plz sledgehammer my doubt

AURELIA

and my hands aren't clean
maybe they never will be

It's been long enough even if it hasn't been long at all. The rumor shrouding around Sunjata and what he's supposedly done has traveled fast. It's an outrage, but Aurelia feels like she has no ground to stand on. She wants to help, wants to defend him - but with so much certainty surrounding this rumor, she's split right down the middle.

There's only so much that someone like her can say that would have any ground to stand on. She knows, deep down, that Sunjata wouldn't do that... not without reason, at least. How's she supposed to convince everyone else, especially now that the seed of doubt has been planted? She wants to see him for herself.

It's a mixture of several different purposes that brings her to the house that stands along the rocky cliffs of Aumakua. She's visited this place once or twice before, thinking back on the time she found Melita practicing with the bow. Right now, however, Aurelia has no intention of igniting or feeding the flames of a fight. She brings nothing but herself, draped in a poncho and a lit cigarette perching between her lips.

Up to the doorway she steps, rapping against the door with some small amount of urgency behind it. "Sunjata? You there? It's me..."

She hopes that she won't find him beaten and bruised. All the same, she suspects she will. Milo told her about how there were plans in motion to find the truth, and she's all too familiar with such measures. She wouldn't put it past this world to try to suffocate it out of him. Her expression is pinched with concern and worry as she steps back and awaits an answer to her knock.

but they can still carry you home
when you're ready to sleep

I was brought up as a southern belle
I grew into the queen of hell

If they'd had any plans to leave the house before Nate's return, they lay dead and buried beneath the sand now. The lightning girl spends more hours awake than asleep these days - if you deign to call the black nothingness by that term. It has been many years since she has been called to proverbial arms. Since rapier wit and serpentine manipulation have been more than an outlet for boredom. With her beloved's safety and reputation on the line, it is as vital that she craft her plans now as it was when she had war rooms and councils at her command.

Here you will find her, nursing a cup of tea that has gone mild and unappealing as her thoughts and ink pen race each other into the long hours. Sunjata sleeps fitfully in their bed. The warmth of her presence can do little to ease his night terrors, so she spends her time by the fire instead, ear tuned for any changes in his sleeping pattern in case he needs to be roused from another nightmare. Not even a nightmare - a memory. Which makes it all the harder to bear, all her consoling words made hollow by the truth of what happened.

When the knock comes, static comes to shroud her shoulders immediately, anger on a hairpin trigger. A voice comes filtering through from the dark, feminine and hesitant, and beckons Hotaru from her chair. 'Me' is not someone she knows, but she opens the door before the urgent knocking can awaken Sunjata. The woman on the other side of the door is younger, olive skin and the cherry of a cigarette lighting up pale green irises. All this Hotaru takes in with a sweep of her gaze, the height and muscle difference between them undaunting, though she lets her electricity crackle soft and foreboding where her hand tightly grips the door. "I'm his wife, Hotaru," she says, tone low and heterochromic eyes piercing. The fact that she'd missed her own wedding due to sickness not something this girl is privy to. "I suspect I know why you're here. I'll give you one chance to tell me if you mean him further harm." She places each word with intention; now the girl will know that she's aware of the rumors, and Hotaru has intentionally let slip the subtle reference to Sunjata having been attacked, all the better to perceive her sincerity with her reaction. And if she is found wanting, then the lightning eagerly licking at her palm will be more than sufficient to reducing those rumors by one more loose mouth.

You were just a little stowaway
That stabbed her way to save herself

AURELIA

and my hands aren't clean
maybe they never will be

There's a snap of electricity as the door opens, Aurelia peering at the wicked strings of lightning with a startled eye. The woman who opens the door is someone she's never met, never thought she's heard anything of, and her confusion is probably palpable as her brows press together. The proud, beautiful features of this woman are taken in quickly, though the heterochromatic eyes are a facet she clings to.

Any questions Aurelia might've raised as to who she is are immediately answered, not that it makes anything seem any clearer. "His... wife?" she echoes quietly. I thought he was married to Nate... Still, she tries to take this in stride, especially since this isn't the kind of information she needs. However, the fact that it's someone else answering the door only worries her further. Is he okay?

