2024-02-03: Changeling

• 'Log: 2024-02-03: Changeling
• Cast: Redi Hayworth, Hicalu Wilwisp, Xander Lovell, Yulie Ahtreide, Riley Arwell
• Where:
• Date: February 03, 2024
• Summary: Redi returns home and is reunited with her family. Not all is as it seems, she finds. She is not what she seems, the others find. The fallout is worse than anyone expected.

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<Pose Tracker> Redi Hayworth has posed.

Hilton stretches out before them. The main road into Hilton is from the west, with the city nestled at the foot of some coastal hills. A particularly large one, to the north, looms over the horizon. And the moment that they enter the city proper, the lighthouse can be seen.

It is mid-afternoon. The lighthouse isn't lit up at this time of day, and the clear blue waters of the Narrow Sea stretch out on the horizon. So do the smoke stacks of steamships and the mast-and-sails of sailing vessels. There are still many.

The buildings themselves are tall, two or three stories, and the hilly countryside makes for narrow and steep roads. Redi stops on the main road, leading into the city, and sighs.

It's with relief and, still, with tension. She adjusts her blue postwoman's cap on her head, and then turns. She looks at everyone. "Here we are," she says. "Home sweet home! So my house is..."

She looks down a street that leads uphill, into row houses with multiple stories. They have blue, red, green, and yellow tiled roofs. She points. "That way! Hopefully they're home."

She sucks a breath in, puffs out her chest, and nods. "Okay! Let's go."

She turns, and starts walking. There is a crowd to weave through. The crowd also hides people, though. Most of them aren't watching.

But one did see them. After they've start down that street, a young woman spots the back of Redi's head, just ahead of the others. She has a blue letter carrier's uniform on, like Redi's. Her hair is blonde, though. She has blue eyes, which stare disbelievingly at Redi's back as she disappears in the crowd.

She breaks into a run, dashing down a different street -- but one running parallel.

They don't see her, yet.

<Pose Tracker> Hicalu Wilwisp has posed.

    Hicalu looks out over all those houses, and exclaims: "Wow! This city is huge!" Now, is it actually huge, or is it just that they built up? ... to a Badlands bumpkin like Hicalu, it's really neither here nor there. It's all going to look huge to him, when his village thinks that having a big house is a centre hall.

    He looks up at those buildings, and fishes something out of his bum bag -- yes, he has to call it that, it sits on his bum, it's a bum bag. It's... a bottle of water! And finding it means that he's definitely way too occupied to notice anything going on in this SUPER HUGE CITY.

    Instead, he hands the bottle of water to Redi. "Here!" He chirps. "You don't want your throat to dry out when you finally meet 'em, right?" You gotta hydrate, Redi.

    And it's something they can do while walking!

<Pose Tracker> Xander Lovell has posed.

Xander has spent the last leg of this journey pretending he is not stressed and pretending he does not care about whatever might happen. Indifferent and impassive. He's simply along for the ride, and besides, nothing's going to happen on the right except maybe a visit to the lighthouse and possibly a fish pie. That's it.

There's a look to Riley -- held a little too long, and confirming some unspoken agreement between the two of them.

He otherwise maintains his position of walking quietly toward the back of the group, lazily surveying the sights and sounds as they come in.

His gaze, notably, lingers a little too long on the sparkling blue sea before he forces himself to keep focus. With a crowd to have to pull through, he heaves a sigh and grabs onto Riley's arm on reflex, not wanting to get separated. Or perhaps left behind.

"...I'm rethinking agreeing to any festivals."

This is already too many people.

<Pose Tracker> Yulie Ahtreide has posed.

They're finally here. Ahead of them is Hilton - Redi's hometown. With the Veruni attack... for a moment it seemed like they might not make it, but, they're finally here.

"It really is..." Yulie agrees, impressed, as Hicalu exclaims how huge it is. It's really quite the sight. A part of her wonders what it must be like, growing up in a city like this. Yulie can tell that Redi's still tense. After being gone for so long... she can't blame her.

"Home sweet home." Yulie echoes, offering Redi a smile before she follows her gaze down the streets, toward the houses.

"Here's hoping..." Yulie agrees - and then, nods. "Right behind you."

She follows along behind her, looking toward Hicalu as he produces a bottle of water for Redi.

"Oh, that's a good idea." Yulie encourages. Hydration is important! And it's a good distraction from one's tension.

<Pose Tracker> Riley Arwell has posed.

Riley is nervous, but things seem peaceful so far. On his back, he is carrying the least evil-looking version of his Blood Garden guitar he was able to make (with red flowers growing strategically to mask any errant thorns poking from its wild-grown looking body), ready in case emergency song magic should be needed. After wary looks are exchanged, and his arm is grasped, he pats Xander's hand soothingly. "Sorry -- it's too late, you already promised," he says.

"Port cities have such a great vibe," he enthuses, trying to keep a cheerful mood up despite his own nerves for the situation. "So much... possibility!" He scans the horizon, trying to keep an eye out for any signs of hostility amongst the crowd... unfortunately he misses the woman dashing into the next street at the sight of their group.

