It had been a long time since Mataya had had any excuse to hang around a childrens' playground, but since Juno had come along, she'd discovered it was one of the few things the little girl really enjoyed. She was due to meet up with Jon today, so the choice of playground had been made solely because there was a cafe right next to it. Mataya was particularly difficult to miss today, having given into the urge to wear bright yellow and black, giving the impression of a more attractive than usual wasp. She was sitting at an outdoor table near the edge of the playground, watching as Juno braved the jungle gym while she waited for Jon.

Jon made a less than discreet arrival in the Bentley, which was kind of hard to miss, since there were so few of the shiny, black things around Rhydin. Stubborn to the core, he wasn't willing to give up his independence and hire a driver just yet. Anyway, everyone knew he loved the Bentley and couldn't bear to part with it. He wasn't quite sure why Mataya wanted to meet at a playground, but assumed it had something to do with the mysterious child under her charge, which he as yet knew very little about. As such, he was dressed somewhat casually, at least for him, in muted tones of tan and brown, not nearly as bright as Mataya's yellow and black. He shoved his hands in his pants pockets as he wandered up the path to the playground, watching the kids at play and wondering if he was ever that carefree and happy.

Of course, 'Taya was on the look out for him, as well as keeping an eye on Juno, so as soon as Jon made his muted appearance, she put paid to any attempt to keep himself incognito. "Jon!" Standing up, she waved wildly at him, a huge smile on her face for her friend.

He heard her call his name and turned his head that way, smiling and waving a hand back, not nearly as wildly as her, though he was happy to see her. He made a beeline for the table and wrapped her in a hug. "Hey, Tay. Thanks for meeting me."

Flinging her arms around him, she squeezed warmly, planting a kiss on his cheek. "Are you kidding" Anything for you, Jonny, you know that." She chuckled, releasing him to step back. "You want a coffee or something?"

He smiled and hugged her back, waiting for her to claim a seat before doing the same. "I'd love one, if you have some."

"Like I'd ever say no to caffeine," she laughed. "Just a sec. Oh ....the little one in the stripey cardigan is Juno, in case you're wondering." She pointed to a very high slide, where the girl in question was contemplating the ride down quite seriously. "Be right back." With her usual provocative sway, she walked into the cafe to grab a couple of coffees.

He nodded an acknowledgment and turned to watch the children at play, the little girl Mataya pointed out, in particular. He shielded his eyes from the afternoon sun as he watched her contemplate the slide, wondering what her story was and how she'd come to be under Mataya's care. He barely noticed his companion's provocative sway, as used to it as he was, the little girl holding his attention.

As Juno came to the bottom of the slide, shooting off the end and landing on her backside with a giggling thump, 'Taya reappeared with two mugs and a bottle of water, sliding back into her seat and patting the table. "Sit down, Jon, no one's gonna tackle you to the ground here."

He glanced back at Mataya when she returned, a slightly embarrassed smile on his face. "Sorry, I was just watching and wondering if we were ever that young." Yeah, he's all of twenty-five. Ancient. He claimed a seat across from her and waited for her to hand him a mug, trusting she'd made his coffee to his liking.

"Oh, don't you start getting old on me," she laughed, shaking her head. "'Cos if you start getting old, that makes me older, and I'm not ready yet." Wrapping a hand around her own mug, she lifted it, taking a sip and groaning happily. "I saw you on Ned last night. Why did you agree to those questions?"

He frowned when she mentioned Ned, scowled really, not happy about how that had turned out. "I didn't. I'm an idiot. I should never have agreed to that....fiasco."

"You're not an idiot, Jon," 'Taya told him firmly, her eyes completely serious for once. "You're not the one who came out of it looking bad, either. He made a fool of himself. You came out of it with dignity, and that's pretty huge, you know?"

"I thought I'd come clean, you know" I thought maybe someone could learn something from my mistakes, but he made me look like an ass." He wrapped one hand around the mug, staring at its contents. "And then Lelah was on my lap and everything just turned into a big mess. I don't know what that game was all about."

