Banana Splits and Bruises
5/4 in the Marketplace, after the Beltane fires

Two women were prowling through the market, still dancing along to the beat playing in their heads. There were a few stragglers in the streets here and there who were heading home from Beltane. They would laugh and whoop and clap along at the merriment but kept going otherwise. Finally the pair were coming up to the diner they had eaten at with Cianan and Arts so long ago. Antonia grabbed the door and pulled it open with a deep bow. "After you, my dear."

Shae slipped on a grin and wiggled through the door, flopping her body across a bench seat. Despite walking from the glen and their dance down the street, her feet were clean. "Thank you, thank you. Oof."

Antonia follows along and slides into the bench seat across from Shae. Arms folded heavily on the table between them. "Cianan is going to be so mad he missed jumping over fire. He might make his own fire to leap over."

Menus were on the table already because at this hour, the diner was all that was open and there were plenty of late night stragglers. "Think he'll do it in the middle of the Inn?" There was a small shadow lingering in her smile. "The place could use a little bit of cleansing fire now and then. And I hear roast Drow isn't all that bad."

Grabs a menu to flip through even if she's probably just going to order ice cream. Who needs real food when you have that? "I wouldn't put it past him. I'm sure if we dared him to do it he would set the entire place on fire just to save face." Smirks. "I'm going to have to track down the fire dancers. I got held up with Jacob so I was a little late arriving. Missed the crowning and all that."

Shae got lost in the mental picture of it for a few seconds. She'd have to have some time to move a few of her things. Wait. Attention. Eyes for Antonia as she processed the words. "You and Jacob okay?" Oh and there was the server asking what they would want. "Ice cream." What ki-- "Ice cream."

"Wait, wait." Looking over the menu then back up to the server. "The banana split. Two spoons, please." The server nods and heads off. Attention returns to Shae. "We're fine. I was explaining it to Sabine earlier, we're just... getting used to each other. He's not used to me. I'm not used to him. We're brother and sister but... it's been a long time. It's not as easy to pick up as one might think. Especially when both of us have changed so much." Leans back in her seat. "I was trying to talk him into coming to Beltane but he declined. He's really not feeling crowds lately, which I get."

"Crowds can be...challenging." Shae picked at the beads on her outfit absently, her back to the wall of the booth instead of the backrest. "Sabine is a nice girl. Your brother feels younger than you. They might be alright together because of it."

"He said he liked walking her home. Took her to her place. He said he was an idiot at the door. Didn't know what to do. They both got weird, said goodnight, he left." Shrugs. "Both of them are in a weird place. I support them hanging out, I won't get in the way of that." Shakes her head. "That's the crazy part. Jacob used to be the one who was in charge between us. But... he's been told what to do for the last seven years. He didn't have a chance to move from being a teenager to an adult like everyone else got to. Don't get me wrong, the old Jacob is still in there and fiery as hell, but I feel like..." Scratches at her hair. "I don't know. Like I said, we're getting used to each other."

"In charge. Did he take care of you when you were younger?" That's what it sounded like, to her. Antonia didn't seem the type to take orders without reason. Family might be a reason. "You know. I never asked. How old are you? Mid twenties?" Gold eyes drifted attention across the room before sweeping back. A hand reached for one of the napkins, unfolding it to cover her bare midriff like a pitiful blanket.

"He called the shots. He decided what we did, when we did it. When my Dad acted foolish he would remove us from the situation. Stood up for me. He always viewed me more like a little sister than an equal. I was alright with it though. I was different back then, too." Chuckles. "I turned twenty-five. Mid-twenties exactly." The waitress returns with a massive dish and sets it between them along with two spoons. A banana split with chocolate, vanilla, strawberry ice cream, chocolate and caramel syrup, whip cream, nuts, and cherries on top. "Thank you." Looking from the waitress to Shae to get her reaction of the monster.

"What's that mean? Acted foolish." But then the server was there with...what had Antonia called it? A split banana? Shae's already wide eyes dilated completely as she took in the small mountain range of dessert. She'd only eaten ice cream in a cone or by itself, not with all these tasty looking things. She reached for a spoon without taking her eyes off it. Ignoring the fact that her napkin blanket had fallen to her lap.

The server left the pair to it. Antonia hunched over the table to take a spoonful of vanilla ice cream and chocolate syrup with the works. "He would beat on our Mom. He didn't put his hands on us, but he made his opinion of us very clear."Takes a bite of ice cream without hesitation, none of the conversation seeming to weigh on her. "He yelled a lot. About everything we did. Everything we said. Thought we were wastes of time and money. Hated that we existed. Hated our mom for bringing us into this world, I guess. Hated everything she did, said, and was, too."

