The Usual Crowd

Dec 6th, 2015 02:42 AM

Ava's book lost most of its appeal after the phonecall from her friend, and she rose from the cocoon of blanket on the love seat to straighten up a bit before her company arrived. It wasn't that her apartment was cold, but it did somehow manage to feel cooler than the world just outside the door. And since only the weak or the rich turned on their heat before January, blankets it was. Shuffling a couple of old newspapers off the table and into the recycling, she puttered absently, the bulk of her attention on what Ramona might possibly want to discuss.

She hadn't sounded upset, or particularly worried. If they were talking over dinner and beers, yet again, it probably wasn't an immediate issue either. And nobody brought dinner to tell someone that no, they weren't quite as chill about their friend's previous eating habits as they had initially thought they could be, and that they should probably take a step back. So, important but not dire. Good.

Her hands were still wet and sudsy when she heard a noise at the door, grabbing a cloth to dry them as she tiptoed to the peephole. Yep, that was who she wanted to see. A brief series of locks were thrown back, and then the door itself. "Hey, come on in!"

**InvertedMonkey** · Dec 6th, 2015 12:04 PM

Arms laden with brown paper bags, Ramona steps into the familiar apartment, shimmying to the side so Ava can close the door quickly and keep out the cold. "Hey," she greets with a smile, "Good to see you." Such pleasantries exchanged, she strides quickly to the kitchen. Brown paper bags are deposited, and take-out containers appear. Along with a couple of six-packs from one of Ramona's preferred local beer breweries and a bottle of whiskey. Ramona comes prepared. Without asking, she checks the oven, making sure nothing is in it before turning it on and shoving their garlic bread in there. "I wasn't sure what you'd like, so I got some classics; meatball marinara spaghetti, and fettuccine alfredo with chicken," she says, opening containers to display their contents, "Take whichever you want. We also got a little antipasto, and some garlic bread in the oven." If it's gonna be an expense anyway, why not get the bells and whistles?

She finds Ava's bottle opener and pops open two of the beers, making room for Ava to approach the food and make her selection. She takes a drought from one of the bottles, and then figures, Hell with it, might as well get started. "So... Coco wants us to be a motley." How strange life is. "The three of us. You, me, her. A motley. She asked me." Also we talked about her being a murderer, and I basically tore apart her whole philosophy. By the way, how's the "I used to be a cannibal and now I feel really weird about it" thing going? God.

Dec 6th, 2015 06:48 PM

She didn't dawdle behind, grabbing utensils as Ramona prepared the oven. The combination of food sounded delightful, but the decision wasn't hard. "Alright, I'm for spaghetti then. Thanks for bringing all of this, it smells fantastic." Figuring she'd just eat out of the container, Ava opened the one that smelled more like marinara and sunk her fork into a meatball as Ramona dropped the news.

Turning to look at her friend with eyebrows raised in surprise, she reached for one of the beers. "Huh," was her first, very helpful response. "I know Coco was drumming up folks to form a motley awhile ago, she had a meeting or something... maybe it didn't go well?" After her own motley had fallen apart, she hadn't been in a rush to slap one together from whoever showed up to an open call. Still, if it worked, it worked. Different people wanted different things from their motleys.

But Coco... she hadn't gone out of her way to make herself an attractive motley mate to many people.

Taking a delicate bite of the meatball, she tilted her head. "I didn't think the two of you were particularly close."

**InvertedMonkey** · Dec 6th, 2015 11:08 PM

"We're not!" Ramona agrees, leaning back against the counter. "I don't even like Coco! I respect what she can do with a blade, and that she's trying to use those skills on the Freehold's behalf, but personally? I can't stand the shit she pulls. I kinda thought the feeling was mutual. But then she calls me up and invites me to coffee, and apologizes to me. She even gave me a gift, a shield she commissioned from Marcus." She lets out a breath and shrugs her shoulders in confusion, "I make my own shields, what do I need one of his for?"

She sighs, opening one of Ava's drawers to grab a fork, and then stabbing it into the open antipasto container, spearing a piece of salami. "She told me she fucking admires me," she shakes her head in disbelief, pausing to eat the bit of cured meat. "After seeing me in action. I honestly didn't believe it at first. Never trust a Fairest, right? Especially one who's flattering you. But... it didn't seem like she was lying." Her eyes having been distant for most of this, finally refocus on Ava, "I guess she figures that I'm the one she has to convince. She said the two of you 'already possess the bond of friendship,' so she thinks you'd be up for it." There's an unspoken question there. Would Ava be up for it?