Green eyes stay locked on the odd-colored ones of this 'wife' of Sunjata's. The suspicion directed at her is prompting, though she wasn't really prepared for this, if she's honest. "I'm trying to to help, if I can," Aurelia's brows remain deeply furrowed, the cigarette in her fingers suddenly tossed into the dark background, "I heard about what happened. What did... did something happen to him? Where is he?"

but they can still carry you home
when you're ready to sleep

I was brought up as a southern belle
I grew into the queen of hell

A wry grin twists her lips at the startled, confused reaction she receives. Their relationship is quite unique to say the least, and her absence from Torchline likely doesn't make this particular pill any easier to swallow. It's entertaining to watch her struggle, if not enough to remotely dissuade her from discerning the woman's allegiance. "He was lucky enough to marry twice over," is her dismissal, fair brows arching in silent bid for a more...coherent response. Content to play the bitch and bodyguard simultaneously if it means answers.

Hotaru steps further out the door, encroaching on Aurelia's space as her hip props against the frame, cold eyes surveying the taller lass. "He's resting. Seems someone else thought they knew what happened as well and decided on a barbaric sort of justice." Her eyes narrow, scarcely gleaming in the oppressive LongNight darkness. Still sizing her up, hunting like a bloodhound for any holes in her sincerity. "I won't let another person try the same. So if you have no more brain than his attackers, step off my porch. Otherwise, tell me your name." After all, Hotaru won't turn away a true ally. She simply must know her name first.

You were just a little stowaway
That stabbed her way to save herself

AURELIA

and my hands aren't clean
maybe they never will be

Aurelia doesn't react too much to the idea of Sunjata marrying twice over. She absorbs the information, evident in the way her gaze travels around thoughtfully, but otherwise she makes no more broaching of their relationship. At least this is someone that cares about Sunjata, rather than... well, an infiltrator? Aurelia doesn't know what to expect at this point, whether she should be suspicious or simply take whatever she can get.

The woman steps forth but Aurelia's not so easily intimidated. Not that she's trying to be aggravational, but she makes no show of giving more space between them. If it's close proximity this woman wants, she can have it. Aurelia's not going anywhere until she gets something more. Pointedly, she also doesn't make any moves. No crossing of arms or side-eyed looks. She simply continues to level the other woman's gaze with her own. She only flinches at the use of the phrase 'barbaric justice'.

"Fucking bastards..." she can't help but mutter, feeling as if she's far too late already.

Pulling in a steadying breath, she lowers her chin to more squarely look this woman in the face. "My name is Aurelia, I'm a friend." Less defensive - because she understands how this other woman must feel, if she really is Sunjata's wife - Aurelia goes on to clarify, "I was an outlander, got here sometime in Longheat. Sunjata's been a great friend to me and I don't believe any of this is really true." She pauses, letting out a hot breath through her nose. "I came here to ask him myself if any of this is really his doing."

but they can still carry you home
when you're ready to sleep

I was brought up as a southern belle
I grew into the queen of hell

There is no hint of a crack in the young woman's demeanor, no telltale shudder of the ice beneath imposing feet, no small tell that Hotaru has been trained to spot and utilize. It's more than a reassurance, as Hotaru would gleefully and literally strike down anyone who did not pass muster - it also appeals to the small bit of her heart that always rejoices at meeting a woman of similar mind and making. Elemental creatures that do not break when forced against each other. Sage eyes remain passive but unyielding, and the lightning that continues to cause hairs to rise and the air to heat dwindles away. There is passage yet to be found here, for Aurelia.

The expletive is merely the cherry on top, and Hotaru gives an inelegant snort of agreement. Though the irony of her name is something the woman cannot control - the last Aurelia the lightning girl had known had tried to challenge her throne, and been mercilessly crushed. As the words fade out into the night, joining the embers of her cigarette somewhere in the sand, Hotaru holds her contemplative silence. Her gut instinct is as reliable as her skills however, and Aurelia resonates like a quarry stone struck true with the force of a swinging hammer. Stepping backwards, the door opens and she gestures for Aurelia to come inside. "Come in, it's cold and this may be a long conversation." All at once her demeanor shifts, to something refined and composed in a way she will never be able to escape, but exuding warmth and invitation all the same. "I still have tea in the pot if you'd like it." As a show of good faith, she reclaims her cup from the table by the fire and moves to the kitchen to refill it, allowing Aurelia to look around if she likes before hopefully sitting down in the other provided chair. Returning - with tea, if the woman desires - she settles back into her own chair and crosses her legs, fingers tapping a restless, steady beat on the rim of her cup. "You don't know me, so my word may be weak, but I am his alibi. He hasn't left this house since LongNight began. He wouldn't have had the opportunity to hurt Vai even if he wanted to." Might as well get the big question out of the way.

