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Post by pallas on Dec 21, 2023 10:09:53 GMT
It seemed that Lucien’s mention of the probation only added more fuel to the fire, intensifying the vitriol directed at Cleo. He hadn’t meant for that.
”The probation thing is news to me too.” Dillon was saying in response to Irene, not that it would do anything to help placate her, ”It’s news to all of us. As for what they said, I don’t know, Irene, they said it like an hour ago! It was awful, I and others called them out on it, I hoped that would be the end of it. Of course I didn’t fucking expect them to double down.”
Not to mention that there was so much to report after the meeting that felt a hell of a lot more urgent. And this didn’t feel like the place or time for the information to come out, as the current scene was demonstrating.
River was jumping in to support Luka and Lucien regarding the probation, but suddenly things were very quickly escalating elsewhere in the room with Luka and Cleo.
Chiara held her ground when Luka told her to get out of her way. She shook her head, a small but resolute movement.
”I’m doing this for you. No, I’m not moving.“ the girl responded. The satisfaction Luka might gain from hurting Cleo wouldn't be worth all of the trouble that would probably come with it. Besides, if they started hurting their own then they were no better than the exiled killing that Esme girl. No matter how people felt about Cleo, this was not the way to resolve it.
Then Luka turned and shot a fireball at Dillon’s phone, causing the young Hera champion to scramble out of the way as the fire flew towards his phone propped up on the desk. The phone which was within a few seconds more or less a mess of melted plastic and glass.
A little beyond the help of repair, obviously.
It had also, of course, ended the call with Irene. Not ideal, to say the very least. If they wanted to continue the meeting they’d have to get Irene connected to somebody else’s device.
Chiara gave a grateful smile to Ariella when she also came to intervene, physically restraining Luka until the fight had left the feisty Loki champion. The blonde was glad for the support, because she hadn’t been totally convinced that Luka wouldn’t have continued her assault regardless of Chiara in the way.
Cleo and Luka had an exchange then, and for possibly the first time Lucien felt like he was really seeing Cleo. When everything was stripped away, and they could make no excuses for themselves. All he could see was fear, guilt, remorse. They deserved to feel bad, he couldn’t deny that, but it still struck him. He’d never seen them like this.
”Cleo isn’t the only one who deserves anger here.” Dillon pointed out, having now retaken his seat but still not risked touching his destroyed phone, wrinkling his nose at the smell of burned plastic, ”The decision about River and Laurie wasn’t one they made alone. They shouldn’t bear the blame for it alone either. The probation, what they said at the meeting, that’s all them. But they’re not the only reason we’re in this mess.”
It was a fair point. Lucien thought Dillon had gotten off lightly compared to Cleo for his part in what had happened with Laurie and River. Probably because he’d spent that time in Venice after the kidnapping and during that time had been mostly beyond the reach of criticism by the other ascendants for what he had done. With the exception of Irene.
But Lucien looked around at the scene; the injured Cleo, the furious Luka, Dillon’s melted phone. This meeting was going nowhere productive or helpful. Right now, important things had been said which needed to be said, but if this meeting carried on he could only see it making everything worse.
”We’re getting nowhere here.” Lucien finally said.
Dillon looked at him, then around the room, and nodded. ”Right. Since we’ve lost Irene as well now, I suggest we wrap up this meeting and do any voting tomorrow. So maybe we can end this here, unless anyone has any final comments. Or unless Pascal had anything else to say.”
At his final words, Dillon’s eyes moved to River and the paper in his hands. If there were any other urgent revelations which needed to be shared, it should be done now. And if anyone in the room had any comments, now was the time to make them.
Lucien cast a glance over at Cleo, with their burn. He’d just told them that he wouldn’t take on any pain for them, and this was a person who’d hurt him. Dug through his personal life to find out things about him, namely his father, that he hadn’t wanted to share. Then aired that at a meeting with all the leaders. This was the person who’d told him that he didn’t deserve his leadership, no matter how much he thought they might be right about that. This was the person who’d hurt River, and Luka. But there was a part of him that couldn’t let himself leave them in pain like that.
Especially if they ended up going to the exiled.
”There’s a burn kit in the Medbay.” Lucien said to them with a sigh, ”Or I can help you with it. Your choice.”
After all, as much as he’d meant what he said about not wanting to take on any pain for them, he also knew he couldn’t let his personal feelings get in the way of his role as healer.