<Pose Tracker> Redi Hayworth has posed.

"Thanks, Hicalu!" Redi says, taking the bottle of water and having a long drink from it. "Definitely."

The fish pie and lighthouse visit can come after. Redi can't, in good conscience, delay seeing her family. She beams, then she holds the bottle of water out for Yulie. "It's not as big as some places... but it's a bit more close together," she says. "So... it gets pretty crowded!"

Redi looks at Riley, then she grins sheepishly. But encouragingly! Maybe good things will help Xander.

But then she keeps walking.

It takes them a good ten minutes to make their way to Redi's house. There are a couple of turns on the way. It's a nice neighborhood -- a little crowded, given that it's a small city -- and the homes, a couple of stores, and a couple of small cafes are the sort of place that Drifters rarely travel.

It's away from the taverns, the stores, and the docks that a Drifter would need to go to.

The house that Redi leads them to is a two-story townhome. It is surprisingly narrow, part of a row of similar homes, with a brick facade. Stairs lead up to the front door, with windows looking out. The roof has a dark purple tile, and like the others, is sloped.

Some smoke drifts out of the chimney. so someone must be home. And indeed, there is a small lawn for each townhouse, with a wrought-iron fence separating them.

And someone beat them here.

Standing on the lawn is a bored-looking man wearing the colors of the Hilton Watch: a dark blue uniform, with a silver breastplate, and short sword at his side. He has a mustache and adjusts his hat. "Ma'am, please, can you explain why you dragged me--"

"No time!" answers the second person. This is a young woman with blonde hair, wearing the blue coat, shorts, and hat of the Lacour Postal Express. She is huffing, out of breath; she dashed to get here ahead of the rest. She pounds on the door. "Miss Hayworth! Mister Hayworth!"

Redi, at the front of the group, slows to a stop. She smiles, but it has the nervous energy of a confused smile -- like she doesn't know what's going on. "Clara?" she asks. "Uhm--hey. Long story--"

"Gah!" Clara yelps, and then she ducks behind the watchman. She calls out towards Redi, with a voice tinged with panic. "S-Stay back! Don't come any further!"

"Miss, please, what is going on!" he cries out.

<Pose Tracker> Hicalu Wilwisp has posed.

    "It's kinda scary, huh?" Hicalu sympathises with Xander (WHEN DID HE START DOING THIS AND WHEN WILL HE STOP). "But big cities like this ain't so bad! I used to live in Guild Galad, and boy, that was crowded!" And... underground. Which explains why it was crowded.

    "Yeah! This place is cool!" He adds, to Riley, and echoes Yulie's support: "It's where Redi grew up! Oh man, maybe we'll meet her childhood friends...!!"

    He grins to Redi, seeing her drinking the water he offered, and asks: "Right?"

    Well, there's -- there's someone on the lawn, anyway. The house looks cosy enough, but...

    "Hey!" Hicalu says, stepping forward, his hands up in placation. "You're Redi's coworker, right? W-why are you actin' like this? It's not -- we just came to see her home, so, like... what's with the guard? And the -- hidin'? Are you, um..." There's no tactful way to ask whether Clara was there for the horrible event of total destruction.

    "D-do you think she's gonna hurt you? 'Cause -- 'cause she's not, promise, she's not like that. C-c-can we, um, let's just calm down, okay? Just-- just maybe we can go inside, sit down, um..." Hicalu trails off, and looks to Yulie, his ears aeroplaning haplessly to either side of his head.

    YULIE HELP

<Pose Tracker> Xander Lovell has posed.

Xander grunts at Riley, which is not really a clear agreement or protest either way. He closes his eye for a moment of walking, letting Riley do the work of guiding him if he can handle being around all these people so well. Although it's... easier than it used to be. If only by a fraction.

Hicalu gets another noncommital noise, though this one sounds almost pained. Why... why is Hicalu sympathisizing with him indeed. It needs to stop. Ugh, later. Hicalu will regret it in his own time, Xander's sure. Even if he does agree with Hicalu about Guild Galad. (No don't agree, that's worse!)

His eyelid is forced back open the more twisty and turny the path gets, leading up to Redi's house. Maybe he can pass out under an awning somewhere while everyone does the catch up small talk thing. But then he sees an obvious member of authority and stiffens.

The events all pile together quickly. The uniform. Pounding on the door, demanding to still see a Hayworth. Panicked cries for Redi to stay back -- rather than him or Riley, which would have made sense at least.

Xander is suddenly very awake.

He straightens up, eye narrowing as he carefully observes the situation. Hicalu's already stammering to explain, and Xander sees nothing to add. Best keep alert in case some tries to act instead of speak.

<Pose Tracker> Yulie Ahtreide has posed.

"Crowded, huh... That's okay. I don't mind places with a lot of people." Yulie replies. She gratefully accepts the water bottle with a nod and a smile of thanks and takes a drink before passing it on to whoever needs it next. Hicalu's enthusiasm gets a smile. Childhood friends... It'd be nice to see what that's like.

"I'd like to meet them, too." Yulie agrees with a smile.

