Sv: Knockout and knocks on doors [Cadmus, Dominic & Cassius]

af **Cassius** Lør Feb 11, 2023 11:50 pm

Cadmus had agreed with him that the stranger should not talk with Dominic alone. Much like Dominic, Cassius’ patience for the stranger was wearing quite thin. He listened to her as she spoke, his gaze never leaving her and remained steely with zero patience. His expression turned into slight surprise as she spoke, telling them what this other person wanted with them. An interview? With the EFA? When did people, especially the media (it must have been someone from some major media that wanted the interview, who else?) want to know what the EFA had to say? All they wanted was usually to paint them as demons who wanted the world to burn and be destroyed. Cassius was pretty sure he had heard a rumor about them eating babies for breakfast or something like that.

Cassius then glanced at Cadmus and Dominic, knowing that if, and that was big if, they were to do the interview, it will be either those two or one of them who spoke. Cassius was just not the person for it, it was way too risky to reveal he was a part of the EFA, both for the group and maybe for him too. He slightly shook his head in an attempt to stop his mind for overthinking things that more than likely would not happen. It just felt like it wasn’t something Cassius could decide, besides this interview would be more risky for Cadmus and Dominic than it would be for Cassius.

af **Cadmus** Man Feb 13, 2023 8:48 pm

As Dominic's anger returned, Cadmus knew the world as he knew it had returned to normal. This was the man he knew, and although he was objectively frightening like this, Cadmus preferred it to out of character softening from before. If the woman was not here to kill Dominic, and it really seemed she wasn't, then there was a slight possibility she would be the one getting hurt in this encounter. As this would without doubt turn into a very messy affair, it was a relief that Dominic backed their insistence on staying. The two of them not being left unsupervised was probably, safer for everyone.

The men's exchange seemed to puzzle the woman, and it was impossible to miss her confusion. Sure, he supposed most people found the EFA strange. Theirs was a very strange dynamic. Not so much now, as when he had first joined, and most of the members had been in their teens. How a group so sad had gotten themself such a reputation was a mystery to him. He supposed it was just another example of the government playing up the nachon threat. What had this woman expected? Strange as it was, this young woman already had a very clear image of how a criminal organisation should be run. Or was it strange? He had already taken her as a hitman, and if she wanted to do business, or worked for someone who did, that was not entirely legal. The answer to what that business could be, came soon enough:

”My client wants an interview with you. She wants to give you - the EFA - a chance to have a voice in the public forum.”

Cadmus couldn't help himself. He let out a small laugh of disbelief and turned to look at Dominic and Cassius. So, he guessed, he had been proven wrong, doing nothing really had been the way to solve their problems after all. He hoped Dominic could see it too. Of course, he still didn't trust the woman, in all fairness, she had given them no reason to, except not shooting anyone. That would be setting the bar a bit too low. Still, it was such a coincidence, if such things even existed, he was more inclined to view this as some sort of cosmic interference. It was silly to fall it faith, but they had wanted a way to speak up, and now this mysterious human girl showed up and handed them the solution. How could he not find it amusing?

Even if this was a possible solution, he was unsure whether Dominic would take it. It was likely to be the only shot they got. One of those things that he could not even admit to himself; he was sick of doing nothing. Especially on Dominic's behalf. Cadmus could run, hide or whatever he was doing. But Dominic? Dominic was a fighter, and he needed a fight. This same part of him was ready to slam a fist into the coffee table and exclaim that the deal was sealed, Dom would do it, no problem. But of course, he couldn't. He couldn't accept on Dominic's behalf, no matter how much he wanted to. Still, he had to do something.

"No," He said slowly, turning to look at the woman, "the question is, how can we be sure this isn't a trap? And if it isn't, can we trust your client not to twist our words, or to spill our names?" He rested his head on a hand, elbow on the sofa armrest. "You say she wants to interview Dom, or the EFA, I presume. Why does she believe that anyone would want to hear our story? Isn't this dangerous for her too?"

af **Dominic** Tors Feb 16, 2023 8:54 pm

Dominic couldn't care less about the stranger being puzzled over how she wasn't going to talk to just him. Actually that wasn't true - he might even have felt a slight satisfaction when she looked confused between the three of them. So she hadn't figured everything out. He was still a bit shaken inside from her revealing a name he didn't think anyone would link him to anymore. That didn't show on the outside though - Dominic' stoic demeanor presented him as a nothing but a commander, the most human thing about him right now being the anger in his eyes.
Not even when the woman talked about her client wanting an interview with them did the anger fade. Instead he furrowed his brow as if he asked how the stranger had the audacity to propose such a thing. Actually, it only lit a fire to his frustration how well-timed such an offer was. As if the stranger had listened in on their conversation. Which was a possibility Dominic considered, but no, that made no sense. It simply was a matter of the universe playing its irony as it so often did.

He wasn't the only one to take note of the irony - Cadmus let out a small laugh of disbelief. Probably not something he wanted to do, but due to his horrible mood Dominic instinctively turned his dagger-shooting eyes towards him. It wasn't that Cadmus had done anything wrong by laughing, Dominic could even rationally agree to the absurdity of the situation, but right now it was simply the fact that he was laughing that pissed Dominic off, being too shut off by his own anger to nuance the reaction. However, it was only for half a second before he turned his head towards the actual cause of his anger - or well, the anger in this moment - the stranger.

He hadn't even taken the time to consider whether or not he actually thought it was a good idea to do the interview - he only knew that he wanted to say 'no' out of spite to spoil the stranger's mission - when Cadmus intervened. Asking the right questions and neither agreeing or disagreeing before knowing the pros and cons properly. Dominic regretted that half second he had turned his anger towards him. But there was nothing to do about that right now. So instead he said, confrontationally: "He's right. Why would we agree to do this?" He didn't mean it as why would they agree to talk about their point of view because of course they would like to be heard. But as Cadmus said - how could they know it wasn't a trap? Why would they agree to do this, with a stranger who had sent yet another stranger out to find them. Nothing about this seemed right to Dominic.

af **Edita** Tors Feb 16, 2023 11:42 pm

The ill-looking guy kept quiet, althoug he did look at her intently as if he tried to harm her with only his gaze. She could see why he would do so; she had only tracked down their secret location, showed up unannounced, played along with their games, and tricked them into revealing who the real Dominic Windsor was… Okay, perhaps they did have a teeny tiny reason to be a little weeney angry with her. But that was beside the point right now. SHe came here, to give them an opportunity, and truly she was just doing her job, so could they please just let her do her job?

