2017-10-29: The Heart Never Lies

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<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.

"Hey Ida and Ros', can you two c'mon in here for a minute?" Talise calls from the common area.

Layna's little pirate base has served as a pretty good hideout already, far removed from the havoc in Bledavik and... the havoc everywhere else. The dining hall's been left free for the evening, and Talise took advantage of it.

A space has been cleared in a large room off to one side, with several chairs - a number of them are comfortable bean bags - set out around a couple of tables. Talise has shucked her sword belt off and sits with her lute cradled in the crook of one arm, slouched forward in one of the chairs. Her teeth have closed around one of her knuckles, a look of quiet concern etched across her expression as she waits for Ida and Rosaline to make their appearances, if indeed they do.

She's not alone. Aside from people, she went out and picked up a gigantic cake. It's vanilla, but done up with chocolate icing and a few fluffy pink roses around the edges.

"Hey," she say with a tight smile, her eyes lifting to her pair of friends when they arrive. "C'mon and sit down. It's been awhile since we just all sat and talked, y'know?"

She doesn't say it just yet, but there's worry behind Talise's eyes, and her tone is a little more subdued than her usual cheery self - or her usual angry self, though that part of her isn't on display. Just a quiet concern. 

<Pose Tracker> Sephilia Lampbright has posed.

Sephy's sat, looking worried, with Chauncey on her lap, her arms around him. 

<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.

Talise had relayed her plans to Layna, and Layna had relayed her plans to Dahlia. The Quartermaster had arranged a night out for the crew, giving Layna and her friends plenty of time alone by themselves. They wouldn't have to worry about anyone walking in, intruding on something those present might wish to keep only to friends.

All in all, Layna liked what Talise did to the place. She sits in a chair of her own, leaning back and keeping an eye on the door. There were signs put up outside, directing the two of them to the right location. Hopefully they found their way here...if they intended to arrive at all...

When they arrive...if they arrive...Layna smiles and offers them a wave. 

<Pose Tracker> Rosaline Calice has posed.

Rosaline had been quietly excited about the prospect of spending time in a pirate cave. She has a place to stay in November City and, having not participated in the Bledavik mess, has no particular need to lay low, but that doesn't mean she couldn't come visit from time to time.

She's reading a book on archeology, tucked in a corner, when Talise calls her name (or, well, a small fraction of it). She puts in a bookmark and gets up. To be quite honest, she has no idea what this is about!

She enters the dining hall, looks around to see Talise, Sephilia and Layna looking various degrees of cheerful and/or worried. Also, a cake? This is very confusing! Rosaline blinks, her tail swaying.

"Um, hello everyone. Of course I can talk. I don't mind. Um."

Did she do anything wrong, she wonders? Oh no, did they find out about the drugs? She sits down in one of the normal chairs, looking tense, as opposed to the bean bags. 

<Pose Tracker> Ida Everstead-Rey has posed.

Ida escaped the battle at Bledavik with her Gear in one piece, mostly. The armor absolutely needs repairs before it's combat-worthy again, but it's in better shape than her opponent ended up in. Lily--who had apparently been taken captive by Gebler at some point--made it out all right, and as far as she knows, no one on the Yggdrasil's team was killed.

So why doesn't she feel okay?

Ida dropped the Gear off with Layna's. She's just arrived at the cave, apparently--she's got her leather piloting jacket over one shoulder, and the shemagh scarf she wore to hide her face is tucked around her neck. She sees the cake. She stares at it for a moment before turning to Talise. "Did something happen?" she says. She looks tense, and vaguely haunted. She does not sit down. 

<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.

Talise stayed out of the mess in Bledavik, mostly because she has absolutely no clue about local politics, or what Gebler even is. It's not for her to stick her nose into. She's more concerned with tracking down the Metal Demons - and K.K., for that matter. Those are problems she understands a little better.

She offers up a reassuring smile for Rosaline. "It's alright," she assures her as she gestures towards the chairs.

Lifting her eyes to Ida, Talise presses her lips together. Ida, she realizes, will probably be the toughest nut to crack. "Sort of. I think maybe a few things did," she concedes as she reaches for the cake slicer, sliding it beneath one of the slices of cake and setting it on a plate.

"The honest truth is," Talise admits, eyes moving between Rosaline and Ida as her voice softens perceptibly, "we've seen how down the two of you have been lately. I mean... things've been tough. These past few months... we've all been through a lot. But we've all seen how much you've been struggling.

"And we're worried about you," she says as she sets a second piece of cake on a plate, holding the plates out to Ida and Rosaline. "And wanted you to know that, y'know... we're your friends and we're here for you." 