Dec 7th, 2015 10:02 PM

It was a little amusing to see Ramona so off-balance, but she hid it behind slow mouthfuls of food. The shield was an attempt at a thoughtful gift, or so it seemed to her, and it didn't surprise her too much that the Ogre might be someone Coco came to admire. Though, honestly, she couldn't claim much in the way of understanding what decided Coco's stance on any given person.

At the mention of her own friendship with the wasp, she wiped the corner of her mouth thoughtfully. "The circumstances under which Coco and I met allowed me a slightly different perspective than most. She proved to me that she had my back even when she had no idea who I was; I belonged to the Freehold and we had a common goal, and that was enough. I appreciate that. I mean, she also clubbed a child with her cane but it was honestly safer for him to be unconscious under the circumstances.... which were that he kept trying to run away into the Hedge because he was afraid of me." A blasé shrug later, she continued.

"I think, essentially, I got to see Coco the way she wants to be seen, at least that time. We've had a couple of really interesting conversations since then, too. Sometimes she manages to drop the bravado long enough to have a real connection with someone, even if it's just for a moment, and that's when I really saw someone I liked. Someone lonely and frustrated, who wants a place to belong and people to make Sacramento feel like home, not just another place she'd lived. I get that, I can sympathize with that. I'm not denying that she can be an absolute shit," she added, waving a half-eaten meatball as if to fend off any potential accusations. "But I think it comes from a position of someone who doesn't fit and honestly doesn't know how to fix it. That doesn't legitimize lashing out, but it does make it a little more understandable."

"So yeah, I'd say we're friends. Sort of started out as fascination and trying to avoid conflict, but I do like her. Or, I like how she can be. All that aside, I wasn't looking to dive into a motley anytime soon. What would be..." she trailed off, trying to find a better way to phrase her question. "What is this motley supposed to achieve? Would we be a partnership with a distinct goal, just a bunch of friends...?" That second option seemed a little thin.

**InvertedMonkey** · Dec 7th, 2015 10:32 PM

"Yeah, the goal is 'fix Coco,'" Ramona snorts, uncharitably. A moment's pause though shows that the ogress doesn't truly believe it. "I mean, she didn't come out and say that, but I kinda got that impression. She said that I could provide her with 'the reasons to truly become a benefit to this community.' This is after she told me that she protects the Freehold for recognition and glory, and I tore her a new one because that's a terrible reason to take lives into your hands." She takes a pull from her beer, then shrugs, "I don't know, she said she's unhappy and she's lonely, and I guess this is her solution to that. She thinks that we can be more together than apart, that we'd 'form the core of something amazing.' She also said that we're the only two people in the Freehold that don't hate her," Ramona snorts, "That was sure flattering. Not bad enough to be a second choice, aside from you I'm her last and only choice."

She sighs, glancing in the window of the oven to see if the bread is ready yet. The air in the kitchen is starting to smell garlicy and buttery, but it needs a little while longer. "I mean, I've seen some of what you said. Having your back, belonging to the same Freehold, common goal, that's enough. I like that, I like that too. But that's, like, the minimum requirement I expect from people. I'd be deeply disappointed if a Freeholder behaved otherwise, or at least I'd make sure not to trust my back to them again." Yeah, that sets a pretty high bar for some Changelings, but that's ok. Ramona's used to being disappointed. "And she knows I don't like her. She even knows why. She apologized for being nasty to me, but that doesn't make us friends. She's hoping that with the pledge binding us, there'll be enough... intimacy I guess for some friendship to grow." Her eyes widen a bit and she shakes her head, "Which is just bizarre to me, why would I want to bind myself to you for a year if we're not already friends?"

Dec 8th, 2015 08:08 PM

Listening to the Ogre's take on things, she ruminated. Ramona's expectations always seemed to be higher than her own: where Ava looked for inarguable personhood and considered it an achievement to survive, Ramona wanted morals and further aspirations. Here, too, Ava was pleased for a person to protect individual Freeholders not just the interests of the group, where Ramona would accept nothing less. It was well and good to have high expectations, but some people needed more time to be able to fulfill them.

A brief moment after Ramona finished, Ava spoke up. "She and I had a similar conversation about motivations, and I get your 'that's a terrible reason', because it is, but I also think it's pretty natural to want recognition for what you've done. Doing the right thing because it's right and not worrying about whether or not people recognize you is a nice ideal, but it's not feasible for some people. It's just not how most people work: they want feedback, affirmation, even just a fucking pat on the back. Something to let them know they're not struggling for people who don't even give a shit about them. Why break your back for a Freehold full of people who hate you? There are other 'Holds out there." Pausing to chew, she added, "Glory is a different kettle of whatever, I'm not really into that part."

