tcnetwork | COURTNEY MARTENIZ

what's cookin', good lookin'? :P barry here, wanted to check on you. haven't seen you around since those messed up domes came and went. you ok, doll?

Just tired. There was lots going on. How about you? Are you all okay?

yeah. we kept our head down and took advantage of a sale at our favorite shoe shop in the merchant dome. remind me to show you the boots i picked up.

[Casual talk for a huge, sweeping sense of relief that engulfs nearly the entire system. Everyone, of course, except...]

dennis is calling shenanigans, pretty lady. wants to know if we could maybe stop by and see you? real quick like. pop in, steal a hug, pop out. sound good?

Edited 2020-06-28 01:36 (UTC)

I'm looking forward to it.

[ She pauses, taking a moment to answer. ]

Now why does he say that? But of course, you can. I'm not doing anything right now.

then we are gonna see you in a few, baby girl.

ciao. <3

[He caught hell for the heart emoji, but Barry didn't give a damn. He wants to clean himself up a little, but Dennis is right now about it, so they head over without so much as a chance to change his shirt.

It's about ten minutes before there's a knock at her door--and it's Dennis, not Barry, who has the Light when she opens it, his eyes narrowed suspiciously as he looks her over.]

[ Courtney does her best to straighten herself up, changing from the pajamas she had been laying in for a pair of shorts and a simple white tank top. She is clean but she looks tired still as she waits for the knock, grateful that the inky stuff that had been leaking from her for a good couple of days had stopped.

There are some remnants of it in her garbage near her bed but she doesn't think he will see that.

When she does answer the door, she offers a small smile as she looks at him. It doesn't surprise her to see who is in control considering what Barry had said. ] Hi Dennis, come in?

[Dennis accepts the invitation from her and walks into the yurt, scrutinizing her face for some sign of weakness or ill health...and he doesn't like how tired she looks.]

You ain't right--somethin' happen to you durin' this mess in town?

[ Courtney closes the door before turning to look at Dennis who is watching her a little too closely. Then she chuckles, tucking some hair back from her face. ]

Nothing that I didn't do to myself.

Yeah, no. That ain't allowed.

[This is difficult. No, this is a problem. Too many members of the System like this girl, that makes her one of his people. He protects his people, but this is the first time he's ever had someone he had to take care of outside the System.

Keeping tabs on her is going to prove to be...messy.

Pointing towards her living area, Dennis narrowed his eyes.]

You go park yerself on the couch, or in bed. You ain't gettin' up again today. You eaten anything yet? You drinkin' enough water? How much you slept?

It's not something I'm going to stop, Dennis.

[ Her tone is soft but firm as it cuts across his questions about whether she had done enough to look after herself. She is touched by his concern but she needs to make it clear to him that there are things that won't change. ]

I know we don't know each other that well but you should know that one of the things I can do is heal others. Which is what I did over the last few days.

But it does take a toll.

[No. No, no, no, that doesn't work, and Dennis is already shaking his head. He doesn't speak...but he can't do this, can't allow this.

She's a big girl, Dennis. If you're for real 'bout this new leaf yer turnin' over, you can't muscle her, but you can bet your ass that every last one of us are on board. We're lookin' after this girl.

It was cold comfort...but Barry's words strike a chord that helps to ease some of that icy sludge shifting around in the pit of his stomach.

There has to be something...

The Light is abruptly torn from Dennis then, making his body tense and his lungs deflate briefly as Hedwig takes control, frowning at Courtney curiously.]

Do you heal people like magic, Miss Courtney? Are you a witch or an elf? Etcetera?

[ Courtney waits for either more disagreement from Dennis...or for someone else to take control. Which is exactly what happens as Hedwig shifts into the Light, causing her features to soften a bit but in a different manner than it might for someone else in the same body. ]

It's a bit more than that, sweetheart.

[ She pauses, considering what to say next. ]

Saying that I'm a witch might have been close at one time though I was called a mage more often than not. Since then, I've become something else as well.

[The admission made Hedwig brighten, his smile returning.]

So if you're magic, etcetera, an' magic makes you sick, an' your magic stuff lets you heal people, could you use your magic ta heal yourself? 'Cause we got magic that could help. You could have some of ours! The Beast is kinda magical, y'know? 'Cause he's kinda like a comic book character, an' some of them is magic.

[ Courtney chuckles softly, lifting a hand to cup the side of his face so she can brush her thumb against his cheek. ]

Don't worry. My magic usually does keep me healthy but sometimes tapping into it the way I need to drains me which means I have to enter a healing sleep for a little while.

[ Which might explain some of the radio silence over the last couple days. ]

And the magic I drew from someone else recently was different from my own, so there were some nasty side effects.

But you're very sweet for offering your own magic. I couldn't do it though, I wouldn't want to risk hurting any of you. Not even the Beast.

But that's it! You can't hurt the Beast!

[Hedwig bounces with excitement as he says it. He wants to help, and he really wants to help because of the way she touched him. She put her hand on his cheek, and she smiled at him. She laughed, but not in a mean way...

It kind of felt like the way Kevin's dad sometimes touched them. How he'd just hold their head between his hands before kissing the top of his head, before he left on the train.

He thought it might be like what having a sister was like. Or a mom, a real mom. Not like Kevin's mom.

So he wants to help. Just as much as Mr. Dennis does, who's standing close to the Light, but not in it--and he's not mad.]

Nothin' can hurt the Beast, he's the biggest an' toughest guy in the world!