Ten minutes of walking. Yulie looks over their surroundings curiously. This really is a cozy little neighborhood. It's nice - Yulie fills the time by pointing out places and asking questions.

And then, before long, they arrive at what must be Redi's home. Yulie looks up at it, a little impressed.

"Wow... I-" She starts - and then looks down, at the sound of commotion. They aren't the only ones here. A young woman - Clara, as Redi calls her - accompanied by the member of the Hilton Watch pounds on the door to Redi's home - and panics at the sight of her. Yulie frowns.

What's going on...? Why is she so afraid of Redi? Hicalu tries to reason. He's doing his best, but... it's A Lot right now. Xander stays back - this is probably for the best. She looks Hicalu's way as he looks toward her, and nods as he passes things off to her. She takes a cautious step forward, hands clasped in front of her, and then bows politely.

"Miss... Clara, is that right? It's alright. I promise we're not here to hurt anyone - we're just here to bring Redi back to her family." Yulie assures. "Can you tell us what's wrong? I promise we'll stay right here."

<Pose Tracker> Riley Arwell has posed.

Riley likes being around people. He doesn't even GET murder cravings until the thorn curse sets in, and that hopefully isn't happening again for a while yet.

In the meantime, he is happy to guide Xander through what seems to be a bustling, happy, friendly town... ... until things take a darker turn at the doorstep of Redi's family home.

Oh no... it really is going bad... He closes his eyes and takes a breath, shaking off certain images... not so much memories as imaginings of things he never saw. He only saw the aftermath... But there doesn't have to be an aftermath today. Maybe it's still salvageable. His eyes flash to Redi with worry -- is she putting off spooky motes or showing any obvious signs of evil that could have set this woman (her coworker??) off?

And then he tries to step between Redi and the accuser and the guard, echoing Hicalu's reassurances, making a conciliatory wave of his hands. "Hey, you've got the wrong idea. Redi doesn't mean any harm. We're her friends and we've been traveling with her for a while, and we trust her. She's just been trying to get home." He nods as Yulie asks her to explain what she's so scared of.

<Pose Tracker> Redi Hayworth has posed.

Clara stares at Hicalu, like he has a bug on his face. Her lips move, and they try to work.

She looks at Riley and Yulie, as they explain. She makes a strangled noise in the back of her throat.

"You--oh, oh god, you don't know. You couldn't know..." she says. "She's different, but--but that's not my friend. That's not your friend." Clara stays put, while the nervous watchman quiets down -- listening and standing his ground. But Xander might notice the way he tenses, the way he has transitioned from confusion to concern.

And preparation for action, if necessary.

Redi, for her part, has tensed up. But unlike Xander, she doesn't quite understand what is happening. There is a frightened look at Yulie and Hicalu -- she can't quite meet Riley's or Xander's gaze. It feels like her heart is in a vice.

She takes a deep breath. She tries to push some calm down. Don't panic, she thinks. Don't freak out.

Then, her eyes are back on Clara -- who flinches and backs up. "H-Hey, Clara, come on--I know I've been gone for awhile, but I can explain. I really missed you and everyone else at work. I--"

"In the attack by specters, last June," Clara says. Her voice is hoarse; she looks like she is about to cry. That matches the watchman's eyes widen, with fear, and he looks them all over with renewed suspicion.

Redi blinks at that. "That was in Augus," she mutters, under her breath, though the others might hear it. Clara doesn't.

"Redi died," Clara finishes. "She pushed me out of the way, one of the specters got her, and she died. I--I dragged her body back here!"

And then she is crying. "P-Please," she stammers. "That's not her, you need to get away from her, right now!"

<Pose Tracker> Hicalu Wilwisp has posed.

    Yulie does, being fair, try to help. Even the Fangs chip in! But --

    "H--huh? 'Course Redi's my friend!" Hicalu protests, when Clara insists she's not. But it doesn't convince her, and he can see how tense Redi is, and...

    Huh? August? June?

    The problem with dates quickly cedes to a bigger problem.

    Hicalu frowns, and turns to Redi, and reaches out for her hand. No -- her wrist. A desert boy like him knows a couple of basic things about how people work, and so...

    "No, Redi's totally alive," Hicalu says, standing by her. "She's got a pulse and everythin'."

<Pose Tracker> Xander Lovell has posed.

She's different. Xander brings his hand over his face. He has gloves on to mask that there are inhuman claws instead of fingernails, but he can feel them as he starts to drag, absently, over his skin the more this situation unfolds. His eye narrows between his fingers as the tone of who he's identified the highest threat shifts, lip twitching. It takes a surge of willpower to keep from baring fangs.

Clare speaks. Xander breathes. He listens.

Spectres. Death. A 'curse'... He doesn't understand all the practicality. He does not believe he needs to. Not for this moment, right here and now.

He drops his hand and he strides forward.

"And yet," he says, looking to Clara, "Here she is, missing her parents, and recognizing you. Here she is, incessantly talking about coming home all the while we've been traveling with her."

His gaze sharpens.

"You say Redi did not fear giving up her life to protect you. Meanwhile you -- you are unafraid to look her in the eye and risk forsaking her without so much as a second thought that there may be more going on here."

