask him to prove his feelings for her by rigging the election though. If he got caught, it would be the end of his career at HALO and the loss of all goodwill he's managed to accrue over these last years. He'd be back to THAT CAT in the world's mind and he's not sure he can handle that. Well, unless Harley had wanted it.
"I can't say I remember that magic, though if it was the early Riverside years, I avoided the place pretty distinctly on account of being wanted for offing the mob mayor of the place and splitting it into the mess it is today. Or I just didn't notice cause it didn't affect me. It does sound more and more dangerous by the day though, so I won't pretend it doesn't worry me when you go in to work." Reinholdt gives a slight smile as Harley concludes her thoughts on motherhood extremely well. "Maybe there's some way I can help with your office work to lighten the load for you and give you more time with Manja?" Oh no. If Rein interns in the office, he'll have to fetch everyone's coffee.
► SHOW SPOILER
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Thursday Violist
- Coffin-Bound Aged Poster
- Posts: 660
- Joined: Aug 17, 2022 5:44 pm
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Quiet Dinner]
Harley's hand gets snatched!
...
Sadly, Harley's not an emotionmancer. She just can't control that sort of thing. "If I could control that, I would."
Besides,
rigging an election wouldn't prove any kind of feelings. What would prove his feelings? Really, the only thing is trying to work things out.
Probably.
This is a new experience for Harley, she's not exactly a pro at knowing how to deal with this, or where to go next.
"Most people didn't know about it," Harley comments, "Only reason I knew about it was because it affected me."
She starts cutting a food on the plate.
And, she thinks: is there anything that he could do with office work? Her secretary already does so much.
"If I can think of anything, I'll ask you. Probably the only thing to do would probably to look through new and proposed laws and try to find loopholes or corruption or something."
Harley's hand gets snatched!
...
Sadly, Harley's not an emotionmancer. She just can't control that sort of thing. "If I could control that, I would."
Besides,
rigging an election wouldn't prove any kind of feelings. What would prove his feelings? Really, the only thing is trying to work things out.
Probably.
This is a new experience for Harley, she's not exactly a pro at knowing how to deal with this, or where to go next.
"Most people didn't know about it," Harley comments, "Only reason I knew about it was because it affected me."
She starts cutting a food on the plate.
And, she thinks: is there anything that he could do with office work? Her secretary already does so much.
"If I can think of anything, I'll ask you. Probably the only thing to do would probably to look through new and proposed laws and try to find loopholes or corruption or something."
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Quiet Dinner]
Reinholdt frowns a little. Well... he'll just have to find and recruit an emotionmancer for HALO then. It seems they certainly could use one. But he doesn't push the subject any more than he already has, just settling for the deep pang of regret in his chest instead.
"Yeah... yeah I could do that. Though I admit I know more about breaking laws than abusing them." Reinholdt ponders. He could... probably loop Magtok into doing his homework for him? He seems like the kind of guy who knows all about corruption and loopholes. And Magtok certainly doesn't need to know that this work is vital for Rein and Harley's continued relationship.
...
Reinholdt picks back up his fork and slowly resumes eating, as if it can now fill the awkward silence that grows more pervasive by the second. Rein is apparently not very adept at dealing with this kind of situation either.
Reinholdt frowns a little. Well... he'll just have to find and recruit an emotionmancer for HALO then. It seems they certainly could use one. But he doesn't push the subject any more than he already has, just settling for the deep pang of regret in his chest instead.
"Yeah... yeah I could do that. Though I admit I know more about breaking laws than abusing them." Reinholdt ponders. He could... probably loop Magtok into doing his homework for him? He seems like the kind of guy who knows all about corruption and loopholes. And Magtok certainly doesn't need to know that this work is vital for Rein and Harley's continued relationship.
...
Reinholdt picks back up his fork and slowly resumes eating, as if it can now fill the awkward silence that grows more pervasive by the second. Rein is apparently not very adept at dealing with this kind of situation either.
► SHOW SPOILER
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Thursday Violist
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Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Quiet Dinner]
The silence continues.
Just the sounds of silverware hitting things, and a knife cutting until there's nothing let to cut.
Harley breathes out.
She closes her eyes, and sets down her knife.
.
.
.
She opens her mouth, thinking she should say something else now.
Unable to come up with something, though, she closes it again.
All of this, she needs to get out of her system ASAP, so that things get back to normal.
The silence continues.
Just the sounds of silverware hitting things, and a knife cutting until there's nothing let to cut.
Harley breathes out.
She closes her eyes, and sets down her knife.
.
.
.
She opens her mouth, thinking she should say something else now.
Unable to come up with something, though, she closes it again.
All of this, she needs to get out of her system ASAP, so that things get back to normal.
Re: HALO CLXXXV: The Titles End Here
[Quiet Dinner]
Well this couldn't possibly get more awkward. Reinholdt slowly eats in silence, afraid of making things worse, but afraid things are being made worse and urgh, this was a nightmare.
He can't handle it.
"S... So. How's Manja doing at the GLoG daycare lately? Has she made any new friends?" Reinholdt asks, all too eager to break the ice and divert the subject entirely at the same time.
Well this couldn't possibly get more awkward. Reinholdt slowly eats in silence, afraid of making things worse, but afraid things are being made worse and urgh, this was a nightmare.
He can't handle it.
"S... So. How's Manja doing at the GLoG daycare lately? Has she made any new friends?" Reinholdt asks, all too eager to break the ice and divert the subject entirely at the same time.
► SHOW SPOILER