The handsome man’s sudden laugh did surprise her. Her eyebrow raised, confused by this reaction. Had she said something funny? Did he think the proposition was so absurd that it was laughable? She could feel her cheeks getting hot from either anger or embarrassment, perhaps even both. She didn’t like the idea of him thinking her ideas were absurd and laughable - that she was laughable. It wasn’t even her idea! It was Irene’s! They shouldn’t judge her for an idea that wasn’t even hers! She was just a messenger! And then the handsome man even dared to say ‘no’ to this proposition. This surprised Edita even more, her thoughts of embarrassment and anger disappearing. No?No?! This could not happen. Why would they not take on this opportunity? She blinked. They had to do this. Even Dominic agreed with the handsome man…

She looked at the three of them, her mouth a straight line for a moment as she thought this through. So they wanted trust? Knowledge of this being legit? A reason for them to do this? Well, she just had to convince them then… ”The interview could be done anonymously, through messages, encrypted by Zeals or something - we have lots of ways to converse safely, where my client wouldn’t even have to know what you look like or your names.” She said, confident in her voice, her gaze commanding eyecontact as she looked at each of them. The Family was first and foremost a business that prioritised security of the individual. Names were rarely the members’ legal ones, and messages were primarily exchanged through encrypted devices that were untracable. They wouldn’t want anyone nosy stumbling across their conversations. She could most definitely get her hands on the right equipment. She leaned forward in her seat, towards the three men, leaning on her forearms, very similar to how the handsome man had been sitting before, when he tried to intimidate her. ”Truthfully, I do not know the intentions behind my clients wish to do this interview. I didn’t question it as my only job is to provide contact between you and her.” She shrugged her shoulders. ”But does that even matter? You really don’t have any other options, or else I would have been contacted by more people.” Firstly they had to trust her, then they could trust Irene afterwards. Let’s do one thing at a time. She reached a hand towards them, as if to shake their hand.

”As for making sure this isn’t a trap: I assume one of you is a trained Nachon?” She said, nodding towards her outstretched hand, giving permission for one of them to look at her memories to confirm that there were no dirty tricks at play here. This was really her only idea of convincing them to trust her. And truthfully, she was kinda desperate now. She had never in her dreams imagined that they would not want to do the interview. And her job needed them to participate in it. They had to trust her. ”Feel free to look around, I promise I’m a person worth your trust.”

af **Cassius** Fre Feb 17, 2023 7:38 pm

Cassius glanced at Cadmus when he let out a laugh. Cassius shifted his glance to the stranger as Cadmus spoke. He did agree with everything he said, especially about this interview possibly being a trap. That was the most logical option for Cassius at the moment. Cassius gave the stranger a suspicious glance. Cassius' glance moved from the stranger to Dominic as he spoke. His gaze eventually returned back to the stranger once again. She then proceeded to suggest how the interview could be done anonymously. Cassius then glanced back at Dominic and Cadmus. That suggestion certainly would lower the risks of doing the interview, however the question was; Could they actually trust this girl?

Before Cassius could doubt her words even more, she asked something that surprised Cassius. ”I assume one of you is a trained Nachon?” as she stretched out her hand. ”Feel free to look around…” She was willingly letting one of them mess around in her memories to see if she spoke the truth and they could actually trust her. Cassius didn’t say a word. He only looked down at his own hands, the memory of his hands being as black as coal overlapping over his hands. The memory of the immense pain he felt before his memory had gone and he had woken up different… with a hunger he never had felt before until that moment. He shook his head before looking away from his hands as they started fiddling with the bracelet he wore. Cassius had no need to worry for the stranger, this was Cadmus’ area of expertise. He didn’t need to fear her ending up like him. Cassius forced himself not to think of the past and focused rather on what his friend's would decide now that she had both given a suggestion on how to conduct the interview as well as the opportunity to prove she was someone they could trust.

af **Cadmus** Søn Feb 19, 2023 5:19 pm

Unused as he was to feel the anger of Dominic Windsor aimed at him, Cadmus felt the moment of his friend staring at him with the animosity formerly reserved the stranger, like a gut punch. Rationally, he knew it meant nothing more than his friend's inability to resists the anger and frustration, which was now carrying him away. However, knowing something rationally was not the same as not feeling hurt. Although he managed to keep himself from flinching, he still felt the rejection and the implied inadequacy. Had he done anything wrong? Of course not. If Dominic could not be blamed for showing his anger, Cadmus had not been at faults either when reacting instinctively with a laugh, at an unarguably absurd situation.

But he knew the guilt he felt was not for the laughter. It was for remembering the reasons he had once expected the world to look at him with such hatred. It was for the fraction of a second in which he had allowed himself to play into an old, masochistic fantasy. An image he no longer bought into, but nevertheless couldn’t reject. One he was unable to deny still dictated much of his life yet had no intentions on reflecting on. He had gotten used to accepting that, as horrible as it was, the thought of the universe punishing him, or at least approving of any harm aimed towards him, felt satisfyingly right.

It was from this the guilt stemmed. The inability to let go, and the resulting failure at keeping a promise.

Having briefly re-established himself as a horrible person, he should not have felt bad for the stranger's reaction to his laugh, as her look of confusion evolved into something else, making her cheeks burn bright with emotions. Yet he felt no pleasure in seeing her embarrassed, for he felt confident that this was partly the reason why she reacted this way, despite his disapproval of her motives for such embarrassment in the first place. He had not found her proposition laughable, rather the timing of her manifestation – as he was tempted to call it– made the situation appear in an absurd light. Since he felt bad for her, even as she misinterpreted his no to be a refusal of her offer, he could not be completely heartless. After all, he owed this stranger nothing, not even compassion. But with both Dominic and Cassius agreeing with him, the former verbally, the later by silent approval, he found it easier to remember the virtue that was kindness and apply it towards both this strange woman and himself.