Xander's lip twitches again, but he keeps it together. His tone remains low and even.

"Fascinating."

<Pose Tracker> Riley Arwell has posed.

Redi... died. Riley's mouth hangs open; he looks lost for a moment, trying to puzzle out the implications. The spectre... brought her back? The spectre... is puppeting her?? It could... be a lot of things, couldn't it?

He glances to Xander, himself different and full of evil magic, the ratio between himself and other changing unpredictably as he embraces more of Valmar's power. Xander clearly doesn't want to give up on Redi based on such a trifling detail as possibly being a monster with girl-like qualities instead of a girl with monster-like qualities. So -- Riley won't, either!

"S-so it brought her back or something? Big deal!! Have you never never known anybody who's come back from the dead before? I've come back from the dead." A pause, and he covers his mouth. "Oh my god that was not a helpful thing to say, sorry! ---Go... go back to Xander's point!! She's got Redi's heart, she cares about what Redi cares about! That makes her Redi!"

<Pose Tracker> Yulie Ahtreide has posed.

Clara makes a strangled noise. 'You don't know.' 'You couldn't know.' Yulie feels a cold pit in her stomach. This is... what's going on? ...And then, Clara tells her story. Yulie looks from her, to Redi, then back to Clara.

Yulie inhales sharply. In the attack by Specters, Redi died. Clara says it was August - Redi says it was June. Clara pleads for them to get away from Redi.

Yulie looks from Clara to Redi... then takes a step closer to Redi, moving to take her hand. Not her wrist, like Hicalu does - though he does point out an important fact.

What does this mean? What does any of this mean? It's... so much to take in. She doesn't know what's going on - but there's one thing she does know.

"...I'm... I'm sorry, Miss Clara. I can't imagine what that must've been like. It sounds like you've been through something horrible..." Yulie apologizes. She shakes her head. "I don't know what's going on. But... I've known her for a few months, now. She's been nothing but kind, I promise you. Whatever happened... she's our friend. Can we... try to figure this out?"

She doesn't want to look away from her - to doubt her, to fear her - in her moment of need ever again.

Xander takes a more confronting approach - and she can't exactly blame him for defending her like that. Riley raises a good point, too.

<Pose Tracker> Redi Hayworth has posed.

"Clara, I--" It's a hazy memory to Redi. She tries to remember it clearly, but she struggles. "I pushed you, and--"

And then she doesn't, quite, remember.

She stares, helplessly, and stops talking. Redi makes a slightly distressed noise when her wrist is taken. But she realizes what Hicalu's doing, and she doesn't pull away. Sure enough, there is a pulse.

"Y-You didn't... didn't see what I did," Clara stammers to Hicalu, miserably. Then, she looks at Yulie. She hesitates for a second, when she pleads with her.

"I..." There is hesitation on her face and in her voice.

Redi blinks when Yulie takes her hand. She looks sideways -- and comes out of whatever trance she found herself in. She hesitates a second, before she squeezes Yulie's hand back. She doesn't quite thank her.

Then Clara looks at Xander. "It--it isn't like that!" she says. "I'm not... I'm not forsaking my friend. I wish I could get her back! She was my best friend! But--but after I took her body back here, her--her corpse got up--"

When they came, Clara banged on the front door. If they forgot about this, it is understandable.

But between that, and the noise outside, the residents of the home know something is happening.
 
The door to the house opens, slowly -- and not all the way, but enough to see the woman inside. She has the same light brown hair as Redi, but she is middle aged -- perhaps a little older than forty -- and with a slightly heavier frame and the lines on her face to match it.

She wears her hair longer, too, in ponytail; she also has a green dress on, instead. And her eye is a brown color, not very pale blue. She stares for a second with that eye.

One eye.

Because over where her right eye was, she has a brown leather eyepatch, held in place by straps. A hint of a scar is visible around the eyepatch, on her cheek. She takes a step back. "N-No--"

Redi already felt half-way to a panic. Seeing that response from this woman makes her squeeze Yulie's hand harder, then she stops before it could hurt. She takes a breath.

She tries to remember Xander's tea. But not other things that Xander has told her.

"H-Hi, mom," Redi calls out to her mother, smiling in a forced, nervous way -- until the smile fades, becoming more crestallen as her eyes look over her face. The eyepatch registers. "...W-What happened to your eye, Mom?"

Which is when her mother screams, ducking behind Clara and the watchman both. "No, no, she's back, get--get her away from me!" she screams. "She'll kill me this time!"

Clara wraps her arms around Miss Hayworth in a hug, while the watchman starts to position himself between them both. Redi's fingers slip out of Yulie's, as she brings both hands over her mouth. She takes one trembling step back, then a second.

A crackling, fire-like mote of shadowy light, then a second drift up off her.

<Pose Tracker> Hicalu Wilwisp has posed.

    "Huh?! That's your daughter!" Hicalu cries, when Mrs. Hayworth reacts like that. "Y-you can't -- she's your family!"

    Somehow, he musters his bravery, and steps towards the Watchman and the terrified women.