You were just a little stowaway
That stabbed her way to save herself

AURELIA

and my hands aren't clean
maybe they never will be

Aurelia visibly relaxes as Hotaru's demeanor becomes more open. "Please," she nods, "tea sounds... good." At the prospect of a long conversation pertaining to what she's missed, she's willing to stay for a while. A brief pause is taken to glance about, though, as if she might find Sunjata waiting inside, as if she's surprised that he's not.

Before Aurelia can ask anything, she's handed her cup. She takes the seat across from Hotaru and sets her tea down on a nearby table. Attentive interest is given to what this woman says about Sunjata having been here since LongNight's beginning. Her gaze flickers down to the steaming tea in front of her, regretting her own doubt.

"It didn't seem to me like he'd have a reason to anyway. Even when I wasn't sure, I just couldn't think of a motive... unless there's something I don't know..." which is possible. Hell, she didn't even know about his wife, apparently! Her brows furrow and she leans forward, looking up to meet those odd-colored eyes, "Hotaru, what did they do to him? Who was it?" There's an edge to that last question that's rooted in vengeance. No one would wrongly accuse her friends - any of them - and simply... get away with it.

There's even a part of her that doesn't care if he's guilty or not. Aurelia will always be more loyal than just.

but they can still carry you home
when you're ready to sleep

I was brought up as a southern belle
I grew into the queen of hell

Tension bleeds away, left at the door as it is shut behind both women. There is momentarily only the crackle of the fire and the soft burble of water to accompany them, both taking their respective seats across from one another. Hotaru lets the woman's stream of consciousness wash over her, fingertips still dancing contemplatively across the rim of her cup, considering her own response. Sunjata's insistence that Ronin at the very least was still considered a friend reluctantly stays the vitriol that comes naturally to her tongue, but Hotaru has no such ties to the man. Their actions alone can damn them for all she cares.

"Zephyr, Remi and Ronin," she answers simply, if only to answer the most pressing question. None of the names are relevant to her, though she'd known of Remi if only because he had once been Governor. Whether Aurelia knows of them is to be seen. "Zephyr was the one to attack him physically when Vai was dropped at our doorstep. Sunjata tried to help her, but Zephyr attacked him as someone with the same accent had hurt her, and the assumption to him was obvious." Pathetic, really, but Hotaru is finding very quickly that the men in particular seem to have very few brain cells here in Caido. "As far as I understand, Remi has power to construct a dreamscape that feels like reality. He came with Ronin and questioned Sunjata, and when Sunjata's answers were not clear enough despite his sincerity, he killed him. In the dream, of course, not that it was any less traumatizing." She scowls down at her drink before taking a sip, Sunjata's night terrors overtaking her own thoughts. He'd not given her much more detail than that - they'd been distracted by their ensuing fight over Sunjata's father. Even if she had the details, those would be kept close to the heart, a secret for Sunjata to tell on his own accord.

"I am not ashamed to say that I can and have done horrible things to keep my family safe, but Sunjata has never proven himself to be violent, and Vai is beloved to him. The absolutely stupidity infuriates me, thus my...reaction, when you arrived." It's the closest to an apology Aurelia will get, as Hotaru is not truly sorry for her overprotectiveness.

You were just a little stowaway
That stabbed her way to save herself

AURELIA

and my hands aren't clean
maybe they never will be

Her lips twist in a grim scowl, gaze drifting as she thinks back to what Sunjata had told her of his relationship with the smugglers. She knows it hasn't always been friendly, but she thought that things were at least fine. Now, it seems, they're not. Her association and standing with them alone makes her feel torn, however, because when it comes to Zephyr there is little she can - or should - do. Demi-gods, she won't fuck with either, simply because she doesn't have a deathwish. Aurelia may pride herself on being a good fighter and swift with a blade, and she may have newfound abilities, but she doubts they would ever measure up.

With a haggard sigh, she forces herself to take calming sips of her tea as Hotaru explains what happened.

She believes it when Hotaru says that Sunjata tried to help Vai. So who, then, walks around with the same accent as Sunjata - and would hurt someone in a seemingly random act? Only to leave them at Sunjata's doorstep? It certainly couldn't have been Melita.

"So it was a set up..." she grumbles, "but why?" And what, if anything, could they do to prevent it from happening again?

Aurelia would not put it past this place to enact justice in such a way. So her eyes flash wide with concern when the words 'killed him' break through her thoughts. She's about to flip out when Hotaru clarifies it was just in Remi's dreamscape... Okay... Time to set this tea down before she spills it all over the place.