When she spoke, confidently, about the possibility of an anonymous interview, and she met his eyes, he found himself once again impressed by her control of the situation. Whatever strange game the four of them were currently playing, she had played it before. As she mirrored his earlier attempt at intimidation, admitting to not knowing much more than what she had shared, it struck him, that although the decision of whether to accept the interview seemed to lie with them, the EFA, they had never really had a choice. He realised, that she had known this too, confirming it by declaring that they had no other options.

Did this make him, or any of the others trust her? No. Rather, it cemented that she was in fact not to be trusted. She had somehow discovered, not just their hiding place, but their current state of defencelessness, and she had come armed with an offer impossible to turn down.
What did make him trust her was the outreached hand of hers, and he stared at it in disbelief as she continued to speak.

Was she unaware of how risky her suggestion was? Did she just not care? Or was she confident enough to trust them with, what was essentially equivalent to letting one of them hold a gun to her head and trust him not to pull the trigger?

He trusted her, because he did not need to take the hand to know that she spoke the truth. To know that the outstretched hand was in fact what it seemed. Because he knew that this action of hers was the correct one. That she would not be harmed. He knew that Dominic wouldn’t, and Cassius couldn't take her hand. He knew that he would not take it and harm her. No matter how easy it would be to take her on her word and look around. He was sure, she was unaware, had to be, of just how dangerous this implication was. It was one thing to agree on a memory or a situation, to show someone something, and only that thing. Even that was risky. Even that made him uneasy.

He did not have to take it, he told himself, acutely aware of the how odd this behaviour of his had to look, but he did not have to take it. He could look her in the eyes and tell her, that the action was an insult and that he already knew that she spoke the truth. Pretend that it was the insult rather than the shock that made him pause. He did not have to take it. But of course, he had to. This was his thing. It was so much easier if people believed it was nothing to him. That it was something he just did. It was an easy facade to maintain because he was never put on the spot. He had a reputation to maintain and a reason to be worried. This was his thing, his curse, his real punishment, he knew.

So, he scuffed, hoping to play into the idea of him having to touch her as somehow insulting of his powers, and took her hand with both of his. To help himself focus, he closed his eyes.

The nausea hit instantly, as twenty-two years of memories, thoughts and emotions flashed past him at a speed too fast for him to register much more than a distortion of colours and sounds. Like this, he had no solid shape, he was a parasite in the conscience of the woman, Edita, trying his best not to touch anything. Touch was a physical thing, and he was not. Not yet at least. He knew he was somewhere in here, and just like that, he saw himself. This was what Edita saw, the present. A young man, leaning slightly forward, eyes closed in concentr– no, he reminded himself, and turned his attention away. It was enough to know he was there. A physical being with his own energy source.

So many things, he thought, trying to figure out why he was there at all, so much she wanted to tell him. This was common, the unconscious was drawn by the sudden appearance of someone else and wanted to confess. Childhood, duty, a community. The things you did not want to think about, the secrets you only regrettably bore. None of it was relevant. If she wanted to show herself as someone to trust, he would not find it buried somewhere better left undisturbed. Besides, he was a man, not a god. He had no right to her life. So, he could feel the energy, the power, and he was allowed to be disgusted by how exciting a possibility it was, how fragile and easily broken. Disgusted. Nothing more. Allowed to feel the power and resist it. He did not want it to ever stop making him sick.

How long had passed? A heartbeat? A minute? Time worked different like this, but it could not have been long. For the image of the living room was still as it had been when he first saw it. Then it was gone. Transforming into the memory she wanted him to see. A dark street of Erast. Two women walking. Business. Irene Ford. The truth. A car circling the block. Someone

He fought against the memories related to this first one, he did not want to know more, he did not want to get lost. An exhausting life, so much responsibility, so many things to live up to. He should have told her what to do beforehand. The memory, then the present. Had he been too overconfident in his own abilities? But there it was again. His own body.

The sense of skin and warmth and time moving again. He was seeing out of his own eyes. And knew too much. Too much to be able to look at this stranger he had not earned the right to know so well. Instead, he looked at Dominic letting go of the hand. "We can trust her." His voice sounded like it came from very far away, but that could just be because he was still resettling back into himself. He felt exhausted. The act of poking around someone's head was not that hard. But holding yourself back from using their energy while doing so? She probably wouldn't have noticed if he had. Maybe she would have felt a bit tired. But it was a risk he was never willing to take. And he accepted the exhaustion because he had done no harm to the woman. The truth was no more painful than is should be.

"I think we should do it." He said, his voice sounded normal. He looked down at his hands, with a slight frown and an unrelated shame. "The interview. We should do it."

af **Dominic** Fre Feb 24, 2023 1:09 pm

The stranger seemed surprised by the fact that they considered rejecting her offer. She probably wasn't used to rejection like that. Seeing har surprise made the rejection even more tempting to do. It would be so very satisfying not giving the stranger what she had come here to do. But Dominic had to think rationally about this. The stranger wouldn't be the only one who would leave this meeting emptyhanded if they were to reject her offer. And as she explained the different ways they could arrange the meeting anonymously, it did seem genuine. As something they probably should look into accepting.
If they were to believe her, that is. No matter her promises, she had still not given them any information on either herself or her client while showing that she was fine with playing games to get what she wanted. She had a point in saying that they didn't have other options to get their voices out to the public - not that Dominic would let that show - but if this offer would lead to them into an ambush, Dominic would rather have nothing.