    "D-don't you get it?!" Hicalu says, his voice raising, as he gestures to her. "I-if you run away, you'll really lose her and it'll never make sense! And it'll be YOUR FAULT!" He yells, pointing at the woman with the eyepatch, who has surely seen too much. "Y-you're older -- I mean -- you're her mom! T-t-take some responsibility! Can't you s-see you're scaring her?!"

    He can't quite explain where his bravery came from, but he feels completely solid in his convictions, for once in his life.

    He KNOWS, deep to his bones, that Redi's mother is making a mistake.

    And he grieves.

<Pose Tracker> Xander Lovell has posed.

Redi tries to remember. It's difficult. What was it she said before? It happened in August, not in June. To her, it was later. Time is missing.

Xander fights to keep his breathing steady, his gaze stays on Clara as she tries to explain. A corpse. A corpse that then moves, and Xander's opinion isn't swayed. If anything, it sets harder, and he threatens a step forward before -- more people.

A woman -- her own mother -- terrified of her, because -- that eyepatch --

Redi begins to crackle with motes and Xander /shoves/ ahead of her, grip on her hard. "/Riley/," he calls, and this is /not/ what he and Riley agreed to do if things went /awry, but there's a wild, feral look in Xander's eye now as he refuses to look away from Clara and Miss Hayworth.

His other hand is pressed against his own eyepatch, the heel of it pressing in. Hard. He does not seem aware he's doing it.

"Listen. To him," Xander manages to seethe out after Hicalu stammers out his piece, but the tone is a threat.

"She came back home for you. Whatever happened -- whatever this is -- she needs her family." His gaze snaps to Clara. "She died for you! You're going to throw her out to the wolves because of what it cost her?!"

<Pose Tracker> Riley Arwell has posed.

Riley's shoulders sag. The thing he hoped to prevent here...it already happened. Some evil power taking hold of Redi, lashing out in violence, and shattering the trust with her family and friends. Only... Redi doesn't remember it. Maybe it took her a while to become herself again. Or to become Redi for the first time... At least everyone is still alive (god -- he hopes. they haven't seen her father, yet, have they?) They need to keep them that way. Bonds could still be mended if everyone lives.

"Whatever state of mind she was in when she attacked you, you can see she's lucid now, right? You're hurting her, acting like she's out of control and threatening you. She's just standing here!" Oh damn it, the motes are coming out...

Xander pushes ahead, calling for Riley to -- what? Escape with Redi? "That's the opposite of our plan," he hisses.

It would be safest for someone to take Redi and run. But he can't go. What if Xander loses control, or otherwise escalates this to somewhere worse than it already is?

So he stays put, taking his guitar and starting to play -- he wants to target the mistrustful townfolk, but he worries he'd only make it worse if they feel him trying to manipulate them. But there's another threat. If Redi strikes them with evil magic, all these heartfelt reassurances that she means no harm will be for nothing. So it's Redi he targets, a solemnly gentle melody interwoven with magic to coax feelings of calm and reassurance.

But is any song strong enough to soothe this hurt?

<Pose Tracker> Yulie Ahtreide has posed.

There's... confusion. But Yulie meets Clara's eyes. She doesn't doubt her - she can't doubt her. She looks to the side, then, at Redi's glance, and nods as she squeezes her hand back. She doesn't expect thanks, when she must be going through so much right now. It's fine.

Clara says it isn't like that, she's not forsaking her... And, before Yulie can say anything to that, the front door opens. A woman emerges, who can only be Miss Hayworth - Redi's mother.

And there's fear on her face. Redi squeezes Yulie's hand harder, then tries to greet her - and once more, Yulie feels that horrible sensation in her stomach.

...But, Hicalu comes to her defense, raising his voice. Yulie feels very proud of him in this moment. Xander speaks up, too.

She feels Redi's hand slip out of hers, and Yulie turns away for a moment as Redi takes a step back.

"Redi," Yulie says warningly, taking note of the motes beginning to drift up. Drawing her attention to them might make things worse - but it might help her get it under control, too.

She looks back to Clara and Miss Hayworth.

"No one is killing anyone." Yulie says, her tone gentle, but stern. "...Please. Speak with her. Leaving things like this... it'll only hurt you, and hurt her. It'll only allow these feelings to fester. Are you okay leaving things like this?"

<Pose Tracker> Redi Hayworth has posed.

The watchman watches Hicalu, closely, as he approaches. He doesn't move out of his way when he steps forward. Nor, however, does he stop him.

"T-take responsibility!" Redi's mother repeats, her voice trembling. She manages to look up at Hicalu. "She--that..."

Redi stumbles, when Xander shoves ahead of her. Her hands fall away from her mouth, as she looks at him -- feeling his hand on her, gripping hard, and putting himself in the line of fire.

"You..." Clara looks at Xander. "You weren't there. Her eyes turned blue like that, and she was... like a wild animal. Like the others that the specters animated. But--"

She hesitates, as she looks to Redi. If Redi was mindlessly attacking them then, she certainly isn't now.

Quite the contrary, she's looking down at the ground -- eyes squeezed shut -- and trying to keep still. She hears Yulie say her name, and she hears the music that Riley plays. A somber tone.