”I said I wanted to give you a second chance and I’m already regretting it. I’ve given far too many chances to people who didn’t deserve them. Don’t be one of them.”
_____
CHARACTER PROFILE IMAGE CREDIT: ElenaA via Picrew
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Post by Nari on Dec 21, 2023 15:50:16 GMT
“Do not-” Was all Irene managed to get out before the call was forcefully cut by a well-aimed fireball. An annoyingly well aimed one, and the leader was left stunned as she stared at the now blank screen. She took in a ragged breath, and exhaled forcefully, tapping a finger on the desk with increasing intensity.
She was cut off. Again. The anger was getting to her, and she’d managed to pierce through the top layer of wood with her fingernail. With her other hand, she picked her phone back up and dialed one of the Leaders’ numbers.
Luka specifically. When the call made it through, Irene gave a quick, “Well fuck you too then,” and immediately hung the phone back up.
She didn’t try calling anyone else’s phone, and instead pushed the device away from herself and rested her head in her hands. Through the entire meeting she’d been fucking pissed at everything; Cleo, the situation, the Exiled, and now Luka. It was all she could do clearly, get on a call and get mad at her inability to do anything.
Jason’s words stung in the back of her mind. “Don’t be selfish” and “I can’t keep just you safe-”, she knew he was right to show concern about the others and what they’re going through. Being stuck in Venice wasn’t helping anyone, it was becoming more of a hindrance each passing day. She couldn’t fight the exiled, she couldn’t keep her people safe, she couldn’t even stay connected to a fucking meeting.
She was less than useless.
Silently she turned towards Enzo in the room, exhaustion evident on her face. She slowly got up from her chair and made her way to the door, leaving the phone behind on the desk.
“I’m taking a walk,” Irene stated, “Need to clear my head for a bit. If anyone asks, tell them that.” Soon, she walked out.
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Post by Leo/ Clundy on Dec 21, 2023 18:20:28 GMT
Ariella picked up Luka and held her to her for a moment before putting her back down on the ground and crossing her arms over her chest. "You stopped yourself. I only held you incase I needed to take you away," she informed. She smiled at Luka then stepped towards Cleo and offered a hand to them.
"Let's check on that arm," she encouraged calmly.
As many good points as everyone made in this meeting, there was no hate towards Cleo from Ariella. She'd yet to really be wronged by them but she wasn't blind to the wrong that had been done. She hoped they listened to the pain and anger that was screamed in their face today. She really hoped they did right by what they've done wrong.
River had relaxed when the fire died and Dillon called for a continuation tomorrow. He'd glanced at where Pascal left his notes, picked them up, and read them. Important information. But, not important enough in helping to choosing a second person.
He looked up through his eyelashes at Dillon who seemed to be asking if he had anything else to add. He shook his head and raised his hoarse voice. "Tomorrow. First thing in the morning," River instructed, issuing the end of the meeting. He put the notes down on the table and rubbed a hand over his face.
"Go run an exercise," he muttered to Jason who was still standing next to him.
"Shouldn't I-"
"Go," River interrupted and pointed towards the door with his eyes still closed. He wasn't taking anything but a 'yes, sir' as an answer. If Jason was going to be one of the ones they traded over. Then he needed to be fully prepared to fight and lie his way out of there. River wasn't settled on rescuing a corpse.
Jason fell quiet and looked over the tired man. How much he cared but was too stubborn to show it. He found himself smiling and his vision getting a little blurry. Quickly, Jason wrapped River in a tight hug. "I'm sorry," he whispered against the man's shoulder. Sorry that he had to make him be ok with sending Jason to the exiles. Sorry that he was coming back just to say goodbye. Just sorry.
River was still, unsure how to react as he received this hug. With a sigh and a smile of his own, River gingerly wrapped his arms around the boy and patted his back. "You're tough. You'll be just fine," River said quietly to him. Then he pried him off of his body and once more pointed towards the door which caused Jason to laugh before going and exiting the meeting room.
Griffin was still holding onto Guinevere tightly and glaring from Luka to Cleo until the meeting was called off. He cupped a hand to her face and asked her with wide eyes "Are you ok?"
He didn't wait for a response, he just stood, picking her up like a bride and started making his way down the stands.
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Post by 𝕄𝕖𝕣𝕔𝕦𝕣𝕪 on Dec 22, 2023 3:55:15 GMT
Cleo stared at the floor, unable to meet the eyes of the others, a hollowed out, terrified, and guilty expression marred their features. They fought to keep such emotions down, they'd never been analyzed well. Given Luka's reactions and their own experiences, they didn't want to offer much else to say.