The stranger stretched out her hand, while asking if one of them was a trained Nachon Warlock. Dominic simply skeptically raised an eyebrow at her, not answering her question. He was in fact not a trained Warlock but there was no way he would let her know that. He wasn't even completely convinced to begin with about what she wanted them to do with her outreached hand. Not until she spoke again: Feel free to look around.
Dominic flinched ever so slightly, staring at the palm in front of them. Now, as mentioned, he wasn't a trained Warlock but that didn't mean he didn't have any experience in using his power. Quite the opposite - the experience he did have was haunting, reawakening memories of pain, distress and shame. He had no idea if this was common for Nachon Warlocks or if training would ease such discomfort when using one's powers - he had never even considered asking Cadmus about this, the Nachon powers being taboo even between two Nachon Warlocks - but just by how the stranger so carelessly offered her Spirit to them made him feel ill. Even when he knew this would never be his responsibility, he felt nauseous by the knowledge that it could always be a possibility for him. He had the power to choose to use and it was only sheer luck and privilege that he could choose not to.
For a brief moment he looked at Cassius, examining the dark bags under his eyes, his pale skin, how he fiddled with his bracelet, anxiously. Then he forced himself to look back at the stranger, as Cadmus, as expected, grabbed her hand and entered her Spirit.

With a lump in his throat, he watched. It must only have taken Cadmus a minute, maybe two, but with the impatience of having to stay in this uncomfortable situation it felt even longer. At least Dominic had time to regain composure, making sure that it was only the impatience that was shown, not the discomfort.
Eventually Cadmus let go of the woman and turned his gaze at Dominic. He looked tired, his eyes duller, and Dominic worried for him. It must have been an exhausting task. But Dominic didn't let his worry show. He wouldn't bring any focus on Cadmus' tiredness, not in front of the stranger and honestly not even to Cadmus himself. Dominic would hate if anyone mentioned how tired he looked and he assumed others would feel the same. Instead he nodded to what he said, realizing the breath he was holding with letting air out through his nose, as his lips still were pursed together. He did not trust the woman, but he trusted Cadmus in saying that he could.
"Okay," he said, not looking at the woman but from Cadmus to Cassius - the lump briefly back in his throat - and then at Cadmus again, "Then we'll do it."
Finally, he looked at the woman again. Not any less tense than before but he met her look with a determined one of his own. He nodded to her before saying as the final decision: "We'll do the interview. Anonymously."
So it was decided. Dominic didn't feel any relief from this, but at least they could plan from here. There was something to do now. Something to work towards. A mission given to them.
However, none of them managed to do anything else - not even if the woman had time to respond - before footsteps sounded from the hallway. Dominic turned his upper body and looked over his shoulder to see how was entered.
Of - fucking - course it was Gwyn. Gwyn who he hadn't seen since he carried her into his bed when she was attacked by migraines. When he had felt the warmth in his chest when she snuggled into his embrace. Of course this was the moment she felt fine enough to walk into the kitchen.
"Hey," he called at her, raising his voice to catch her attention without having to say her name - he didn't want the stranger to get more information than she already had, "Go back to the room. We're having a meeting."
All of the tension from the meeting and Cassius' awful news came to life in Dominic's displeased tone. It one didn't know bother they would think that it was Gwyn alone that annoyed him enough for him to scold her like that, when in reality she was only a small part of that annoyance. It really was more the timing of it all that yet again was too ironic to be funny for him. That and the reminder of the warmth he had felt, which he very much didn't have the energy or time to deal with right now.

af **Gwyn** Fre Feb 24, 2023 11:42 pm

For two days Gwyn had been laying in Dominic’s bed, nursing and numbing her painful cramps and migraine with the painkillers Idés had left on the bedside table. Two days of which she hadn’t seen any sunlight because anything less dark than pitch black would split her skull into two, so she kept her eyes screwed shut and her head mostly hidden underneath the blanket. Two days of laying in the same clothes and underwear because she couldn’t manage to change because the movements would likely be too much. It was a bloody miracle on its own that she was able to crawl out of bed to change her tampons and pee, but everytime it was followed by her getting incredibly cold and wanting to cry because of the pain in her head.

Gwyn drank hardly anything and had eaten even less. It wasn’t healthy and she knew it because her body needed the nutrients but she just couldn’t ask anyone to bring her either food or drink. She had been too weak to ask and she didn’t want to burden anybody with being her babysitter of sorts.

Her hair was a greasy mess, she could practically feel her skin being covered in spots because she hadn’t been washing her face and only Dom knew when his pillow cases had been lastly washed, she felt like a corpse and probably looked like one too. However, this was the first moment where she could think a bit more clearly and actually open her eyes to look around for the first time. Dominic’s room wasn’t too big but it was big enough for the single grumpy boy scout who inhabited it. Next to the bed she was laying in there was his bedside table, looking quite shabby with an equally shabby lamp on it and her painkillers. The bucket that Idés had placed in front of the bed was also still there and thankfully empty, because if it were not… Yeah that would have been quite disgusting. A curtain in front of the single window was drawn but light still seeped from underneath it, being bright enough to be painful if she started looking at it. In the corner across from here was a punching bag, which seemed fitting to Gwyn. To better unleash his anger, using the line of a famous children's story she thought about it. To her, Dominic had two moods: angry or annoyed. There hadn’t been an in between yet or another mood entirely.

Gwyn let her eyes again wander through the room some more, noticing the mirror, albeit a bit dusty and the worn drawers next to it. A blueish carpet was spread on the ground and the last thing she noticed was what looked like a hamper and that was it. Humble belongings for someone who didn’t have a home like ‘normal people’. Normal people who weren’t on the run or being haunted for manifesting powers that were deemed ‘wrong’ and ‘dangerous’ by the people . If anything, any type of warlock could be dangerous but how could Nachons be deemed wrong if they didn’t abuse their powers for the worse? Wasn’t it just because those people were scared of something they simply could not control? Hasn’t it always been like that? Whenever a powerful figure was unable to control something or someone that wasn’t the same as they were, they always ended up being hunted, haunted and slaughtered for being ‘wrong’.

Gwyn herself had very little knowledge of Nachons, or what they could do but she knew that basically every one in HQ was a Nachon and honestly, none of them were scary, wrong or dangerous in her opinion. Only Dominic was a sour plum in the bunch, making her wonder who ever stole his lollipop as a kid. And if she were really honest to herself, honestly to its rawest core, she was more afraid of herself and the so-called powers she should possess than any of the Nachons here. They knew what they could do, what they could do to train themselves. She however still had no idea what lay dormant underneath her skin. It could be anything really and since she hadn’t shown any signs of magic the result from the test centre could just be faulty… Like she was… Dark thoughts tried to sneak in, one even more mean and degrading than the other but she blocked them out as best as she was able to. Being like that, degrading towards herself, wouldn’t do her any good since it was just her and her thoughts. Whatever happened to that girl who used to like herself plenty.