She takes a couple of deep breaths. It's only motes of shadowy light, rising off her, and nothing more. She keeps it to that.

"Miss Hayworth," Clara says, detaching from her. "Maybe--maybe we should listen. Maybe it really is Redi--"

"She was dead for thirty minutes," Miss Hayworth says. "That--" She looks back up. At Yulie, with a pained expression; then, to Xander and Hicalu, and with an angrier one. Her hand rises over her eyepatch, pressing down, in a mimic of Xander's motion. "That isn't my daughter. It's the thing wearing her skin."

That causes Clara to step back from her, aghast. The watchman looks over his shoulder, for a moment, his expression stricken.

And Redi looks down, putting her hand over her face, and falls silent.

<Pose Tracker> Hicalu Wilwisp has posed.

    Xander backs Hicalu up; Riley and Yulie try to reason with them, too. But Redi's mother isn't listening, and --

    "O-oh yeah?!" Hicalu says, his tattooed hands clenching to fists beside him, ears pinned back against his curly hair. "Well that thing wearing her skin you're being so mean to is MY FRIEND! She always does her best to deliver mail, even when it's to HAUNTED LIGHTHOUSES! She takes it really, really seriously! When there's danger, she's always defended me! Heck, when the w-whole WORLD was in danger, she went UP INTO SPACE! On a ROCKET!" He jabs his hand up towards the sky, angrily, "SHE WENT TO A WEIRD STAR WHICH I GUESS IS A FLOATING CONTINENT OR SOMETHING WHICH PEOPLE MADE A GAZILLION YEARS AGO AND THEN SHE FOUGHT MEGASATAN JUST TO MAKE SURE WE WOULDN'T ALL DIE!!!"

    He takes a deep breath, after yelling that hard. "And when that megasatan kicked her butt," he says, tone lowering, "she got sent to another world, and she found her way back just so she could come see you guys and now you're being just the absolute worst and if you can't see how kind and diligent and good she is just 'cause you think she's some kinda changeling or whatever then you can just go to hell and hang out with the scrap demon."

    He's not crying. (He's totally crying.)

<Pose Tracker> Xander Lovell has posed.

No one is killing anyone, Yulie says.

Xander looks back at her briefly, but flatly, almost as if to say day's still young. But that might be more concerning to Riley, who knows the nuances of Xander's expressions, especially when it comes to violent urges.

"I've been there before," he snaps at Redi's mother. He rips off his eyepatch, only the wave of his bangs hiding the damage of the dead eye in his skull and the scar surrounding it. "Is that enough? Is that all it takes? One eye and you can't look at her anymore? At least you still have the other one to actually see her again!"

He shoves his hand back to point at Redi.

"Look. Right now, I don't see any of that in Redi. Do you?"

... But, in the end, Miss Haywroth does not see Redi at all.

Xander barks the start of a dead laugh. Redi only wanted to come home. Even Xander hadn't considered the extent of it that Hicalu describes. But Redi shouldn't have to go that far, should she?

"...How convenient that she gets to be a monster and you get to be the victim without a single shade inbetween. But that isn't how this works, Miss Hayworth." Xander's arm tenses. His finger twitches. Quite subtly, the ground at his feet begins to tremble. "...Because as long as she remembers you, remembers how you raised her, remembers how you once loved her..."

It doesn't matter if this is Redi or someone that remembers being Redi.

"You'll now always be is the monster who abandoned her daughter."

<Pose Tracker> Riley Arwell has posed.

Riley flinches a little as Xander uses the example of his own eye to rebuke Redi's mother. He remembers how sure he was that he would never be forgiven for that... he's lucky that Xander is Xander, and not an ordinary person with ordinary love. Meanwhile, he's watching Xander close enough to see the twitches, the small tremble of the earth. He expands the song's calming influence to Xander, too. Just... just in case.

Everyone is doing their best, putting their hearts into trying to make Redi's mother give her a chance, but they don't seem to be getting through to her at all.

As he continues to play his song, he searches for something he could add that might make a difference. What do you say to someone who thinks her daughter is an imposter? Is something just wearing her skin? Especially when she very well might be. But she's the only Redi he knows. "Can you really not take a minute to imagine how horrible the things you're saying would feel for her if you're wrong?"

He turns to Redi, then. "Redi..." he asks softly, "I know this is a lot of awful stuff to process right now, but is there anything you want to say to her? Anything you want her to know?" Because soon they may have to give up on reaching her and get Redi out of here, and who knows if Redi will ever be able to see her again after that.

<Pose Tracker> Yulie Ahtreide has posed.

Yulie meets Xander's look. She'd be a lot more concerned if she knew him better.

...Redi attacked her - acting like a wild animal. The 'others'... so this wasn't a singular occurrence.

But only Redi's here, now - and her mother insists that even that isn't true. Yulie's expression falls, and she looks away.

"...I don't know how it feels. To accept that someone's gone, only to have them come back into your life like nothing happened." She murmurs. "I'm sorry. I can't imagine what you're feeling right now."

She shakes her head.