[Maybe she needed to see him...

Bouncing back a couple of steps, Hedwig starts shrugging off the stylish cardigan Mister Barry had been wearing before Mister Dennis took the light.

And when that was off, Hedwig quickly skinned off the t-shirt underneath.]

Hedwig...Hedwig, no....I just...Hedwig.

[ Courtney tries to protest as he starts shrugging off his cardigan and quickly follows it by peeling off the t-shirt underneath, causing her blink.

Then she sighs, moving forward quickly to grab his hands so she can draw his attention back to her. ]

Honey, I appreciate what you're trying to do but I just don't have energy for him right now, okay? If something goes wrong, I'm not sure I could fight him.

[ Which is sort of a lie but he doesn't need to know that.

Then she sighs, her shoulders slumping a bit as she looks down between them before closing her eyes. ]

I just...it's a bunch of things going on right now.

[ She looks at him. ]

Don't you ever have those days where you're just...tired, maybe a little sad and feeling just a bit lost?

[Hedwig frowns at her as she stops him, tries to explain...and it hurts him a lot for reasons he can't explain. He just wants to make it better for her, 'cause she was so nice to him.

But she's holding his hands, and the way she holds them...

Hedwig suddenly tenses, neck and shoulders straining as he's torn forcibly from the Light. His grip on her hands tightens, spine starting to bow...

...then he relaxes, his grip easing.

The face no longer belongs to Hedwig. The muscular body isn't as big or as powerful as Dennis, isn't as frenetic as Hedwig or athletic as Barry, but it's well built--and yet it's bent, shoulders hunched just a little and back visibly slumping under an unseen weight.

And his features are as haggard and as worn out as she feels. They're pale, tired, and pinched with pain.

It was her weariness, her quiet suffering, that had tugged Kevin to the surface. He never met her before, not really...but he woke up a couple times and heard the others talking about her...]

...hey.

[His hands twist in her grip, fingers gently wrapping around hers. He has a softer East Coast accent, voice higher than Dennis's, but with just a touch of gravel in it.]

What's goin' on? What's the matter?

[ She might have said something more, something to soothe the worry on Hedwig's face when he looked at her with a little frown but she feels the shift coming.

She watches as he tenses before he slips away, allowing someone else to step into the Light...and this one she doesn't recognize but almost immediately her heart ache. The energy she feels from him hurts as she looks up into his face, noting the way he seems to fold forward a bit before looking at her. ]

I'm just...struggling.

[ She confesses, tilting her head to the side with a curious look. ]

Who are you?

I, uh...Kevin. My name's Kevin.

[He feels shaky already--the world is too bright, too intense--but her hands in his feel...good. Soothing, warm...real. Plus, she looks at him in a way he likes. Her gaze is soft and open, and he doesn't feel scrutinized or studied by it.

Just...seen.

Looking down at their joined hands, he falters for a second...then lets one go to reach out with visible uncertainty to lay his hand on her shoulder.]

I know what that feels like. Uh...y-you wanna sit down? You look so tired...

[ Even in her tired state, she could feel a little bit of her energy seeking towards him, trying to soothe and make him feel better while she realized she was dealing with the first. She studies him closely now, wondering more as he lets go if one of her hands to touch her shoulder. ]

Only if you sit down with me?

[Kevin hesitates a long moment, suddenly afraid--he doesn't even know how he's here, not really. He was curious, he was...called, but no one sent for him. He just sort of...came out.

He's not strong enough for this--he's not in charge of the Light.

And yet--he feels a thread of something, like a string tying him to the spot, to the hand he held and the shoulder he was touching--rubbing a little, up and down like he could will warmth and strength into her.

It's such a little thing, but it feels huge to him.

You said hi to the people. You can do this, too.

Jade's voice is distant, but audible, reminding him of the insurmountable thing he's already done in this place. Sitting down--having a visit...

He can do this.

So he takes a deep breath and nods.]

Okay...okay, I can do that.

[ Courtney feels the flicker of fear threading through his energy, the hesitance at the idea of sitting and talking to her. She didn’t take it personally though as she already knew there were a lot of issues at play at the moment. More than she knew, she was sure.

Then she smiles softly when he agrees, beaming just a little before nodding and moving to sit on the couch with him. It helps for a minute to push back the chill that has been plaguing her but it’s brief.

Settling in place, she looks up at him as she waits for him to sit. ]

[Kevin follows her to the couch and watches her sit, her hand still in his. He hesitates, feeling suddenly unsure and just so raw from the Light and the effort...

He sits more heavily than he should, his strength failing him as his eyes shut for a second...]

Sorry, uh...I'm not usually out for long periods. [He huffs with humorless laughter, pinching the bridge of his nose with his free hand.] I'm not used to being out at all anymore.

Then what pulled you out this time?

[ She asks him this curiously as she shifts to face him, leaning sideways against the back of the couch like it might hold her up as she watches him. She can still feel a small flare of nausea now and then but at least that was it.

She does wonder what he picked up on exactly or if someone had pushed him out for some reason. ]

I don't...I don't really...know. I just...

[He thought about Hedwig, the strange ripple of awareness that flooded everything and woke him up, a brisk gust of cold air that made him feel alert and aware and...

He stares down at their joined hands. He shifts his grip, slowly moving until both of his hands engulf her small one.]

I guess it felt...safe to come out.

COURTNEY MARTENIZ

text; morning of 6/27

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