They were surprised when Dillon did admit he too made the decision, but they didn't offer up much more, hand clenched around the burn on their arm, eyes skittering to the fabric that was burnt away, their scrap of a jacket ruined.
Luka herself was grateful to be let go, but angled a look at Ariella that seemed both amused and fond, "Ew, stop, you're making me sound like I did something good," she commented, dusting herself off, "you're gonna ruin my bloody reputation."
Still, she smiled back, grateful despite her teasing words. It dropped slightly, a bit fast, but it wasn't tinged with guilt. Her phone rang and she begrudgingly answered it just to start to say Fuck off, though her words layered with the caller's own curse, and a large, loud beeping sound sounded as Irene hung up. Maturely, Luka sent back a middle finger emoji, pocketing the phone to watch the show going down before her.
When Ariella approached, Cleo took a hesitant step back. Imposing figures weren't often good ones, and from the track record of this meeting, the approach could only mean pain. It was something they were used to, but it didn't mean they were looking forward to it.
Ariella's kindness through them off a bit, especially after what all they'd done. Still, they nodded at her, and when Lucien addressed them, they schooled their features a bit.
"I think I earned this one, Fair-Lucien," they commented, tightening their hand around the wound reflexively, sending a fresh wave of pain through their senses. It almost felt gratifying, after everything that had transpired. It took being cornered and yelled at for them to drop their pride and listen. They knew, deep down, why exactly they were so unwilling to listen before, why they shut down the others so often, but their fears and trauma didn't rationalize anything.
Still, they sighed, "I don't think you're really going to need to worry about even giving me one," it was perhaps the first time they joked, offering a halfhearted chuckle. After all, as it looked, either Lucien or themselves were going to the Exiled soon.
While Cleo spoke about that, Luka watched for a moment, averting her gaze as they spoke, scoffing a bit under her breath. She didn't understand how Lucien kept giving Cleo chances after all they'd done to him and herself. To everyone.
Leveling a final glare at Dillon, who she felt got away without much fanfare, she made sure to address it, "You got off surprisingly scot-free, British Boy, but you're every bit as guilty as Cleo. At least they have the balls to make decisions and own up to them, instead of making dumb decisions and cowering the second it bites them in the ass." Her face twisted a bit, "Don't think your ability to cater to mob mentality is going to save you from the guilt of decisions that you chose to make."
She said them resolutely, surprisingly serious (despite the nickname and sarcastic drawl). She figured breaking his phone would be painful enough. After all, how else would he contact his not-boyfriend? Honestly, Cleo at least stuck to their decision not to date within the group. Dillon's feelings for the blonde Italian were almost sad to witness, and this flipflop on his decision once he was the one being impacted? Sickening.
She felt bad for River and Lorenzo for dealing with it. At least Lorenzo got to dodge that bullet, thanks to Dillon's very own ruling.
As Jason went to walk away, she quickly called out to him, a bittersweet smile on her face, "Hey Jason!" she said, hands cupped around her mouth, before falling to her sides, "We'll meet again soon, 'kay?"
After he left, she looked at River then at Chiara, and she approached her blonde friend.
"It's been a long day, Rainbow," she commented, softly, before seeming to fight with herself, looking away as she came to a decision, and opening her arms in invitation, "And you look like shit, so we can hug or whatever."
Guinevere watched the meeting with owlish eyes. The fireball was terrifying, and Luka looked about ready to kill Cleo. She almost worried she would witness a second murder, which would really suck with everything else that happened, even if she really was mad at Cleo right then.
When Griffin cupped her face, she was suddenly glad for her foundation, feeling blood rush to her face due to the gentle affection and concern. She didn't much respond, he was soon picking her up anyways, and she hugged her arms around his neck, burying her head in his shoulder as some tears escaped her. This day was a nightmare. From the haunting death the witness to Laurie's betrayal. She knew it would suck, but she never expected this day to go so horribly.
Everyday felt like that anymore.
Lorenzo gave a cry of surprise when the fireball hit the phone, a frown falling on his face. That was uncalled for, and not very nice of Miss Snake! He'd have to restrict her access to late night snacks when he got back just for that. Irene returned with an equally petty thing, and he frowned as he noticed her temper. His eagerness to please got the best of him, and he walked up to her, gently placing a hand on her shoulder.