"...But I know what I've seen. Her homesickness, her longing to return to you... even through everything." She says. Hicalu shouts, laying out everything she's gone through to be able to return here. Xander lays into her. "...She was sad. About missing the festival. But she was excited to get the chance to show it to us. That doesn't feel like a monster would do."

Riley entreats Redi, to speak, if there's anything she wants to say, anything she wants her to know - and Yulie nods her way, encouragingly.

<Pose Tracker> Redi Hayworth has posed.

Miss Hayworth backs up towards her open door, covering her mouth. That it's a mimic of the terrified expression of her daughter, just before, is lost on her. "You..."

She flinches -- looking away from Xander's scar. From Hicalu's tears. From Riley's question. From Yulie speaking of sadness. Miss Hayworth hesitates for a second.

Redi looks at Riley, lowering her hand from her face. She looks at him, and her eyes are aglow again. Another of the side effects of losing control of her emotions. "I--I don't..."

She falls quiet. But Yulie looks at her, encouragingly. She meets her eyes for a moment. Then she sucks a breath in.

She looks up at her mother. "You and Dad always gave me everything. I--I'm not... I'm not sure if I'm your Redi. But I remember that," she says, and then she closes her eyes and bows her head. "So... so thanks."

Miss Hayworth looks away. She falls quiet. "None of you understand," she says, and she means it to sound firm. It sounds desperate. "No one does. What it's like to lose your child. How it... how it poisons you entire life. And having an impostor come back..."

She looks angry, despite her own tears. "That's no miracle. Those--those are memories you stole--"

Before she can get more out, the watchman turns, cutting her off. "Miss Clara," she says. "I think... you should get Miss Hayworth inside."

"I--" Clara hesitates, but the watchman gives her a look. She swallows, her eyes falling on Redi. But Redi is looking down, not at her, and Clara finds words fail her. "...all right. Come on," she says.

She guides Miss Hayworth in with a push on the shoulder -- and then Clara glances over her own shoulder, before she closes the door behind them.

Redi looks up at the click of the door. Then she falls to her knees. She bites her lip, visibly trying to not cry, and starting to fail. It goes through her mind -- and back out, leaving her feeling hollow inside.

Or maybe, she thinks, she always was.

The watchman walks down the stoop's steps, stopping in front of Hicalu and Xander. "I think... it might be best to move her away from the house," he says. "And let her get some rest. There's good hotels, there's good taverns in Hilton. It's... her home. She's every right to them."

He reaches up, tipping his hat to them.

<Pose Tracker> Hicalu Wilwisp has posed.

    Hicalu scrubs at his eyes with the back of his hand, sniffling. He's glad that Riley asks Redi what she wants to say, because he's too mad to think about the best thing to do. At least Xander and Yulie are backing her up, too...

    But Redi's mother just digs in her heels, and the watchman finally convinces Hicalu, still teary-eyed, to step away. "C--c'mon, Redi," he says, all that wibble in his tone as he squats down beside her, curling that big fluffy tail of his around so it wraps her up. He puts a hand on her back, too, rub-rub-rub. "I'm sorry it went t-this bad, but l-let's get outta here, okay? D-don't you wanna lie down?"

    He realises, a moment later, that in her current state she might just lie down RIGHT HERE instead of fleeing to the hotel, but he'll cross that bridge when he comes to it.

<Pose Tracker> Xander Lovell has posed.

When Redi's mother holds her ground, Xander snarls. He begins to move forward, arm raising. "How is it so easy for you to turn your back--" And the rumbling earth --

-- going quiet. Riley redirects his song. Xander's twitching fingers still. His arm falls slack and he breathes out, long and slow, letting his words die in his throat with no more than an inhuman growl. He can tell what Riley is trying to do, but lets it in instead of pushing it away. Fine. Fine.

It's a few moments more before he remembers to put his eyepatch back on, tsking in fustration in trying to get it comfortably fit what with all his unruly hair. Or because his arms are shaking. The more anger drains out, the more he's trembling, and the tighter he sets his jaw to pretend he isn't.

Whatever he's feeling, it's not half of what's happening to Redi. It's bad enough being abandoned by those who are supposed to love her. It's another to be accused of not being herself outright. Her mother could change her mind tomorrow, but there's no walking back from what was said today.

"... I don't understand," is what he says, very, very quietly.

He does not look at Redi. He does not look at anyone, not even the guard who tries to offer a sliver of compassion. But if Redi makes any effort to leave, he can follow that lead.

<Pose Tracker> Riley Arwell has posed.

Riley's instinct is to grasp hold of Xander when he snarls, but he can't do that and play at the same time, so he has to take on faith that the touch of his music will be enough. It looks like it is. He lets out a breath when Xander seems to calm a little, though concern still roils. None of this is okay.

There's a dark sort of relief for Riley when Redi's mother finally departs with Clara. The promise he made himself was to keep Redi from hurting her family and friends, and keep them from hurting her. It looks like they made it through the confrontation without that happening.

He wasn't expecting the watchman to say she was welcome to stay in the town, though. He blinks at that, uncertain. Is it really a good idea to linger here...? Couldn't there be others with fears and grudges about the attack?