A sigh escaped through her lips, actually making her aware that her throat felt quite dry and that she was starting to feel thirsty. This was the first time since she had been in bed that she actually wanted to drink something.

There was no one around though, and she wouldn't yell at no one if they could bring her some water. Be a big girl and go grab it yourself, she encouraged herself. Slowly and steadily Gwyn started to get up, by pushing her upper body up carefully before she sat upright. She placed her legs over the edge of the bed one by one before scooching forward a bit, noticing her feet had been dangling above the floor a few centimetres. Placing her feet on the carpet covered floor and her hands next to her, Gwyn pushed herself up and stood.

The disuse of her muscles for the past two days made her feel a bit wobbly, but she kept on standing still until she was stable. The change in altitude for her head caused it to start hammering. Squinting her eyes to slits for the incoming assault of light that would surely come when she entered the hallway, Gwyn shuffled her way to the door and opened it. She winced as the brightness of the hallway lights attacked her sight, screwing her eyes closed as her headache flared. She was definitely going to take another two painkillers when she returned to Dominic’s bed. This trip for some water would end her, so she felt. After standing in the doorway to the –thankfully– empty hallway, she opened up her eyes just a little bit after the hammering headache started to lessen again as she got used to the brightness of the hallway. Carefully Gwyn resumed her shuffling towards the living and kitchen area.

She was very much thankful for the fact that the hallway was empty but it made her dread the amount of people that could be in the living room. All their loud talking, the noise of the tv, and maybe the radio too would probably kill her more fiercely than any of the shuffling she was doing now. You’ll be okay, just quickly get the water and then go back to bed. If she wasn’t suffering from her migraine, she’d have snorted at her own words. Fast, yeah right.
After what seemed like ages of shuffling, Gwyn finally reached the door to the living room. Taking the cold doorknob into her hand, she tried to ignore the shivers that ran over her skin as she turned it and entered the living and kitchen area.

Only to be told off by Dominic before she even managed to shuffle into the kitchen for her glass of water. The loudness of his voice, paired with the even more bright lights in the kitchen caused her headache to start its assault anew inside her head, unknowingly she brought her balled fists to the side of her head and pressed them against her temples. Tears sprung to her eyes as she once again screwed them closed and Gwyn took a deep breath through her nose, what for she had no idea but she hoped it would help. He told her to leave, but after the journey that she just had Gwyn refused to leave without a glass of water. She needed to drink, needed to nurture her body and she needed the water to take the medication.

‘’Can you just,’’ Her voice cracked, her dry throat not helping the fact that besides having laid in bed for two days, she also hadn’t spoken, ‘’not yell at me? I only need some water before I officially dehydrate and to take the painkillers.’’ Her words were spoken loud enough for her oversensitive ears, but to Dom and whomever he was having his damned boy scout meeting with she might have been whispering. Not waiting for an answer on his side, she slowly shuffled her way over to the kitchen cabinets where she thought she remembered the glasses to be. Only remembering she was too short by herself to grab a glass, because last time she tried she had to climb onto the counter and got told off by Dominic for doing that as well. Fuck, Gwyn cursed, not ready to turn around and ask for help and also very much refusing to leave without water.

af **Edita** Søn Feb 26, 2023 5:38 pm

Truly it had been risky to let one of them enter her spirit, but she couldn’t see any other way of getting them to trust her. And she needed their trust - at least just enough for them to agree to the interview. As the handsome man reached for her outstretched hand, she could help but bite her lip as a moment of panic rushed through her. What if this was it? He could obliterate her spirit, her mind, her soul, or whatever made her human and at the mercy of Nachon warlocks power. The air in the room was thick with hatred and tension anyways, so she knew that they didn’t like her presence here. She knew that she looked like trouble - maybe not visually, as she sat there in her lace-clad shirt and soft overalls, but simply her presence was troublesome for them. She represented their weakness. And here she was, giving them the choice of ending her life. Not something she was ready for, but something that was necessary to do in her field of work sometimes.

As the handsome man took her hand, she immediately felt a knot in her stomach forming. She grimaced. It felt like she was going to throw up, although at the same time distant. The only thing that this sensation reminded her of, was when she once had eaten some incredibly oily fries that had been covered in melted cheese along with a fatty cheese burger and a chocolate milkshake, and she had simply eaten a bite too much of such unhealthy foods that her body was fighting against her wish to enjoy the glorious meal. The nausea had plagued her for a few hours without satisfying her body’s need to throw up. But much like when she had eaten the fatty foods, the nausueas feeling had subdued into nothingness, and the same was true now. She looked up at the handsome man, who was clearly concentrating on using his powers. The knot in her stomach unraveled just as quick as it had formed and kept quiet. Had he done something? Did he spare her this nausea?

And then, after a minute, the handsome man let go of her hand, turning towards Dominic to announce that they could trust her and that they should do the interview. Hell yeah they should. They really don’t have a choice in that matter. No other media outlet had contacted the Family with the same proposition as Irene Ford had, and keeping quiet in the current situation was not an option either if they wanted to fight the reputation of nachons. Her gaze stayed on the handsome man, even when Dominic started talking. Her eyes narrowed slightly. He had entered her spirit, looked at her memories. How much had he seen? Had he seen her intimate moments as well? Her childhood? She noticed that the man would not return her look. It seemed as if he deliberately did not want to look at her.

She looked at Dominic, opening her mouth to answer him, but not getting the chance to before footsteps sounded behind her. Instinctively Edita reached for her gun at the same time she turned around in her seat to look at the person who had entered the room. Not that she had any intention of using her gun against this person. She was just surprised to see any other people than the three men. What she was met with was a blonde woman, who honestly looked like a mess. Edita’s hand left her gun, as she saw no threat, nor was it intentionally that she had reached for it in the first place. And then Dominic began ordering the woman. Edita frowned. Who did he think he was? The woman was clearly in need of the water that she came to the kitchen for, why deny her this?

af **Cassius** Fre Mar 03, 2023 2:30 pm

Cassius didn’t look at Cadmus or the stranger as he took her hand. His head was turned, looking the other way the whole minute as Cadmus looked through her mind… or whatever he did to confirm her trustworthiness. He only looked back as Cadmus spoke. His gaze and expression remained unchanged, not showing a hint of the inner chaos he had felt. Cassius only nodded along as Cadmus and Dominic agreed to do the interview. The interview was an opportunity for something, something perhaps none of them knew just yet. It was an opportunity they couldn’t afford to miss.