He had no idea what to say though, and she broke the silence instead. She was going on a walk, she said, and he frowned, "Irene, I don't think that's a good-" he didn't get it out, the door closing, indicating her departure, and he let his raised hand that was held out towards her fall to his side, "...idea."
Left alone, he stared at his phone. He debated calling one of the leaders (not Dillon, unless his phone miraculously survived), but he paused as he went to dial Lucien's number. He probably had much better things to deal with, they all did, with everything happening.
Of course they did. They didn't have time to talk to a lowly member of the group who hated fighting in the first place. He distantly wondered if that's why he was allowed to stay in Venice, to keep him out of the way. Dillon sure had better things to do then deal with him.
Placing the phone down, he walked off to enter his temporary room. Irene needed time, and he doubted anything he could do would help. That's what Jason was good at, and now Jason was gone.
He had nothing better to do, might as well try to rest.
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Post by pallas on Dec 22, 2023 7:42:10 GMT
Chiara stepped away from Cleo and Luka once Ariella released Luka and offered their hand to Cleo. Lucien was speaking to Cleo as well so it seemed the two of them had that situation handled.
When River said that Pascal had nothing to say that needed to be urgently said and nobody else appeared to have anything they needed to say, Dillon nodded.
”Alright. Then meeting adjourned until tomorrow. If someone could text Irene or Enzo to let them know I would really appreciate it.” Dillon sighed, glancing at his wrecked phone. Just what he needed right now. Still, he deserved it. He’d just said that Cleo wasn’t the only one who deserved anger.
Lucien nodded when Cleo said they earned that one. He wasn’t doing it in agreement. Just acknowledging that was their decision to make. Their choice. ”That’s up to you. What I said before was wrong. My job is to heal, not to let my personal shit interfere. You know you can text me if you change your mind or drop by the Medbay.”
When they said that he wouldn’t have to bother giving them a chance soon, the corners of his mouth liften slightly in the hint of a smile.
”Damn, I guess you’re right.” He replied before adding more seriously, ”Good luck tomorrow. I mean it. I don’t think you should be sent to them to atone for what you did, like some kind of punishment.”
He didn’t feel like it was fair, and he didn’t think it was what was needed to make anything right. How could Cleo going to possibly get killed make anything right? It was just piling pain on top of pain.
”That was exactly my point,” Dillon said in response to Luka’s words, ”I’ve gotten off lightly compared to Cleo and that isn’t fair. I’ve always accepted and owned my part in what happened, so don’t pretend you know shit you never spoke to me about. I’d welcome fair judgement for what I did, I’m not scared of that. I know I deserve it.”
After saying that, he went back to packing his things away, and taking another look at that wrecked phone. Not that he really needed to bother assessing the damage since the thing was beyond repair.
Chiara was surprised at the offer of a hug, but she accepted it, moving in to hug the other girl. When she released Luka she gave the other girl a smile.
”I have to do something really quickly, but I can catch you in our corridor later, maybe?“ Chiara suggested. A reminder to the other girl that she was still there for her. That despite the absence of Theo the two of them weren’t alone in the Norse wing. Luka didn’t have to accept the offer but she wanted to make it so the girl knew she could go to Chiara if she wanted to. She had a bad gut feeling, a worry about Luka that she couldn’t shake. It felt like Luka was settled on something, and Chiara didn’t like that at all. The hug only made the bad feeling deepen. It had a finality to it that Chiara didn’t like.
With that said, she left the other girl and weaved her way across the room to River as people began to filter out of the room. This didn’t have to be super private; she didn’t mind who caught this conversation. She just made sure to wait until Jason had departed so the boys could have their conversation.
”River? Are you free to talk for a minute?“ Chiara asked, stopping in front of where River had been sitting.
Once he’d agreed, the girl cleared her throat. She had tried not to talk too much about the situation with her arm, so speaking about it felt strange and a little nerve-wracking.
”My arm,“ she began with a gesture to her bad arm, ”Lucien told me to see what improvement it shows on its own but it hasn’t gotten much better and I don’t have time to wait. It’s my dominant arm. Not being able to use it is… scary.“
There was such a sense of urgency now with how things were escalating with the exiled. It was beyond just the feeling of not being able to trust your body to do what you needed it to do. This was about being able to fight and defend herself against these people. She’d be useless if her arm didn’t get better.