"Geez, Jon, you gotta stop doing this." She leaned over, her fingers wrapping about his wrist. "Stop focusing on the negative, and take the positive away with you. You held your head up and you kept going, without giving anything too personal away. And if you want to set the record straight about your time in rehab and everything, set up an interview with the Post. They're good at that sort of thing."

He lifted his head toward her. "I did an interview with the Post. I told them ahead of time that I wasn't going to discuss anything about my personal life, and they respected that. I'm clean, Tay. Why does this keep following me around" Why can't they just let it go?"

"So you know that they can do you a huge favor by setting the record straight and abiding by your wishes at the same time," she pointed out, a smile making itself known gently on her features. "Ned's an ass, and everyone knows it. Seriously, Jon, it wasn't that bad." She squeezed his wrist fondly. "They're journalists, it's what they do. You either hold your line, or you give one a full interview with all the facts. That's just how it's done, and you know that."

"I can't, Tay..." There was that frown again. He was going to have to come clean with her. He couldn't stand living a lie. If he didn't tell her the truth, he felt like he was going to burst open at the seams. "Half my life is a lie. The other half....I don't remember."

She frowned curiously, tilting her head in concern. "I thought you said you were getting therapy for the memory thing," she said quietly. "That it was working for you."

"It wasn't....therapy exactly. I mean, I tried. I've been to doctors, healers....I've tried everything. It's just....gone."

Her frown deepened with further concern. "What do you mean, not exactly?" she asked with worrying suspicion. "Jon, what have you been doing?"

He sighed. "You sound like Lena." He rested an elbow against the table and raked a hand through his hair, scratching his head nervously.

'Taya leaned forward on her elbows, eyeing him with sardonic amusement. "And you're acting guilty," she pointed out. "I live with Max, I know guilty a mile off, Jon. You don't have to talk to me about it, but you need to talk to someone."

"I'm okay now. It's over." But was it really' There was still one roaming around out there somewhere. He'd gone through a hellish withdrawal, one that had made cocaine withdrawal look like a walk in the park, and he wasn't going through that again.

"Well, if you ever feel the need ....I think Fiora's got a supernatural pest control thing at the Plaza," Mataya offered quietly. "They did a next of vampire harpies for her a while back."

His eyes were still on Juno, watching her at play, envying her innocence and wondering where she'd come from. He turned back to Mataya with an arched brow. "A nest?"

"Yeah, apparently Fiora gets all sorts as squatters in the houses she buys and does up, and there were a load of vampiric harpies in one of them," 'Taya shrugged, not entirely sure of the details. "She just handed the address over to these guys at the Plaza and they kicked 'em out and killed 'em, I think."

"There's one left," he admitted, unsure how much he should tell her. He chewed his lip, thoughtfully. Had the two vampires been part of a bigger group" He wasn't sure, but if that was true, there might be more than one vampire to worry about.

"Do you want rid of it?" 'Taya asked curiously. "Because they're obviously pretty good."

He didn't want to tell her how serious it really was, probably more serious than he wanted to admit. He was having thoughts and dreams that didn't feel like his own, that belonged to someone else. "I'm told there's only one way to break the connection."

"And that is?"

"Someone has to destroy her," he said quietly, not wanting to admit that harsh reality, but until and unless she was destroyed, he had a feeling he'd never be free.

She held his gaze for a long moment, trying to read the expression in his eyes thoughtfully. "And do you want that to happen?"

He looked back at her, meeting her gaze, a look of determination on his face, the will to survive, the desire to have his life back. "I want my freedom."

"Then you need to go to the Plaza," she said simply, with a slow nod. "Or someone else needs to. But either way, it's gotta be done."

He didn't give himself enough credit. Considering everything he'd been through, he was a lot stronger than he gave himself credit for, surviving things that might have destroyed weaker souls. "Who do I ask for" Buffy?" he quipped.

She snorted with laughter, shaking her head. "You should ask for Shen Lei and Rufus Bennett."

Jon made a mental note of that information, and the conversation took a turn away from his problems to other matters. It felt good to confide in a friend, one who understood him so completely and who didn't judge or condemn him. The ball was in his court again, and he knew what he had to do.

((Many thanks to Mataya's player for this scene, which has been adapted from live role-play.))