He moves to lean against Xander while he plays his song to transmit the vibrations. (Yes, he's still playing; everyone is still upset! Maybe he ought to give some of the calming vibes to the others, too, but it might spook Hicalu. Though Hicalu was so brave today...)

He looks to Redi. "Do you want to stay here or camp outside the city instead?" It seems best to let her make that call. "We'll watch your back if you want to stay."

<Pose Tracker> Yulie Ahtreide has posed.

Yulie meets Redi's eyes, then follows her gaze to her mother as she speaks, offering her gratitude.

...And Yulie frowns as Miss Hayworth speaks. She can understand that she doesn't understand, but it's hard to mask the disappointment that crosses her face. Thankfully, the watchman intervenes, and Clara escorts Miss Hayworth back inside.

Yulie hurries to Redi's side as she collapses to her knees. Hicalu takes one side, curling his tail around her, and Yulie takes the other, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

"...Thank you. I think... that's what she needs right now." Yulie offers to the watchman, offering him a polite nod. ...It's good that someone, at least, feels that way.

"Hicalu's right. Come on. Let's... find somewhere to rest for now." Yulie murmurs her agreement. She understands that it might be difficult - but she's ready to help her to her feet, if she needs it. She'll let Redi call the shots to where - whether they find somewhere in town, or camp outside like Riley suggests.

<Pose Tracker> Redi Hayworth has posed.

In another circumstance, Redi would remark on the fluffiness of Hicalu's tail. Right now, it's a distant observation. She looks up at him, then she wipes at her eyes. It doesn't really help.

The thought goes through her mind, again: is she really the person she thought she was?

It sits in her stomach, but it doesn't do anything to change how it hurts to look past Xander and at the closed door. She sniffs, tears rolling down her cheek. Yulie's arm slides around her shoulders, too.

After a second, a little too delayed, she slides her arms around Hicalu's and Yulie's shoulders in turn. She might need help to her feet.

And it takes another second more, before she can answer Riley's question. "Let's... let's find a hotel," she says. "I want a bed."

She wants her bed, but she can't get that.

<Pose Tracker> Hicalu Wilwisp has posed.

    Hicalu isn't going to freak out about Riley's song today! He has much more important things to freak out about. He and Xander are anger buddies, and isn't THAT weird?!

    He's not angry at Redi, though. And he looks over her head to Yulie, frowning with concern, as he hooks his arms around her to help her up with the other woman. Hicalu isn't the strongest guy in the world -- but he can certainly keep Redi steady on her feet, at the very least, especially with help.

    "Come on," he says, again, quietly. "We'll find a good place." He hears 'a' bed, certainly, and his ears wilt -- but it's what they can get her, right now.

    Hopefully... Yulie remembers the way to the hotel.

<Pose Tracker> Xander Lovell has posed.

If Xander were even a little less angry, he might think on precisely how weird that is. Hicalu, of all people! Instead, he's mostly just angry.

And distraught because his worldview is cracking again.

Hicalu and Yulie have Redi. That's for the best. Xander isn't a friend, exactly. And he's in his own rather precarious state despite telling himself it's not his place to be. It's only because of Riley's music and the added vibrations that he stops visibly shaking.

"...Let's go," he says to Riley, like he isn't the one holding the two of them back. "You can stop. I'll be fine." Nevermind that 'fine' is the word Xander loves to use when nothing is. He moves to make way to a hotel with the others all the same.

A bed. But not home.

Redi no longer has a home. Curses are good at taking them, it seems.

<Pose Tracker> Riley Arwell has posed.

Riley lets the song taper quietly off before taking Xander's hand, though he'll keep a close eye on Redi for motes. Aside from the risk of power crackling off of her, it might be best to let her feel her feelings right now. At least there are still people by her side.

"...I'm sorry it turned out like this." Well, that feels inadequate to say. Poor Redi. Her family... her home... her sense of self... this must be beyond her worst fears for a homecoming.

"But we should be able to handle getting you a bed, at least..." A small comfort, literally, but not nothing.

<Pose Tracker> Yulie Ahtreide has posed.

It takes a second, but Redi's arms go around her and Hicalu's shoulders, too. Yulie meets Hicalu's gaze... and she wishes she had something to say for that concerned frown. She's worried, too.

But for now... she can only offer her shoulder, to help Redi up and keep her steady.

Fortunately, she does remember - she'll lead the way, if no one else does.

"...Me too." Yulie agrees with Riley in a quiet murmur - and then nods.

At least they'll be able to find her a bed.

<Pose Tracker> Redi Hayworth has posed.

"All... all right," Redi says to Hicalu.

She feels weak -- she is weak, right. Like she ran ten miles or hadn't slept in days. She wobbles a little when she getsto her feet, and she leans on Yulie and Hicalu both.

She doesn't, quite, process how kind all of them are being. Or how they spoke up for her, how they're looking after her now. How, even if she feels alone, she isn't.

But thinking is hard.

She lets herself be led, looking off distantly. At first, it might seem she didn't hear Riley or Yulie. She takes a moment to answer.

"I... I guess I wasn't who she wanted to come back," she says, before she looks down. She falls quiet, after that.