<Pose Tracker> Sephilia Lampbright has posed.

Sephilia also stayed out of the Bledavik affair, having been in bed with the sniffles and a book about intermediate electrical theory. She's still sniffles-y. She's not crying! Honest.

"Yeah, I...I've been really worried about you and...and I didn't know what to do about it but..." She sniffles. See? It's just the sniffles. No tears. Blink blink. 

<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.

"Aye." Layna agrees with a nod, looking Ida and Rosaline over. It was possible that she should have reached out to them sooner...but she had been busy. She didn't realize how bad things had gotten, and she feels bad about that.

"You all have been a great help, you have. Even for someone like me, it's tough to find yourself in a new world without any contacts. So I'd like to return the favor if I can, aye?" She says. 

<Pose Tracker> Rosaline Calice has posed.

Rosaline offers Ida a tiny, tiny wave as she enters.

She's assured that it's all right, whatever "it" even is. This reassures her... marginally. Making Rosaline not worry about something borders on the impossible, at times.

She takes one of the offered slices of cake with a tiny, strained smile. Well, this is nice. She doesn't start eating right away, instead nervously poking her fork into one of the fluffy roses.

"Oh, I see..." Rosaline's ears droop when Talise explains the reason they're here. How dare she make her friends worried that way? Even Sephilia seems to be on the verge of tears!

"Thank you. That's so very nice of you all... but you don't need to worry so much on my account." She remembers what Talise said, because in the Kross Kave... Cave.

"It's just that..." She bites her lip. No, she doesn't think she'll bring up their little adventure with Cyre and Catenna. She's still not done unpacking it, to tell the truth. Instead: "It's just that fighting Reapers is very stressful... And to tell the truth, going through all these frontier towns has been reminding me of my home a bit..."

She glances at Ida. She's the one who's been having the worst of it, right? So Rosaline should probably be quiet. 

<Pose Tracker> Ida Everstead-Rey has posed.

Ida takes the slice of cake, because she was not raised to turn down gifts. She doesn't move to pick up the fork, though, nor does she look very interested in it. Why is Sephilia almost crying? Is she going to have to console her?

"This was nice of you," Ida says. If she just acts pleasant, she figures, she can make it through this without incident. "I must admit, things have been rather stressful, but it's nothing we cannot get through together." Was that okay? No. 

<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.

Rosaline's ears are drooping. Oh, Althena. Mission failed. Talise bites back a surge of guilt and shakes her head at the glum Etone. "Please don't think we're blaming you... everyone gets these feelings sometimes. But, y'know... we're your friends. We're here to support you," she assures.

Serving up another slice of cake, she passes it towards Sephilia, then starts on one for Layna. As Rosaline explains, Talise bows her head and closes her eyes.

That, at least, she can understand. "It's hard, being far from home," she says in a quiet voice.

A part of her thinks back to the Lunabelle.

She sets the plate in front of Layna and lifts her eyes once again, nodding as Ida tries to dodge the reckoning with those niceties. Talise's fingers weave together between her knees as she leans forward. "Yeah. That's what I hope," she admits. "But... I mean, listen. I've known you for a while now and we've been through a lot together. And I've just... never seen you having as hard of a time as you are lately. And that's okay," she says with a quiet smile.

"I know how strong you are... both of you. You don't have to be embarrassed. 'Cause we have been through a lot together. And, you know... sometimes it helps to just let it out."

Talise's voice lowers a bit. "...I wouldn't have been able to survive in Filgaia at all without all the things I've learned from you, Ida. I'd be a shitty friend if I just let you suffer alone." 

<Pose Tracker> Sephilia Lampbright has posed.

Sephilia nods. "Me an'Chauncey feel the same way. I...I would hug you, Ida, but...but you pushed me away and...and that hurt and...I didn't mean to make you mad at me, Ida." She DOES hug Rosaline, setting Chauncey aside momentarily to do so. 

<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.

"We're your friends, Rosa, like she says. It's practically our jobs to worry about you, aye? I worry about you just as if you were one of me crew." Layna replies, offering Rosaline a smile and a dismissive wave.

"Well, I guess 'worrying' isn't the right word. Caring? Aye, that sounds about right. Either way...something's wrong, we'll take notice and try to do something about it." Layna says. She accepts a plate from Talise with a nod of thanks, but remains quiet at the mention of home.

Yeah, that was probably something they could all sympathise with...

"...Aye..." She agrees.

Her home was aboard the Ruby Empress, sailing the seas...she honestly didn't mind if they were the seas of Filgaia or the seas of Lunar, but right now both of them were cut off to her.