”I wondered if you could help me strengthen it again,“ the blonde continued, vaguely aware of people packing things away and leaving around them. ”and maybe teach me to fight with my left arm just…just in case. I’m not willing to ever feel this vulnerable again.“
Fenrir had damaged that arm twice already. There was nothing to stop him doing it a third time. She couldn’t be made this helpless in a fight again, she knew she had to have something to fall back on.
”You don’t have to, obviously. But if you can help I’d be grateful.“ the girl finished. She was obviously aware River was still healing and she didn’t want to force him into anything he didn’t want to do or might not feel capable of. But either way whether he helped her or not, she couldn’t continue like this.
In the meantime, Lucien approached Luka to catch her before she left. People were already filtering out of the room.
”Look Luka, I’m sorry. I know I made everything worse for you. I didn’t want you to have to go. I’ve never been able to protect you before.” Lucien said to her. ”But I know when you get that look on your face it means you’re going to do something stupid. Please don’t.”
He then pulled Luka into a quick hug before releasing her and placing a hand on her upper arm, offering her a smile.
”I’ll see you in the morning, Lukes. Last one to the meeting room loses.” he said softly.
And with that, he headed out of the meeting room. First stop would be Medbay to check on Lane before he headed to his own room for the night.
_____
CHARACTER PROFILE IMAGE CREDIT: ElenaA via Picrew
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Post by Leo/ Clundy on Dec 23, 2023 2:56:09 GMT
River cut his eyes towards Chiara as she approached him remaining still with one hand in his pocket. He watched her make her case and glanced briefly at the arm that was causing her so much trouble.
Fenrir really had gotten his teeth through her arm. Scarred and ugly and damaged. He could understand the fear that she expressed. What if I can't defend myself when it comes down to it? What if I can't use it ever again? Can I live this that?
He turned his head towards her fully and slowly dragged his eyes from her arm. "You're most likely going to have pain in your body for the rest of your life," he stated matter-of-factly. Though he could only guess and assume that she'd end up like him and his body pains from past wounds. "You're going to feel vulnerable again."
A muscle twitch, a sudden random pain from something that looks healed on the outside. A deep throbbing pain from somewhere that couldn't exactly be pinpointed. The body could only repair so much of what is missing. She was lucky it was just her arm and not more. That it wasn't something more vital.
But he sighed heavily and glanced towards the door that Jason had just gone through after waving towards Luka. "Training room tomorrow night," he instructed quickly. He had the time now that Jason was going to be gone temporarily and he couldn't exactly deny someone for the help they were asking for. "Start with laps and then stretch before I get there or i'll make you do more, got it?"
He didn't wait for her to answer he just turned and started picking up the rest of Pascal's notes.
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Post by pallas on Dec 23, 2023 10:51:00 GMT
River was probably right, that Chiara could reasonably expect that her arm would always give her pain and would never completely be like it was before. At the moment what was concerning her was how little pain she had been getting. She was becoming very worried about the nerves in the arm, even if it was showing a little improvement. Just not enough. This was why she had to try and see what she could go to rehabilitate it. Get a better sense of what they were working with, at least.
She hoped that in strengthening her injured arm and improving her ability to fight with her left arm, she would be less likely to be caught out again in a fight. If what happened before were to happen again, at the very least she’d have her left arm to rely on. That was huge for her.
And if her right arm wasn’t in a place where it could regain a lot of function, at the very least she would be able to function better with just one arm by training with her left. She’d be okay.
She nodded at his instructions, ”Got it. Laps and stretching. Thank you, River.“
She’d been meaning to ask him for a couple of days now, so she hoped it didn’t feel like she’d waited for Jason to leave to ask or something. But it seemed River was happy enough to train her. Perhaps it would give him something else to think about while Jason was gone at the same time as helping Chiara out.
She headed out of the meeting room at that point, with no plans but to go back to her room and finally try and process everything in the quiet. The loud shouting in the meeting had been painful and the entire day had been even more stressful than she’d imagined it could have been. Not to mention that Theo was gone. She needed some time to think.
Once Chiara had left and the meeting room was almost entirely empty, Dillon took his opportunity to also speak to River. He wanted this conversation to be as private as possible, for both of their sakes. The boy was more than a little nervous about this, but he was confident that it needed to be said and he had concluded it might as well be now. He had to do what Irene had told him, and indeed what he’d wanted to do for a long time; take control and apologise.