The words draw her out of the hypnotic effect of the thing. Her voice less detached than it had been for the past few hours. "Is he dead?" Some chocolate. Some strawberry. A bit of banana. Combined and brought to her lips. Delicious, her face said. That small pleased grunt was a better indication, though. When not speaking, Shae would be trying a bit of everything in the dish.

"Not sure. Mom got sick from smoking. Not long after she died Dad said he was goin' to grab some smokes. He never came back. We don't know what happened to him. We don't care, honestly."

Shae stared, not bug eyed, not soul searching. Just looked at Antonia for a while between spoonfuls. "How'd you get here, anyway?" Neither she nor her brother matched with the other refugees from Earth that the sylph had encountered. She kept expecting Antonia to pull something out that she wasn't expecting. Something hidden to explain that strange feeling.

The staring didn't bother her and she kept eating away at the ice cream. She promised Shae honesty, so despite all of this being stuff that she had buried long ago she brought it up like it was lying under the surface in wait. "On a bike. I wasn't looking for it. I left Boston in the night and I had been on the road for days to put as much distance between me and it. When I got here I knew it was weird, different. I didn't know how I arrived, but I assumed no one would be able to find me easily so I stayed."

"Were you right?" Shae latched onto the questions as if they were the only thing capable of keeping her thoughts clear. Slowly her eyes were able to focus just on the woman who shared the table with her. Better with each answer. Each spoonful of ice cream less of an emergency from dish to mouth.

"Only Jacob so far." Smirks. "When I first got to RhyDin I found myself a job. For that first year I barely left my apartment. I went to work. I went to church. I went home. That was it. I didn't venture out more than that. It was around last fall that I actually decided to start interacting with the people around town. Or at least I went to the bar and drank. I wasn't expecting to make friends." Sharp smile. "I'm not all that friendly." Says the woman taking a bite of banana split.

Finally. Several weeks later. Finally Shae asks the one question that's been a small knife in her side since the last time they were at this diner. "What's the source of all the bruises?" It's a quiet question. Framed by a spoon of vanilla and nuts and a bit of cherry and whipped cream. The stem of the former becomes something to fidget with when she plucks it from her teeth.

The corner of Antonia?s lips twitch in amusement that the question has finally come out again. And this time, she's inclined to answer. She glances around the diner, but it's mostly dead aside from a couple waitresses standing around a radio and an old man sitting at the counter. Everyone else is getting it on in the name of Beltane. She looks back to Shae. "They're reminders. My job. I do a lot of good work for bad men for good money. When I push these men, as I'm so inclined to do, or if I am not on my game as I should be. Or if they're bored or think I need to be kept in line. When the stars align, I get a reminder. Bruises on my face, burns on my chest, cuts on my belly. It depends on who I've crossed or what I've done. Reminders to not do that again." Smirks and shakes her head. "I never learn."

She remembers the image of Antonia?s torso in Cianan's shop. Like a photograph, a part of the things that strung her name together with her face in Shae's mind. A small part, but a part. "Why are you still working for them? Is it the money?" Even as she asked she was pretty sure she knew the answer. Still. She had the opportunity. So she asked while it was there. There was little reason to damage a valuable employee unless the employer saw them as property rather than a person. Something 'bad men' were inclined to do from time to time.

"I have money. Since getting my job in RhyDin the weekend vacation I have planned with Cianan coming up soon will be my first weekend off. I worked the same way when I was in Boston. Overworked. Money isn't the issue." Shrugs. "I am the job. It's what I know. It's who I am." Sucks on the tip of her spoon.

"If you are the job...maybe run the job?" Her spoon digs into the strawberry in a listless fashion. "You say you do good work. Do you really need to be kept in line? Or is it too dangerous for you to take care of your own business like that?"

Antonia shakes her head. "It's not like that. I transport. I need them. I take what they have from point A to point B. I get paid the big bucks because if I get popped with whatever I have on me, the blame falls on me." Scratches her jaw with her thumbnail, her interest in the ice cream fading. "It started back in Boston. The guy I worked for, if you pissed him off he would stick you with his cigar. When I got here and I worked, I ran my mouth like I do, and they say... Antonia, how did anyone else deal with you? And I told them. I brought it on myself." Shrugs. "Maybe I need reminders."

The explanation takes a little time to process. "You really think that?" Regarding the reminders. "Really want that to be your status quo?" Regarding everything else.

"It's all been working out lovely for me so far." Brings another bite of chocolate to her mouth.

Shae set the spoon down then, folding her arms on the top of the table to look at Antonia for a long moment. "Lovely isn't a word I would use to describe any of the times I've seen you wincing while you walk for reasons that aren't Cianan."