Before anything else could be said the girl Idés had brought with him at the meeting appeared from the hallway. She looked like shit, most likely felt like that too. Dominic told her to get back to the room, his voice displeased as he scolded her. Her voice was barely a whisper.

Though Cassius didn’t pay anymore attention to the two as a sudden movement in the corner of his eyes. His eyes instantly darted to the stranger as he saw her hand reach for the gun on her. His paranoia and fear for Dominic and Cadmus’ lives made him instinctively readying his power. He shot up to a standing position as flames sparked slightly around his hands. He felt the heat of the silver ring on his finger raise as his eyes focused solely on the woman. His hands were balled up into fists as he was ready to fight, his whole body tense and ready to jump in front of both his friends if she were to actually pull out the gun. Cassius stare did not leave her, not even when she let go of the gun. Since she had already once reached for the gun, nothing said she won’t do that again. Though when she did let go of it, he relaxed his body a bit as he stopped using his powers. A slight nausea appeared for a moment, a side effect for activating his powers like that without properly charging it up. Though it did leave as quickly as it had appeared. Cassius did not sit back down again, just wanting to be ready if the stranger ever reached for her gun again.

af **Cadmus** Tirs Mar 07, 2023 5:52 pm

It was a great relief when Dominic trusted his judgement, and accepted to doing the interview. If the interview could be done in a way that was completely untraceable, what harm could there be in it? This was something. This was a plan. Cad was not given anytime to let this relief sink in. He had closed his eyes for a calming breath, when footsteps signalled the approach of someone from the hallway, and chaos erupted.

All happening rather quickly, this was how Cadmus experienced it: Dominic was telling someone off, rather harshly, Edita reached for her gun, which Cadmus only managed to react to with a warning glance, before Cassius had gotten up, kirsha powers activated, looking rather intimidating with fiery hands. This, or perhaps the newcomer being a very sick and harmless looking Gwyn, made Edita let go of said gun, and Cassius quit the human flamethrower performance. Meanwhile Gwyn was whispering something about wanting water, tears in her eyes, moving towards the kitchen and looking very helpless.

Since no one seemed about to be murdered, just then, Cad could turn a frown and his attention towards Dominic’s reaction. Was this a normal reaction of letting out built up steam or had something happened between them? It was hard to tell, he was still processing what he had just seen and felt in regard to Edita’s life. But if he wasn’t mistaken there was some sort of tension. No matter Dominic’s personal feelings towards this girl, he had no right to deny her water. Not in the state she was in. “Come on,” His protest was weak, he was not a big fan of telling Dominic off, and he was so tired, but it had been out of line, “let her go get something to drink, we are almost finished, aren't we?”

He wasn't sure that they were, but surely, the most important part of the meeting had been agreeing to the interview. Now all they had left to discuss was the practicality of the how, Gwyn's interruption was not the end of the world.

af **Dominic** Ons Mar 08, 2023 9:29 am

So much happened in a matter of a minute. Just as Gwyn entered, a lot of the pent-up tension got let loose. The stranger grabbed her gun, which resulted in not only a warning glance from Cadmus and a warning glare from Dominic, but in Cassius jumping up, flames flaring up from his hands. Which to Dominic was a completely understandable reaction and honestly, he was glad to see it. Cassius was a fighter, for better or for worse, the same way Dominic was. He proved that when staying with him when the EFA was teared to pieces. Promising him to help him lead it, and that he had done, proving it yet again right now, as he became a threatening presence towards the stranger. Though, when the moment of chaos was done, and Cassius' powers were deactivated, Dominic did have room in his Spirit to feel worry for his friend. It wasn't healthy for him to use his powers like that, not when he hadn't been nourished in a while, which Dominic didn't think he was. A tiny stab of guilt hit him, but then Cadmus talked, and he focused on him instead.

'Come on', he said to him, and that was so unusual for him to tell him, that Dominic couldn't help but furrowing his brows at him. Not angrily, more like a question. But then he elaborated, and Dominic understood what his protest was about.
Since the chaotic moment was over and Dominic had been able to let some of his tension out towards Gwyn, he had a clearer mind to take in the words. He smoothed out his forehead and looked back over his shoulder at Gwyn. She looked awful. Weak, pale and exhausted. Was that a tear in her eye? Had Dominic really caused her to tear up? Fuck. The guilt over his own overpowering hit Dominic as a fist in the face. Something he quickly shook off. Fine. Okay. He had overreacted, yes. But what else was he supposed to do? Gwyn shouldn't get involved in this. What if the stranger knew the Godia Warriors who had questioned her? He tried to tell that to himself, trying to justify his scolding as to not deal with the guilt. It didn't work. He could only focus on the tears in Gwyn's eyes. That hadn't been the stranger's fault. That had been his own.