"Aye, together. That's the key word." Layna says with a nod toward Ida.

"We're all in this together, me hearties. Keep it in mind, aye?" 

<Pose Tracker> Rosaline Calice has posed.

"It's not just that, it's..." Oh no, Rosaline thinks, did she just make Talise homesick?

Sephilia hugs her. Rosaline tenses up a bit at first (maybe she doesn't want to catch the sniffles), as she tends to do whenever people touch her, but she relaxes and sets her plate aside to return the hug. "Aw, Sephilia..."

She glances at Ida again, unsure if this is helping. Dean and Avril were like that, too, offering emotional support despite barely knowing them. Then Rosaline made a bit of a mess. Aaaand she should probably not think about that too much right now, she decides.

Either way, it doesn't seem like Ida wants to pour her heart out right now. Rosaline gets it, she's fairly confident. So she'll speak, instead.

"I don't think it's one big problem so much as a lot of stressful factors piled up. But actually... there is something you could help me with, at least... I wanted to take a little trip in the future."

"I, um... I grew up in an Ethos orphanage. It was also a bit of a church and a convent at the same time, I suppose. But it was destroyed, a-and I've been trying to raise money to rebuild it." Her ears droop once more. She's been doing a rather miserable job of it, hasn't she?

"B-But... I'm not sure I told you this before, but I've been looking for the ones who did this. And I haven't been very successful at that either... but I thought if we went back to the ruins of my village I could, um... maybe find a clue I overlooked..." Now she's the one on the verge of tears. 

<Pose Tracker> Ida Everstead-Rey has posed.

Now Sephilia is crying. She is crying and talking about how hurt she's been by this, and now everyone is joining in, and this is horrible.

Ida finally eats a little cake, mostly as an excuse to keep from having to speak for a bit. It's good cake, but it is probably the only good thing happening right now. She sees the way Rosaline tenses up when Sephy hugs her. The others talking about their homes only makes her feel homesick, and the whole story of Rosaline's home...

That's horrible. It explains some of what she saw the other day, but at the same time, no one should have to go through that. She knows what it's like to suffer.

"Of course," Ida says, to Rosaline. "Shh. Anything we can do to bring closure." 

<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.

There's a fifth plate sitting beside the cake, but Talise doesn't get a slice for herself. She nods as Layna comes in with a little spark of clarity. "Yeah... it's just... we care about you two. A lot."

As the fluffy Etone shares that hug with Sephilia, Talise smiles a sad little smile. It's hard to see sweet, polite Rosaline like this, so run down by a world that won't give her so much as a shred of mercy. It reminds her of a few things.

"Anything we can do to help you, Ros'," she assures as she straightens in her seat. Then she bites down to her lower lip, one pointed incisor digging in a little. She'd known a little about her friend's background, but the full story is a gloomy one, full of sadness, with a faceless foe waiting at the end. "Oh, Ros'," she murmurs, her voice growing a bit throaty as she forces down the urge to cry a little herself. "Of course we'll go with you. We'll do everything we can to find the ones who did this."

Looking down at herself, she rests a hand on her coin purse, then looks up again. "I... want to help you rebuild it, too," she says. "I don't have a lot to give, but whatever I've got is yours. Anything to help you." 

<Pose Tracker> Sephilia Lampbright has posed.

Sephy hugs Rosaline again, then goes back to her seat, hugging onto Chauncey tightly and not knowing what to say. It's not because she's barely holding together from crying and doesn't wanna wail. It's because she's not sure what to say.

And she's still sniffly.

Gross. 

<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.

Rosaline lays some...pretty heavy stuff on them. Layna frowns slightly, glancing down and considering this.

"...Aye, of course we'll help." Layna comments with a smile. "I can even get some of me crew on it too, if you'd like. They need to earn their keep anyhow!"

To have a home, and lose it...it must be an awful thing. It wasn't something she'd felt, as such.

...Well, maybe she had.

Layna glances down for a moment, but distracts herself from her thoughts with a bite of cake. 

<Pose Tracker> Rosaline Calice has posed.

Ida, Talise and Layna agree to help with her journey home. Sephilia is at a loss for words, perhaps understandably so. Talise even makes an offer to donate to the rebuilding fund, prompting a tiny smile from Rosaline. "Oh, thank you so much... But you don't have to worry about it right now, I'd also take a pledge... I know money can be a little tight sometimes..."

Of course, taking a pledge assumes that she'll keep adventuring with the Fox Company for some time still. Is this a safe assumption, she wonders? She enjoys it, but life can be very cruel, sometimes. She knows that.