She's not even worried about Hotaru's display of protection at the door, so the vague apology is unexpected and unnecessary. "No, it's fine, I'm glad he still has someone looking out for him, for fuck's sake," she blurts out, leaning back in her chair some to try and absorb everything. A stressed hand runs through the curled bangs by her face.

"I'm not dumb enough to confront Zephyr and two demi-gods... hopefully they've gotten enough from him now. But..." the look in her eyes lends itself to something darker, "I'm glad to be there if they try it again. Sunjata's my friend, and frankly I don't really care one way or another. I'll have his back - and yours, too," a friend of his is a friend of hers, let alone his wife, "As best I can, at least. I'm sorry I wasn't around when all of this happened in the first place. Maybe I could've vouched for him..." but it does feel moot, anyway.

but they can still carry you home
when you're ready to sleep

I was brought up as a southern belle
I grew into the queen of hell

Despite the few words utilized, it's quite a lot to take in, and Hotaru gives the woman plentiful time to come to terms with the spiraling implications of the past few days. There is tea and firewood aplenty for however long Aurelia feels inclined to stay, Hotaru will not chase her out into the dark now that she has proven the fledglings of her loyalty. The shakiness with which the dark haired lass sets her tea down upon learning of the gravity of Remi's actions has the Valkyrie softening all the further, resisting the urge to reach out somehow and provide a more physical sort of grounding for the girl.

"Loyalties are quite easily swayed in Torchline," she agrees mildly, a soft sigh an undercurrent to her tone. Not that she can blame them in a world such as this. The highest bidder means more than devotion in a city built on darker dealings. It seems there are still a few rare gems to be found amidst the sand and surf though, and Hotaru finds herself visibly taken aback when Aurelia swears her fealty with such passion - including not just Sunjata, but herself as well.

This time she does not resist the urge to reach across and settle her hand upon Aurelia's forearm, leaning forward and squeezing gently as her heterochromic eyes search the pale green ones that flicker in the firelight. "Thank you, Aurelia. Don't beat yourself up over not being here. This is my house, and I was still unable to be here to stop it." Reclining back into her seat - unwilling to risk making Aurelia uncomfortable - she frowns at the wood crackling in the fireplace. "Knowing our opponents is half the battle. The why is something we will have to figure out in between doing damage control. The rumors are strangely effective despite the evidence that Sunjata has not been pissing away his duties as Governor." And unfortunately, Hotaru's sickness-induced absence does not lend her any clues as to why it's working.

You were just a little stowaway
That stabbed her way to save herself

AURELIA

and my hands aren't clean
maybe they never will be

Aurelia can't empathize with weak loyalty, a decidedly disapproving look on her face. It's all or nothing for her, though she definitely sometimes wonders when and for whom it will come back to be her own demise. She might've bet a little higher on the Torchliners' merit, but... suppose she's lucky with the hand she's been dealt, with the people that have sort of taken her under their wings.

The hand that comes to rest on her arm draws her brows up from their thoughtfully dark frown. To her surprise, she's receiving thanks, but she knows better than to try and brush it off. Even if she needs none, and wants none, sometimes it's better to simply accept that people will be grateful for the things that you do. So she offers a nod, a simple gesture as she absorbs the rest of Hotaru's thoughts.

"So not much to do as it stands, then, is there?" She asks quietly, a little disappointed. "Something tells me he'll probably try to do it all himself, though... which is.. worrying." She glances deeper into the house, wondering if he can hear their conversation and sighing heavily. "I guess the most I can do is be here if he needs me."

With that being enough clarity to the things that have been troubling her, not that she's any less troubled, she does have a question specifically for Hotaru. "So... why haven't I ever met you before? Have you been somewhere else ... or am I just hopelessly ignorant?" Perhaps busy with other affairs beyond the reaches of Torchline, or perhaps Aurelia's so self-centered that she doesn't notice things that are right under her nose.

but they can still carry you home
when you're ready to sleep

I was brought up as a southern belle
I grew into the queen of hell

Hotaru's lips quirk approvingly at the disgruntled expression on Aurelia's face. A fondness curls round her heart. We'll have to work on that poker face, she thinks with no small amount of amusement. But that, at least, is not as time sensitive as all the rest of the events they are entangled in. Though Aurelia is far too accurate in pointing out how little control they truly have over the situation, inspiring Hotaru to sigh softly as she takes another sip of her tea.