He didn't show his guilt though, turning towards Cadmus with an irritated and dissatisfied: ""Fine. You're right."
However, it wasn't that simple; Gwyn wasn't the only one remembering how she had to climb on the counter top to get the glasses. So Dominic stood up to go help her out - to quickly get her out of the kitchen of course, no other reason. Before walking towards the kitchen, he laid his hand on Cassius shoulder, clapping it once in a tough, brotherly way. "Sit down, please," he said to him. The 'please' wasn't an usual addition to Dominic's sentences, but it was his way of both showing his concern indirectly in a situation where he doesn't want to showcase Cassius' weakness and showing Cassius that he wasn't mad at him for standing up in the first place, actually quite the opposite.
He then walked towards the kitchen, hasty and resolutely. He stopped next to Gwyn, but didn't look at her, focusing on reaching for the glass. Only after grabbing a glass and pouring water into it, he turned to her. He stood to close to her, probably closer than necessary. He didn't think about it himself, simply standing as close to her as he felt he should to be protective of her if anything were to happen in that moment.
"Here," he said to her as he handed her the glass. He might have seemed annoyed of having to get up and help her, but his voice towards her was soft and lowered. As to not trigger her migraine and if he were honest as to show her some kindness after scolding her in an unnecessary way.

af **Gwyn** Fre Mar 10, 2023 12:17 am

As Gwyn had slowly and miserably been making her way to the damned cabinet containing the glasses, there might have been some ruckus to her right. The hammering of her migraine prevented her from looking sideways and drowned out most of the noise but it wasn’t prominent enough to not hear that someone quickly stood up. The room suddenly felt warmer too. That rise in temperature was tempting enough that she was close to searching for the source of it so she could curl herself around it and never ever feel cold again. Squinting at the cabinet, she stood there quite helplessly as she tried to think of a way to get herself that glass without having to ask for assistance.

Behind her, she heard a man mutter some words but she couldn’t focus enough to listen to what had been said. Despite not hearing the exact said words, they didn’t sound as harsh as Dominic had which could have been something good.
If you try to reach out, maybe you’ll be able to graze one of the cups fine enough to shuffle it towards you, a fine enough idea if she wasn’t suffering but still she felt the need to try because she was already enough of a burden, or so she told herself. Taking a breath, she slowly started rising on her tippy toes but the hammering headache started to intensify by the slight shift in altitude, bringing a new wave of tears that threatened to fall. Softly backing down, she grew a bit frustrated with the situation and herself. Why couldn’t she just ask for help instead of being bullheaded and causing herself more discomfort. How hard would it be to utter the words for assistance?

Balling her fists, she made up her mind to ask for help and started to turn towards the people behind her so she could ask anyone taller than her to fetch her a glass that she could fill with water and then get back to bed as quickly as she was able to manage. Having turned her body enough to globally see the living room, she noted a few things. The first was that there was a woman standing in front of the couch, facing her. The second thing was that the Elite man was present too, but his stance looked far more aggressive than anyone else’s. Was he like that because she had walked in? Her eye fell on Cadmus next before it finally landed on Dominic, who had laid his hand on the Elite’s shoulder. Now that her attention was on him she could hear him ask the Elite to sit down, before he made his way to the kitchen with quick strides. More specifically, to where Gwyn stood. Watching his every move as his steps brought him closer to her, she turned her body towards him as he came to stand beside her. She wasn’t able to figure out if Dominic was still irritated with her or not, as he didn’t face her while getting a glass out of the cupboard. It was only after filling the glass that he turned towards her which somehow brought him even closer to her, close enough that she managed to catch a whiff of the woodsy scent that she had been wrapping herself in the past days. His woodsy scent.
Taking the glass of water from Dominic with both hands, she shivered slightly when the coldness of the water filled glass made contact with her skin. She lifted her gaze to him, noting the fact that he had talked to her in a soft manner which warmed her a little. Mouthing a thank you, Gwyn started to turn so she could return to his room before she remembered that a certain Elite was in the room. So instead of turning all the way towards the door that would lead her into the hallway, she stopped halfway.
‘’I’m sorry.’’ The words floated out of her mouth as she looked at him, hoping that they would find him and convey that she was sincere.

Closing her eyes Gwyn started gathering her strength to make her way back. She let her head hang a bit lower as she began walking back, leaving everyone behind her to their business. Managing to make her way back more smoothly, Gwyn made it to bed quicker than anticipated. She let out a deep but content sign as she sat down on Dominic’s bed. Taking two painkillers from the by Idés provided box, she washed them away with a few sips of water before Gwyn started shimmying back a bit more and laying down comfortably. Taking the duvet in her hands, she brought it up to her nose. Allowing herself to take one more deliberate breath of Dominic’s scent before she let her body drift back into the sweet lull of sleep.

af **Edita** Søn Mar 12, 2023 4:43 pm

Her reaching for her gun had definitely been the cause of the quick movement from the ill-looking guy. It happened so quickly, that it took Edita a few seconds to really comprehend what had happened. SHe had only seen the quick movement out of the corner of her eye, then felt heat from the man. Her gaze laid on him. Firstly a second of fear in her eyes, then fascination as she watched the flames spit in the air around him. So he was a Kirsha Warlock? Interesting… Very interesting indeed… She didn’t know what she wanted to do with that information, but perhaps she just thought that it was truly interesting. She rarely was in contact with warlocks of any kind, except for the fleeing Nachon Warlocks once in a while. Sure, she saw the warlocks in training on Campus sometimes, but they kept to themselves, and they didn’t really seem like her crowd of people anyways. And here she was, in front of not only a Nachon, but also a Kirsha Warlock? Kinda cool actually.

She met the ill-looking guy’s staring eyes. She could definitely read on him that he was trying to kill her in his mind, a single movement from her allowing him to do so physically aswell. Her eyebrows furrowed. She didn’t even mean to reach for her gun yet alone actually use it on the woman who had entered the room. And most importantly: she hadn’t used it.
”Relax, I’m not gonna do anything…” she said to the three men in front of her, all glaring at her.

It was then that Dominic went up to the kitchen to aid the woman. A gesture that surprised Edita. Seconds before he had shouted at her, clearly not wanting her in the room, and showing every degree of annoyance at the woman. And now, despite his permanently frowning face, he helped her with such tenderness, whispering words to her that the others couldn’t hear. Edita had followed him with her eyes, despite still feeling the glare from the ill-looking man. For just a moment, the woman looked at her, their eyes met, but Edita doubted that the woman truly saw her. For the next moment, the other woman had a cup of water in her hand and was on her way towards where she came from. Edita blinked for a moment, then looked at Dominic, then turned her eyes towards the two other men.
”Right,” She said, trying to break the silence and get back on track with their business. ”So you would prefer the interview to be completely anonymous? We can totally do that; I have the tech for it, but I would have to bring it on another day.”