Having fallen silent for a second, she remembers that her cake exists and takes her plate back. She extracts her first bite, bisecting the pink rose her fork was already plunged in in the process. Her ears perk up. "You'll have to tell me where you got this," she asides. Alisha and the others may want to hear of it.

"It was a village called Hope Springs," she explains, quietly. "It's not very far from Dazil, though it's located out of the way of most of the fighting. But still, getting there may be dangerous..." She imagines the group won't mind, but it's best to warn them, still. 

<Pose Tracker> Ida Everstead-Rey has posed.

Ida nods. This is something she can deal with, and she eats more of her cake while Rosaline explains. There has to be more to it than just that--does Rosaline think some specific party did it?--but she says nothing. When she finally does speak, her voice is soft. "With luck, we'll be able to find what you're looking for," she says. "But do you know of anyone else who lived there?" Her voice is gentle. She realizes this is the sort of thing where Rosaline might be the only survivor. 

<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.

Talise - because, let's be honest, she's really just a giant hero complex that's come to life and learned how to swordfight - has to force down her urge to hug Sephilia, too. That'll come later.

Instead, she sits up straighter, she closes her hand and thumps it against her heart. "Then I pledge to do everything I can to help you. You're my friend, Rosaline. And of course we'll go with you to Hope Springs. Anything we run into, we'll make sure it doesn't stop you from getting there and accomplishing your goals. You deserve that much."

Ida raises a good question. Talise clears her throat, looking towards Rosaline and answering the beastwoman's question first: "There's a bakery in Krosse called the Baking Bunny. They have really good sweets."

It handily papers over the fact that this whole situation tugs at her heartstrings a little. Rosaline lost a home - a home she cared about.

In a corner of Talise's mind, she can see the stern of the Lunabelle slipping over the horizon. 

<Pose Tracker> Sephilia Lampbright has posed.

Sephy nods. "Ch-chauncey an' me will help too," she manages. 

<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.

"Hope Springs, aye...?" Layna comments. It was a nice name. Shame about what happened to it. She'd take a drink right now, if there were drinks available.

...Well, I mean, really, we all know Layna probably has at least a bar's worth of drinks on her at all times thanks to Dahlia, but even she realizes this is perhaps not the best time to get drunk!

"But still, danger, aye? I'm good with danger. Keeps me on my toes." She comments with a confident grin. "Just throw me at all the danger we come across! I'll deal with it for you."

She then glances toward Talise and nods.

"And Talise too, of course."

Sephilia does get her attention for a moment, but Layna doesn't really have any words for her right now. Not anything that'll make it better. 

<Pose Tracker> Rosaline Calice has posed.

"The Baking Bunny," Rosaline repeats. She half-hopes it's called that because it's run by a fellow beastman.

"Yes, I'll pray for it," Rosaline tells Ida. "And as you say... even if I don't find anything, it might help me find closure..." Or it'll reopen wounds that had only just begun to heal. The Etone-in-training seems to think it's worth the risk. She nods to Layna with a tiny smile when she compliments the town's name. "I agree." A nice, albeit ironic name.

Ida's second question causes Rosaline's expression to darken further. Her voice is very quiet. "No one alive, no... It happened while I was out on a supply run. Those who were with me saw hoof prints and went after them, while I stayed behind in the ruins. They said they'd return soon. They never did."

"I'm sorry, I'd rather... I'd rather not talk about it anymore," she says, having started to season her slice her cake with the occasional tear. "But I'm thankful that you'd risk this for me." 

<Pose Tracker> Sephilia Lampbright has posed.

Sephy can't help but picturing what might be happening back at her own home while she's away. What happened to Rosa's home happening to her home...it's not something that poor Sephy can handle thinking about much.

Sephy you are the worst at interventions.

Fine. She's crying. The narrator will admit it, even if Sephy herself tries to hide it. The worst part is...

The worst part is how selfish she feels for crying right now when she's supposed to be helping her friends cheer up. 

<Pose Tracker> Ida Everstead-Rey has posed.

I want a drink, Ida thinks. No, you don't. Look at her. Look at what you did to Rosaline. Shut up. You want so desperately to believe you've had an awful life that you're hurting people who've had it worse. That's not true. It's not true? Look at Sephilia. Look at Rosaline.

Ida is staring down at her cake with stormy eyes. It looks like an honest reaction to what Rosaline just said. She sets her fork down. "I'm sorry," Ida says. For everything. 

<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.