”Hey,” Dillon began, deciding to just rip the bandaid off before he lost his nerve, ”I know this has been far too long coming. I kept waiting for a better time but I’m realising there’s never going to be a good time. It’s more important that I say it.”
He’d been away in Venice, yes, but he’d been back for around a week and there had been time before he’d gone to Venice. He’d had opportunity to apologise that he hadn’t taken because he hadn’t thought it was the right time.
Dillon took a breath. ”I’m so sorry that I gave my approval to you and Laurie breaking up. It was disgusting of me and I know it hurt you both deeply. It’s not the kind of person I want to be and I really regret it.” He’d felt awful about it ever since he’d made the decision, but he doubted River cared to hear about that. His guilt couldn’t compare to what he’d done to River and Laurie, after all. ”I’m not saying this because I want to feel better, and certainly not because I ever expect forgiveness or for you to accept the apology - I don’t. I’m saying it because you’ve deserved to hear it for far too long.”
The fact was that he didn’t think he deserved to feel better or be forgiven. He hadn’t been held nearly as accountable as Cleo so frankly as bad as he himself felt he didn’t think he deserved to feel better yet. It would be getting off too easily.
He hoped that maybe with time and healing they could move forward eventually and be the teammates they needed to be. But he expected nothing. Certainly he didn’t expect this to be put behind them anytime soon.
But an apology was needed, in fact long overdue. That was all he knew. He wasn’t expecting this go to well, especially with the revelations of the day, but he couldn’t continue leaving the apology unsaid.
_____
CHARACTER PROFILE IMAGE CREDIT: ElenaA via Picrew
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Post by Leo/ Clundy on Dec 23, 2023 15:11:08 GMT
Oh god there was another one.
Whatever semi-friendly aura that was left from speaking to Chiara evaporated like smoke when Dillon started speaking to him. He straightened and fully faced him, arms crossed over his chest and his chin tilted upward slightly.
He looked bored of the apology. Expected words, expected guilt. Nothing new or different or unique in his apology compared to everyone else's. Like they all read the same script.
He glanced towards the rest of the room and noticed it was pretty much cleared out. Everyone off to do there own thing to relax for the rest of te night and he was stuck here with Hera's boy. And Dillon was genuine in his apology, he knew. But there was no reason as to why he was getting this apology besides 'it wasn't the right time'.
"Why?" River asked bluntly. He stared expectantly at Dillon, waiting for what he had to say for himself before scoffing and rolling his eyes. "Sorry, I should be clear. Why do you regret it?" He clarified.
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Post by pallas on Dec 23, 2023 16:16:17 GMT
River’s question was completely fair. It was also one he deserved an answer to.
”When I made the choice, I thought it was the best way to protect the group as a whole.” Dillon replied, ”But the more I thought about it afterwards the more I concluded that all I was doing was hurting you and Laurie. I even spoke to Enzo about it when he ran into me in the kitchen that night, about how I thought I’d made a bad decision.”
But he’d mentioned Enzo, and he knew it had to be addressed. He wasn’t stupid, he knew how everything looked. He owed River the truth here, without deception.
”I know how all this looks, because there were feelings between me and Enzo. I won’t deny that it helped me understand more deeply how badly I failed you and Laurie. But I told Enzo there couldn’t be anything between us, and I’m not doing this to change that. It isn’t my intention. I know you probably won’t believe that, and that’s okay. But it’s the truth. And I regretted my decision before there was really anything between me and him, I regretted it later that night. I regret it because all that choice brought was pain and we had no right to make it.”
He knew River didn’t have to believe that. That was okay. Dillon was honest with himself that Enzo had impacted how he felt about the choice, but it wasn’t what had made him change his mind. It had only made him more resolved that his decision was wrong.
He’d never wanted it to go as far as a breakup. It wasn’t much better, but his suggestion in the meeting had been maybe a temporary break. That still hadn’t been a suggestion he’d had the right to make.
”I should’ve apologised so much sooner after the meeting. I didn’t think you’d want to hear it, but it was wrong of me. I know that.”
He had to be honest here or the apology would be worthless. He wasn’t pretending Enzo played no part, but he also couldn’t pretend that Enzo was the cause of his regret. That was equally untrue. His feelings for Enzo had merely shown him even further why he had been wrong.