"Unfortunately, yes. On both accounts. I'm sure I'll have my hands full just trying to keep him in this house." They're both quite adept at sneaking around, which will surely lead to a battle of wills and wits alike in the days winding down to the return of the sun. "He needs that support more than most things, though. Don't discredit it, he's not used to having people like us to lean on or inspire him to return home to." A small smile graces her lips, perhaps a tinge sad. They are still working on that particularly deep-rooted doubt of his, but the more people digging away at it, the faster it will happen.

"The sickness that came, it...I wandered off, into the Wilds. I don't remember anything of my time there. My companion kept me alive, but there are no portals there, and so there was no way to return me home until I had my wits about me once more." Her frown is fully pronounced now, regret and guilt alike still so fresh. It has been a mere handful of days since her return after all. "And then LongNight came, and Sunjata has kept me locked in ever since." The huff of a laugh that escapes her makes it obvious that it's a joke, though the Flood had definitely requested she not leave.

You were just a little stowaway
That stabbed her way to save herself

AURELIA

and my hands aren't clean
maybe they never will be

All Aurelia can do to handle her powerlessness is sigh and shrug her shoulders, relenting to things and natures that can't be changed. Hotaru's comment of trying to keep Sunjata in the house summons a small snort from her, though, and she shakes her head with some level of amusement. "I wish you luck with that," she says, though she definitely means it. It's probably best for everyone that he's as contained as possible. Don't need him going and making things unnecessarily worse, or putting himself in unnecessary danger(!!!!).

Mirroring Hotaru's body language without much realization of it, Aurelia retrieves her tea as well. She nods in soft agreement, the words offering some bit of inspiration and purpose that will leave a lasting effect on her in the days, weeks, months to come; for the time that Aurelia will be Sunjata's loyal friend. "That's true," she offers in acceptance, smiling gently, "I hope it'll be enough to help him fight back. The last thing he should do is give up when he's come so far, huh?" She admires it, the life he's managed to build for himself. She hopes one day she can do the same, to rebuild in a world that has never really been hers, that she never really belonged to. "It's the last thing any of us should do."

But she quiets down as Hotaru makes sense of why Aurelia had never met her before. Her expression darkens as she realizes that people getting sick and doing weird, uncharacteristic shit seems to be a common theme. Should she worry about something like that ever happening to herself? Or the other people around her? "Well, I'm glad you were able to find your way back home... it must have been frightening. I hear people get sick and do things unlike them... a lot, around here, it seems," she sets down the empty cup of tea and rises up to her feet with a long sigh, "Well, I... don't want to keep you up much longer. You must be exhausted, but... thank you, Hotaru, and it's been great to meet you," She extends a hand to officially shake Hotaru's, a bit of warmth in the motion as she offers a small smile, "I'm sure both you and Sunjata will keep each other safe here, but if either of you ever need a friend.. I work for Jack - an' I don't hide from anything. You'll be able to find me, if you ever need me."

but they can still carry you home
when you're ready to sleep

I was brought up as a southern belle
I grew into the queen of hell

A small huff of laughter sparks from her throat like embers in the fire at the offered luck, eyes alight with a glimmer of amusement that has long been absent since her return. "I would take rope over luck if you had it. Might keep him down longer." Even that would be pitiful in the face of his cataclysmic levels of martyrdom. Hotaru is convinced she spends more time in her relationship with Sunjata trying to keep him from offing himself in some backwards display of love than actually getting said love.

Ah, men.

"We won't let him give up, even if he dares to think it." There's a surety to her voice like bedrock, unshakable and stabilizing. This, if nothing else, she is confident in. They will offer him their strength if he falters, and now she is confident that Aurelia will be able to offer it in turn alongside her.

"That's why we have to stick together. So we have people to find and help us when we wander off." A strained smile comes to her lips, because in the end she hadn't been found. But it's the only cold comfort she can give the woman, whose trepidation swims in her pale green gaze all too obviously. She rises when Aurelia does, and does not hesitate to return the handshake at all. The beginnings of friendship have been woven this late evening, and while Hotaru is not normally the type one thinks of when considering a new friend, she has faith that this will prove a positive change. "I'll call on you regardless, Aurelia. You can't get rid of me that easily after listening to me blab all night." Her smile is tired but no less genuine as she guides the woman to the door. "Be safe out there. Let me know if you need me as well, the offer goes both ways." And she stands at the door until Aurelia is out of sight, closing it only when she has been swallowed up by the omnipresent darkness.

- FIN <3

You were just a little stowaway
That stabbed her way to save herself