Meanwhile, in the city of Krosse, a chipper bunny Beastwoman in an apron, with outrageously foofy blonde curls, serves up cupcakes, and a big sweet sunny smile. It's like the sun coming up.

----

Meanwhile, back at Misery Mountain....

"Yeah. You two... let us take a few hits for you for awhile," Talise urges Rosaline and Ida, smiling as she nods along with what Layna says. "You two are both strong people. But you're not in it alone. You've both helped all of us in more ways than I can count. I'm sure Sephy and Layna agree with me when I say it - I wanna be there for you."

Because it makes them feel better, or because it makes ME feel better, nasty selfish bitch that I am, Talise's inner voice nags at her. She forces it to the side.

Rosaline darkens all the more, and Talise lets out a soft sigh, her shoulders sagging ever so slightly. "It's okay. We'll do it together," she assures the young Etone.

Rising from her seat, Talise moves over to Ida, coming around to the side of her chair and resting a hand on her shoulder. It's not a hug. Ida isn't the type to respond to hugs. "It's okay to be sad," she assures, her voice quiet.

"I'll never forget something my Uncle Piet told me," she says, tone a little distant. An old pain creeps into her expression. "When I was ten years old, wishing and praying that the ship I grew up on would come back - that I'd see my mom and dad again. He told me, 'Tal, don't be afraid of being sad, or lonely.'" She bows her head.

"'Your heart never lies,' is what he told me. That it's okay to cry and be hurt. Because once you let yourself feel it, you learn to accept it... and you learn that you can live with it. Even if it takes a little help from your friends to learn that." 

<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.

Layna glances toward Sephilia and reaches over, giving her a pat on the shoulder. There was nothing wrong with crying, really. It wasn't something to be ashamed of.

She nods to Rosaline, then, offering her a smile before glancing toward Talise.

She listens to Talise talk about her Uncle Piet, and she can't help but smile.

"Sounds like a hell of a guy. Would like to meet him someday." She comments. Talking about him as if he was dead seemed like it'd be...a bit rude.

A part of her wishes she had some memories of family like that, that weren't tainted by...

...Well, she was too old to be leaning on those, anyway. 

<Pose Tracker> Rosaline Calice has posed.

Rosaline isn't sure what to answer to Ida. Talise shares a story from her own past, which... simply prompts a small "I'm sorry" from Rosaline. In some ways, they've both lost their homes, their families... Talise then shares her uncle's wise words.

The dam had been leaking. It bursts. Rosaline lurches forward, loudly sobbing into one of her gloves. She doesn't let go of her plate, but it tips over, sending a fork clattering to the ground, along with the slice of cake. Splort.

The ruining of such delicious cake is, perhaps, the saddest thing of all. 

<Pose Tracker> Ida Everstead-Rey has posed.

Ida is the very picture of stony, stoic calm. Now that she's feeling marginally more stable, it's easier for her to go back to old habits--like not displaying negative emotions in front of people. The awful, caustic thoughts are making it even worse. What right does she have to feel this upset when Rosaline is over there--

There goes the cake. Ida watches it land with a splat. She looks down at it for a moment. But what, she wants to say, does it mean when your heart hurts so badly it feels like nothing is going to be okay, ever again?

"I'll go fetch the mop," is what she says, instead. She goes to do just that. 

<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.

Somewhere, a kind bunny wants Rosaline to know it's OK.

Here, Talise flashes Layna a faint smile. "He's a good man. I miss him a lot."

But something more important happens. Rosaline Calice starts sobbing, and drops her poor slice of cake.

Ida does a good job of holding her emotions in - enough so that Talise reaches over to Rosaline first of all. She rushes over and wraps her arms around the young Etone's shoulders, pulling her in for a good, hard hug. One hand comes around to pat her gently on the back.

"It's okay," she murmurs with a sad smile, her voice heavy with emotion. "It's okay to cry, Ros'. It's okay."

If nothing else, Talise has broad, strong shoulders, perfect for crying into. 

<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.

Rosaline...starts crying. She even accidentally loses her slice of cake! There was more where that came from, fortunately.

"No, wait, it's fine-" Layna says, standing up. But it was too late, Ida was already off to grab the broom.

Layna sighs, and resumes her chair. Now would really be a good time for a drink...

Talise is hugging Rosaline, so Layna leans back in her chair and folds her arms in front of her.

This wasn't really how they pictured it...but really, this was probably the only way it could go. 

<Pose Tracker> Sephilia Lampbright has posed.

Sephilia still seems to have the sniffles, but she's also got Chauncey hugged tight, and her other friends need the hugs more than she does right now. She...also, perhaps oddly...hasn't touched her cake.

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