_____
CHARACTER PROFILE IMAGE CREDIT: ElenaA via Picrew
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Post by Leo/ Clundy on Dec 23, 2023 17:04:08 GMT
River rolled his eyes even harder at Dillon's explanation and stepped into his space. He quoted what stuck out to him and spoke on it. " 'I know you probably won't believe that'. No you don't. You're assuming I won't and that's what has continued to get you in trouble this entire time," he hissed in the other man's face. His anger was starting to bubble again, causing him to feel just a little too hot in this sweater.
Jabbing a finger into Dillon's chest his face contorted into that of disgust. "You don't know me. Don't speak for me."
He folded his arm back across his chest and took another step forward forcing Dillon back against the table. "I don't care enough about your outside life to realize you and Enzo even have a thing for each other," he corrected again. Because it's true he just didn't care.
He didn't care much for anyone around the pantheon after the break up. He just sulked and stayed to himself. Hardly giving anyone a closer look as long as they didn't talk to him. He'd been betrayed and hurt. He couldn't nor would he care about the rest of the leaders.
"I still don't care. It's not my business. See how easy that is?" he asked sarcastically. He changed the subject towards the original answer of the 'why'.
'I thought it was the best way to protect the group as a whole'.
"If you truly cared for the entire pantheon's safety I handed you my resignation. You all ignored it and decided to be petty over one incident," River hissed again. "Again and again I said i'd step down but instead it was voted to hurt me. Because it was better for the group's safety? Bullshit. That I don't believe," he was raising his voice now. It crackled with strain and tiredness but he kept pushing through it. Leaning over Dillon he narrowed his at him and scowled.
"As badly as I want to punch you I need you functional and I don't need Lucien tired."
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Post by pallas on Dec 23, 2023 18:00:47 GMT
Dillon backed up as River approached closer and closer into his space, until his back hit the table and he had no further to go. That was okay. He didn’t want to keep backing away from this. That was why he’d done all this. To face up to what he’d done.
”I can’t justify what I did, River, it’s not justifiable. We never had the right to make that decision even if it had been best for the group, that’s my point. All I can do is what I have done, which is apologise and mean it. I deserve to be held accountable, by you and by everyone else. Same as Cleo.” Dillon accepted that. He’d said as much in the meeting. He’d accept any judgement for what he’d done.
”I hurt you and it was incredibly wrong. I made an intentional choice to put your value to the group as not just a leader but a fighter over your personal happiness and I am so ashamed of that. It was an awful thing to do.”
River made the comment about wanting to punch him, which was more than fair. He’d deserve it, had deserved it for a while and had gotten this far without really being held to account for what he’d done.
”You have every right to punch me, but I get it. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure the exiled know you’re first in line.”
The conversation had gone about as he’d expected it to. He’d never thought this apology would go down well because, well, why the hell would it? He’d done this with every intention of facing the music. But maybe, just maybe, the air was a little more clear now between the two of them. River was every bit as angry as he needed to be, but at least what had needed to be said had been said on both sides.
_____
CHARACTER PROFILE IMAGE CREDIT: ElenaA via Picrew
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Post by Leo/ Clundy on Dec 23, 2023 18:28:32 GMT
He looked between Dillon's eyes once he finished saying that he deserved it and River was first in line to punch him. About how awful he felt and what he did was inexcusable. It really only served to piss River off even more.
"It's like you want me to hurt you," he scoffed and smiled bitterly at Dillon. The urge to forget what he just said and punch him anyway was so intense he had to take a step back and look away from him. He flexed the fingers on his injured hand and turned away to get the notes he left on the table.
He didn't stop moving as he spoke again, this time with his back turned. "You're not going so you have no one to tell that but me," River corrected. He glanced behind himself briefly to give Dillon one last look before going towards the door.
"No one wants your shitty apologies we want you to do better and make decisions for yourself," he called. Words meant nothing to him anymore. Everyone always came at him with words for their apology. Words that were long overdue and had little to no weight anymore. None of them were really trying to do better. Show him they wanted to make it up to him.
They just say they wanted to.
Before he excited the room, he paused with the door open in front of him and the final thing he'd say on the matter.
"Get you shit together. I won't tell you a third time."
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Post by 𝕄𝕖𝕣𝕔𝕦𝕣𝕪 on Dec 23, 2023 18:43:31 GMT
Exiting the room was a breath of fresh air, though she wasn't about to do it in the same way she entered. Falling from the ceiling had to have been one of her more embarrassing feats.