Antonia kept the spoon in hand, sucking at it thoughtfully while Shae spoke. "Fine. Say it works for me. Period. This is what I do. It's not going to change." Her gaze dropped to the ice cream between them, poking at it with her spoon but not taking another bite just yet.

"What would happen if one of your employers died suddenly? The underworld is a dangerous place. Things change there too." Shae reached for her long-neglected courtesy water for a sip.

She lowered her face but the smirk she wore was obvious, the amusement playing on her features. "It's like a Hydra. Cut off the head and two will grow in its place. Someone will step up into the place of power, more ruthless and bloodthirsty than the last to prove themselves."

"So the only way anything is going to change is if you grow new teeth? If you're good at what you do, that deserves respect, not...whatever this is." Soft sigh. "You know there are other jobs, yeah?"

Gestures at Shae with her spoon. "You're the only one who's talking about changing anything. I never said I had a desire to leave my job. You only asked about it and I answered." She brushed past the talk of respect with another bite of vanilla ice cream. "I'm aware there are other jobs. I have a job. I don't need a new job." Her tone was pointed, clear.

The woman exhaled slowly, looking towards the window. "As you like." Her reply quiet. A reach for the spoon she had abandoned. Another bite of chocolate ice cream to pass the time. "What do you want for yourself, Antonia?"

Any levity previously in her expression was long gone. Shae was looking at the window and Antonia was aiming her gaze at a far off wall. The end of her spoon tapped idly on the table. "I don't know. Never put a lot of thought into it, to be honest. I take things day by day for the most part. Hope to have a decent day. If that happens, I move on to the next one. I don't have a big game plan or anything."

Shae drew her attention back, though it was largely to the purpose of eating the ice cream dish in front of her. "Forgive me for prying. I consider you a friend and, well, I care enough to want more for you than that. Is all."

Her attention was still on a far wall off to the side, but the tapping of the spoon had long stopped. When Shae spoke it might seem like the words weren't sinking in on Antonia but after a short pause she replied. "Nothing to forgive. It's fine. I told you that you can ask anything you want. I consider you a friend, too, and I want to be honest with you." She turned her head to look at Shae. "And honestly, this is what I got going on. And I'm okay with it. I know others might not like it, but it's mine."

Silence stretched as she ate slowly, then at last set the spoon aside again. "Alright." Her well of questions seemed to have dried up. Not for lack of interest, but for the domination of other thoughts. "Then that's enough for now."

"So be it." While she hadn't tried to dance around any of Shae's questions she was more than happy to have the questioning come to an end. At least for now. She had a question of her own instead. "What did you think of the banana split?"

Shae glanced at the dessert that was mostly gone, fishing a cherry out of the wreckage with a pinch of her fingers. "I liked it. Didn't realize people put toppings on ice cream. It's nice."

"People do lots of things with ice cream. Use it in lots of recipes and dress it up in lots of different ways." She was done for now though and lowered her spoon to the table. Fingers lifted to call the waitress over with the bill. "I'll show you more this summer."

Her smile was faint, but there. "I'd like that I think. For now I'm going to head back to the Inn." And drink heavily.

"Sounds good. I've got the check. I'm going to pay and head home. Beltane was fun. This was, too, in its own way." A faint smirk. It was mostly the bumpy road of questioning at the end that left a heavy air lingering between them. "Goodnight, Shae."

Slipping out of the stool, Shae moved barefoot for the door, picking up a worn leather jacket from the coat hook by the entrance. Whose was that? "Be safe." She shrugged it on, hugging it tightly to herself, and stepped out.

When the waitress came with the bill Antonia was already holding out the coins to pay for the dessert. She lingered in her seat even after the waitress departed. "Always." Lips ticked upward into a lopsided smile watching the witch make her way out into the night.

Clinic Duty and Doodles, Part 2

Glance spared to read the new message, she was nearing the wrist now, this took a bit longer. "I didn't expect as much, but it would have been interesting if you did. Do you have any questions? I imagine the boys answered most of them for you, or Eva."

Wipes and writes. "I don't like forgetting, but Jacob said it's better I don't remember." Writes shrug and taps the word a time or two. Wipes the board and writes. "Waiting for Eva to take this stupid tube out. If it's in past the weekend, I'll do it myself."

"As I understand it, you can do some damage if you remove it recklessly. A permanent smoker's rasp wouldn't suit you. Try to be a bit patient." On to the metacarpals. When she got to the knuckles, though, she was drawing something other than bones.

Stares at Shae. Wipes the board and writes sloppily since she's still staring at Shae. "Would be awful if I got hurt or something." Apparently she's not worried about more damage being done to herself. "Did I miss anything good while I was gone?" Like she was on a vacation rather than in a coma.