"As for 'fixing' Coco..." A sigh slid out of her, mouth pulled to the side in a half-grimace. "If we wanted this to work, we'd need a more unifying reason. I'm honestly really glad she's asking for help, even if she did it in a slightly difficult way, but I can't help feeling like we'd end up trying to 'manage' her. That's nothing anybody wants."

"Is there anything that would make you consider taking her up on this?" she asked, teeth clicking against the lip of her beer.

**InvertedMonkey** · Dec 9th, 2015 02:35 AM

Ava has a point about recognition. It's not nothing. And doing the job for people that treat you like dirt... well, it'd be hard for the job to be worth it then. Still, recognition shouldn't be why you're doing it. And Ava definitely has a point about not making Coco the focus of the motley. Her question though... is worthy of consideration. She ponders it for a moment. Long enough to check on the garlic bread again and pull it out of the oven. Nice and toasty. She starts moving their meal to Ava's little table.

"There have been times in my life where I really didn't like who I was. And it was fucking hard to change, and I'm still not perfect. I mean, I probably never will be, but I meant that I still have to work at it. So I guess I sort of understand part of where she's coming from." She sighs, "I got really pissed off at first, when she asked me. Why should I have to fix Coco? Grow the fuck up, Coco, take care of your own problems. Handle your own emotions. Deal with your own shit. Then I remembered... that it's really fucking hard, and not everybody knows how to do that."

A pause, and then another shrug, "There's this line from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland; We're all mad here. I think about that a lot. I use it to remind myself that we're all fucked up, those of us who Escaped. To remind myself not to be... too judgmental." She scowls, "I don't know. The bitch of it is that the only one that can relate to what a Changeling has been through is another Changeling. All we've got is each other. I feel sorta... obligated. To help. Because I might be able to." She sighs, sticking her fork into the fettuccine and twirling it idly.

Dec 10th, 2015 01:00 AM

Dropping onto one of her chairs, Ava gazed thoughtfully at the garlic bread. "Mm, let's stop calling it 'fixing Coco,' and think of it like creating a safe space for her. I think that's probably more what she's really looking for anyway. And yeah, pretty much only other Lost can do that. Ideally it wouldn't take a motley pledge, but it's how she sees it happening. I mean, I assume; she and I have never talked about this at all." She tore off a hunk of bread, gnawing on it as she spoke and not bothering to worry about keeping her mouth discreet. Dinner dates with the Scrivener were not for those with weak stomachs, especially after she had been eating meatballs in marinara.

"So," she said around a bite, "I'm not sensing any great desire on your part to go into this motley." Theoretical willingness, sure, under duress. But obligation was a terrible reason to make a motley that wasn't about achieving a goal.

**InvertedMonkey** · Dec 10th, 2015 01:21 AM

She's silent a moment, then shrugs, "Well yeah, I mean... what's in it for me? I'm friends with you, I know you've got my back, I don't need a pledge to reassure me of that. It's not that I would oppose one, but it just... wouldn't occur to me as necessary. Coco seems to think... that she and I would become friends over the course of our experience as a motley." Noodles twirled around her fork, she caps it by spearing a piece of chicken, and pauses to eat for a moment, "... Maybe she'd be a good friend, I don't know. Other than that, I'm not really seeing a lot of upsides for me. Except than the satisfaction of helping someone who needs it." She shrugs. "Can you imagine any? Before I left Coco, I told her that I needed to think, and we'd talk again later. And I asked her to think about what she'd bring to a motley besides her blade, and tell me when we spoke again. It wasn't an idle question, I intend to hear her out. I'm just having trouble seeing the upsides on my own.

"So there's that, and... I don't know, what do you think happens if I say no?" She frowns, looking at Ava curiously, wondering what her thoughts might be. "She's taken a bit of a mental beating lately. It would put me in the uncomfortable position of kicking her while she's down." It feels a little bit like blackmail. Which is not an uncommon way to manipulate someone through their emotions. Ramona hates to be thus manipulated. If she decides on no, she'll say no. But it's always worth considering the consequences, even if you intend to ignore them. "So, yeah, desire? No. I don't desire to be in a motley with Coco. But I'm not a Spring. Desire isn't always what guides me. I'm still considering it... because it might be the right thing to do. And because if Coco," ~~is fixed~~, "... has a safe space, there might be benefits in the long-run."

The Usual Crowd

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