She should have maintained her transformation, but her body was giving out, and focusing on being sad wasn't exactly helping. Especially with Lucien's fucking stupidity.
It solidified her plan, regardless. She'd been building it sense she learned Theo was sent there, and given Laurie's apparent betrayal, it was only so long before this anger towards Cleo collapsed a bit and the reality of what that really meant help. When the feelings of anger and hurt faded a bit, then the betrayal would set in. Given just how everyone replied to Cleo's words, she didn't want to imagine what the hell that group would do when they realized Laurie was actually siding with the group that killed Haleema. They wanted to send Cleo to their death, and honestly, she would kind of enjoy that, but Cleo going would ruin everything.
Rubbing at her tattoo, gift of Loki, she went to her first stop of the night. Chiara was busy with River, which left Luka to do her work here. With a glance around the empty Norse hall, her eyes caught on Haleema's door, looking away to Theo's, and stopping before Chiara's, running her hand along the symbol on the door. Heimdallr was insistent Chiara not need a lock on a door. She remembered that conversation on Halloween, that terrible night haunted her mind still, but perhaps one good thing came from it.
Pushing the door open, Luka walked into the room. It had a very wooden vibe, with wooden beams and decorations on the wall of various Norse symbols. It was warm, and she was almost reminded of her room that had cozy napping places, and Chiara's even had a fireplace too. Though, Luka's was a firepit. There were bookshelves lining a wall, and as she walked into the room, she spotted what she came here for.
The comb. On a dresser. She quickly made her way over, picking up the object and inspecting it. Her throat felt tight as she felt it within her hands. Just this morning, she saw Theo brushing his hair with this silly little object.
She placed it in a bag she had with her, and made her way out of the room. Best not take more time then was needed. Without much fanfare, she closed Chiara's door and entered her own room, locking the door behind her.
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Post by pallas on Dec 23, 2023 19:01:19 GMT
Lucien had just finished checking on a very exhausted Lane. It seemed her trip to the underworld had drained her energy in a big way, for she’d been asleep when he arrived and had not stirred when he checked her IV.
The boy was heading back in the direction of his room and had just sent off a message to Irene about the arrangements for the next morning and letting her know the meeting had ended immediately after Luka had blasted Dillon’s phone. It was at that point that another notification appeared on his phone screen. A text from River, telling Lucien he wanted to talk to him in River’s room. He couldn’t say he was exactly surprised after that wreck of a meeting.
He was already headed that way anyway to head back to his own room, so he sent River a quick response to say he was on his way and headed down to the Greek wing of the Pantheon.
He stopped outside River’s room, raising his hand to knock. He didn’t know what to expect from this interaction but he knew River wasn’t the most pleased with him at the moment.
”If you called me here to tell me how stupid I was in that meeting, you really don’t have to. You all covered it pretty well.” Lucien said simply once River had opened the door.
That was all he could think of that River might have called him there for. To try and tell him what an idiot he’d been. To tell him that if he went in the morning, it would be a nightmare for the ascendants. Not that it mattered now. The ascendants seemed likely to send Cleo, not that he felt that sending someone as penance for what they’d done was the right way to be approaching this deal.
Unless River wanted to talk to him about the probation thing he’d come out with in the meeting. But really he didn’t have much to say about it that he hadn’t already covered in the meeting. Still, if River had questions, he’d answer them.
_____
CHARACTER PROFILE IMAGE CREDIT: ElenaA via Picrew
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Post by Leo/ Clundy on Dec 23, 2023 19:21:49 GMT
He'd left the door slightly ajar for Lucien whenever he'd decided to show up. In the mean time he started cleaning his room. Putting weapons back in their places on racks and on the wall. Throwing clothes into a corner that he'd have to actually fold and wash later. For now there was a pathway.
He didn't stop when there was a knock at his door or when Lucien entered and started speaking. Already defensive as usual. "Oh good because my throat can't take much more yelling and I need to set up a lesson for tomorrow," River replied as he moved around the room.
He kept cleaning for a little while longer, not saying anything, just tossing things in a place that he'd have to get to later. When he glanced at Lucien just standing there he pointed to the small table and chairs he and Pascal had been at just hours beforehand. "Sit."
River joined him at the table and pushed the sleeve of his hoodie back to show a bandaged hand with a red spot having bloomed on the back of his hand. "Help me unwrap this," he instructed. He started undoing some of it then left the rest to Lucien so that he could sit and access just how much pain his hand was causing right now.
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