"Believe it or not, I can sometimes read sarcasm. I'm implying that I'll knock your ass out if you don't behave." Shae added cheerfully as she put the finishing touches on her cast decorations. Cianan might have talked her out of yelling at Antonia, but part of her was still hanging on to that agitation. She'd been passing around more threats than usual lately. "Define good? I've had my head in the sand for a long while with work matters."

Squints. Wipes and writes. "Wouldn't be the first or the last." She draws a heart to soften the message. Wipes and writes. "Don't know. Make out with anyone? Did you watch game of thrones without me?"

"No it wouldn't, but my way involves more finger waggling and less bruises." Clearly Shae didn't feel the need to treat the matter with kid gloves tonight. "No making out to speak of, you should know by now that I'm not generally so lucky." Smirk there. "Of course I didn't. I figured we could binge watch the recent season once you got out of here." The cap back on the marker said she was all done her art. Bones of the arm wrist and hand, topped with a sketch of brass knuckles over the bone ones with letters that spelled: BOSS

"Can't you just punch me in the face like everyone else?" She draws a smiley face to show she's kidding... with devil horns. Wipes and writes. "I would like that. I want to get out and at the same time I still want to sleep forever. Tired." With the cap back on the marker she lifts the cast a little to look it over. That's impressive, the look in her eye says it. Thumbs up with her good hand. Writes on the board. "Thank you."

"If I did that it would get me kicked out of the clinic. My way, Nina thinks I'm some sort of goddess for getting you to sleep without the drugs." The marker was turned over in her hands as she leaned back in her chair. "Enjoy the rest, it'll help you heal."

"Nina is going to smother me in my sleep with my pillow." The way Nina is going to kill her changes every other day or so. Wipes on the board and writes. "I know. Just tired of being still." She doodles out a very rough picture of a motorcycle with a stick figure riding it.

Shae had to bite her tongue on the response she wanted to give. Instead, she sighed and tossed the marker underhand onto Antonia's lap. "I know you are. I'm sure Jacob or Ketch will take you riding as soon as they can."

Wipes the board, except the picture, and writes. "I'll make Ketch get a sidecar." Picks up the permanent marker and gestures for Shae to stick her arm out to her. Fair trade and all.

"What's a sidecar?" Permanent marker probably wouldn't be so permanent on Shae. At least she'd be able to take a picture of it with her phone before it leaked from her skin with the breeze. So the arm was offered forth without reservation.

She picks up the dry erase marker and draws another picture. It's a poorly drawn motorcycle, looking at it from the front. She adds a sidecar to it, a little compartment attached to the motorcycle with an additional wheel and another stick figure inside it. After drawing that she taps the marker to the board, deciding what to draw on Shae.

Scooting the chair a little closer, Shae inspects the drawing and eyes that single wheel with distrust. "I think I'd prefer to ride on the back. That looks awful low to the ground for such speeds."

Writes on the board. "The danger is the fun part." It's easier to reach Shae now, she starts drawing on her offered forearm with the sharpie.

"Well that can be your special seat then. I won't fight you for it. Cianan can sit in your lap, even." Chuckling. Unlike Antonia who liked the surprise, Shae was curious about what the drawing might be.

She lifts her hand to give a thumbs up, much easier than having to stop to write on her board. Antonia is no artist, that's obvious from her drawings on the whiteboard. on Shae's forearm she's working on drawing an ice cream cone with a big scoop of ice cream on it. Except the ice cream scoop looks like some sort of weird dripping skull.

The woman turned sketch pad began to hum softly, a song she'd heard not too long ago, while Antonia continued her hardcore ice cream cone. She was content, in that moment, with just the tickling sensation of the marker on her skin. Questions would only make it hard for Antonia to work.

She's focused on her drawing, but the humming from Shae and her constant state of exhaustion is starting to catch up with her. She finishes off the ice cream cone and gives a thumbs up to show it's complete. The marker drops from her hand, rolling onto the blankets but she's too relaxed to find it.

She was too relaxed, but Shae would need that in case she had the urge to draw on her face later and blame it on Jacob. It was nice to see her looking less like a corpse, but Antonia seemed sapped of her energy for the evening. "Take a nap, I'll be here to make sure Nina doesn't drown you in your bedpan."

She doesn't write on her board. Instead her tired yet stern fist shake at the door says it all. Nina, that bitch. She doesn't fight the idea of a nap. She moves her hand in front of her breathing tube twice, like blowing kisses at Shae then she lets her hand sink into her stomach. It doesn't take long at all for her to drift off.

Her phone was fished out to snap a picture before that melting skull ice cream could melt any further. Shae spent the rest of her clinic shift watching the ink dissipate from her skin, humming to drown out the sound of beeping machines.