She leaned back on the sofa, her eyes quickly looking at the ill-looking man who was still standing, sending him a gaze that meant: hey, look, I don’t want to cause any trouble. She was just trying to do her job.

af **Cassius** Man Mar 13, 2023 6:33 pm

Cassius had kept his glance at the stranger as Cadmus and Dominic spoke. He had seen the fear in her eyes for the little second it had been there. Her gaze however didn’t seem to waver and his didn’t leave her as he saw her brows furrow. Her words annoyed him, his own brows furrowing deeper than they had been. She might have not done anything and she likely wouldn’t, but to Cassius, the very fact that she had instinctively reached for it told him that there was still a chance. It was then he felt the familiar hand of Dominic on his shoulder, only then did his gaze leave the stranger to look at him, though he still had the stranger in his side view. He understood quickly the hidden meaning in the ‘please’. He only responded with a nod and sat down again, though it was just at the edge of the seat, and his whole body was tense, ready to spring to action again if needed and his gaze was back at the stranger who was now watching Dominic and Gwyn. The only reason he had sat down again was just so Dominic didn’t worry more for him. Cassius didn’t realize until he sat down again that it hadn’t been the best move to activate his powers so suddenly, as a wave of dizziness hit him. It had after all been a while since he last… fed. He couldn’t even remember exactly when it had been either.

He could barely hear the weak apology from the ill woman as she made her way back into wherever she was resting. At first he was unsure who she was trying to apologize to, but a few seconds later he realized it probably was to him, for what she had said at the meeting. He didn’t think anymore of it as his mind and focus was preoccupied with the stranger he was keeping his eyes on at the moment, the stranger who was to him still a potential threat to his friends’ safety.

As her gaze traveled between the three men, she spoke once more, getting back to business. Cassius still didn’t say anything, having unintentionally and very much unconsciously taken the role as some sort of bodyguard for the other two men in the room. His mind was more focused on keeping them safe than discussing anything with the stranger. He kept an eye on her hands as well as the gun at her side. His body ready to jump into action once more if her hands ever were near the gun again.

af **Cadmus** Man Apr 03, 2023 9:31 am

Initially Dominic seemed just as surprised as Cad at the latter’s sudden decision to stand up for Gwyn. Or maybe Dom had just not thought his actions unreasonable. Whatever was the case, he now had the decency to look guilty and help her out. At this point he felt like it didn’t really surprise him that Dom would somehow think he was acting out of a wish to protect Gwyn. And even if Dominics reply was annoyed, at least he agreed with him; so Cad looked on as his friend got up and went to the kitchen; he did not, however, stay turned that way, halfway in his seat, to see what was going on in the kitchen. Instead he resettled on the sofa, finding a more comfortable seat and returned his attention back to the other two. Or well, to Cass, who was still standing up, looking dangerous, although sickly.

To everyone’s great relief, or at least to Cad’s, although he assumed the feeling would be mutual, Edita, seemed to have decided against shooting; telling them as much herself, and seemed instead somewhat impressed with Cassius’ show of power. It had been impressive, although it looked like it had taken somewhat of a toll on Cass himself; now looking even worse than usual. He did not know everything about Cassius’ condition; but using his powers did not seem to improve it. And it was a relief when he sat down.

Just before the door to the hallway opened and closed once again, he heard her apologise to someone. The obvious aim would have been Dominic; Gwyn apologising for having interrupted. But to his surprise he felt them aimed instead at Cassius. Had something happened between them, or was she simply referring to how she had behaved towards him at the EFA meeting she had interrupted that monday? Whatever it was, it was not any of his concern, and he refrained from turning around once again to look after her, as she left. She would probably be alright, and with Dom harbouring whatever feelings he seemed to have, he would probably make sure as well. Probably. Cad was still unsure about what exactly Dom felt, and really, this too was none of his business. So whilst all of this was going on he was looking at Cass, who seemed to be looking at Edi, who was looking at whatever was going on in the kitchen.

When Gwyn went back to Dominic’s room, they were then left to themselves, once again, and Edita spoke to remind them of what they were doing. He did not speak at this, but looked expectantly to Dominic, whom he expected to manage the details.

af **Dominic** Lør Apr 15, 2023 2:24 pm

Dominic watched as Gwyn took a sip of the water, just to check that she was okay enough to be his room without supervision - and really to compensate for his outburst moments before. As she mouthed 'thank you' to him, the warmth in his chest resurged, only slightly though, as he didn't have room for any more feelings to process in this situation. He simply nodded at her to acknowledge her thanks and then he raised his arms to around her waist - without touching her of course - to slowly show her towards the room again.
Fortunately, Gwyn did leave the room. However, not before turning towards Cassius and uttering a simple apology. That surprised Dominic; Gwyn was clearly still very sick but apparently not sick enough to want to apologize to Cassius. Which the man deserved, so Dominic appreciated that. But it really only was on his mind for a brief moment, because then Gwyn had left the kitchen and Dominic was back in the meeting, back to being the leader.

He repressed a sigh before walking back to the couch area again, sitting down in the same spot as before. Only know he wasn't leaned backwards with his arms crossed. Instead, he was leaning forwards, resting his arms on his lap.
"Completely anonymous, yes," he answered Edita, looking towards her. He was still stern, still closed-off, but the anger from before had faded. Maybe it was because of his outburst earlier or because of his tenderness towards Gwyn. Probably a mix of both. "You can come by with the tech some another day." She knew where they lived anyways, so that didn't matter. "But make it a few days before the interview will take place. So our tech-guy can take a look at it before hand."
This could mean that they just needed his help to set it up, but they all knew that they also needed him to security-check it. To make sure it really was as anonymous as the woman claimed. Dominic wasn't going to trust her completely, just because he trusted her enough for her to arrange this interview.

"And I suppose you'll have a time and date for the interview ready for us when you do so," he then said. It wasn't a question as much as it was a statement; it only made sense for the woman to arrange the interview with Irene Ford and then afterwards inform the EFA about when the interview took place. "We'll make sure to arrange our schedules, so it'll fit in whenever."
They probably had more flexible schedules than a famous journalist such as Irene Ford. So that was easier than the stranger having to plan back and forth between them.
Finally, he asked: "Anything else you need?" Not hiding in any way that he hoped for the answer to be no.

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