deercountry | House meeting

Entry tags:

House meeting

Who: Reaper (

no_reload), Fern (

laminae), Luz (

imaglyphwitch), Luca (

schoolingfish), Varian (

droptheious)
What: Disaster House has a meeting
When: Beginning of November
Where: Disaster House in Cassandra

Content Warnings: Will add as they come up.

[Reaper had taken his time with recovery, which left him trapped in his room for a few days. When it seemed that he could get around without having long episodes of shortness of breath, he appeared more downstairs. That's where he happened to be, settled into a chair with the other occupants of the house.

He knew they had questions, knew that most of them would have to do with Lance's outburst on the network. That wasn't the kid's fault; they didn't always control their Omens. And Lance had been circling the drain for years now, barely holding on. Not the kid's fault. For as long as he had known Lance, the kid had been teetering on the edge of a mental crisis.

However, this wasn't about Lance right now. This was about the household where he resided, and many of the youngsters who lived in it. As the eldest, he knew that his position here was the most tenuous.

So Reaper sat quietly, one ankle crossed over his other knee. He remained in comfortable black clothing, and while situations like these usually had him wearing his mask, he had decided against it. Instead, his scarred face was bare, though he kept his hood up to cover most of his white hair. His gloved hands were folded in his lap, thumbs clasping the mask that he would normally wear. Instead, it lightly tapped against his thigh.]

So, I suppose we should call this meeting to order, hmm?

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[It wasn't quite the simple. Nothing with Lance ever was, and he was reluctant to get into the details of way back in the day. As many who had existed in Deerington for a long time, they usually became different people based on experiences.]

We were both at the arena. [That he could confirm.] No, he killed me because he got lucky because I had become tired. [That had to do with his powers relying on blood rather than a regeneration of his body's energy. That too was... well, complicated, as most things with Reaper were.]

It is possible someone from the past may come calling. I don't disclose my location of residence as a precaution against that. [Reaper did the sneaky-sneaky thing, and only those he was closest too actually wrangled that information out of him.] But I imagine that those of us with troubled pasts might all have that issue of old scores coming back.

[Luz nodded. Ok, the details of that were...unlucky, and now being told that some people would be coming to settle old scores was definitely not something that calmed her down. So that basically meant that they were possibly going to have to deal with someone popping in to try and cause trouble.

Which meant, of course, fortifying the house. Luz wasn't the kind of person to insist on kicking someone out unless they were actively bringing danger to them, but something he specifically said stuck out in her head].

Ok. Um. Who exactly would we have to worry about?

[He wasn't convinced anyone would be coming calling to the house, but he couldn't discount it entirely either. He had many enemies, but most of them weren't even in Trench as far as he was aware. Would they come? Perhaps. Would he deal with them? Of course.

His priority since moving in was the safety of those that lived under the roof here. He had never pretended to be anything other than what he had intended to be.]

People from my world. [A small dramatic pause.] None of whom are here in Trench at present. [Then a shrug.] Perhaps Maul, but I doubt it.

OK.

[Now granted she knew for sure an enemy already who wouldn't mind a dust up with Reaper, but he wasn't the type to go and seek Reaper out for a fight. She could tell Reaper about that later].

If Darth Maul comes here involving you, it won't be to fight you though.

[Luz knew pretty well why Darth Maul would come if it involved Reaper. He'd already BEEN here anyway].

[Reaper, even now, would not turn down a fight. He had very little care for his own safety, and he was usually very good about taking the fight to someone else if they wanted one. His tactics were varied, but if he had a goal in mind, he would stick to it. That perhaps was one of his better characteristics, if one could call it that.]

It will sound like a fight.

[And he and Maul had fought before. He had died, but he wouldn't make that mistake a second time if his lover became murderous. He would kill the Zabrak quickly and ruthlessly.]

And as we've all seen, Maul is skilled. So if this place affects him, he can be dangerous. I have contingencies in place to deal with him.

[Luz nodded quietly. She had to admit she hadn't prepared for Darth Maul if he ever went on a rampage, but she had certainly been on the end result of one before. She hadn't died, but boy had she come very, very close].

If you know a way to combat one of those in the air chokes, I'd be pretty fascinated to hear about it. But it isn't Maul I'm thinking about, not right now anyway. I'm more concerned about what you would do if, say, one of Lance's friends have decided they want to get revenge on his behalf.

Would you at least try to talk them out of it? Not everything has to end with a big fight and someone dead.

[The corner of his lips just tugged her wish to know how to escape a Force choke. It was not an ability that Maul had successfully used on him, and that would something that would continue to be relevant.]

Don't have a neck, but that's not possible for most. [It helped that he could his body to smoke mostly at will.] Why would one of Lance's friends want revenge when he's already taken it for himself?

[That logic made little sense to him. Lance had evened the score, so why would friends feel the need to sweep in and have a go?]

It depends how they approached me. If they talk, I talk. If they shoot first, I shoot back.

[Ooh, she'd been lucky that day, that was for sure, because she had barely escaped Maul. the one good thing about Luz is that she was very, very good at scrambling away in a hurry].

Oh, well, sorry. You look like you have one.

[Here, Luz looked unamused].

For the same reason that Darth Maul tried to kill Lance. Wouldn't that be obvious?

You don't have anything to fear, at least not from the guy I'm talking about. He's not one for sneaking up and attacking like that. He's...honorable?

[It felt weird to think in those terms, but that was the impression she got from Shiro].

[Reaper had been keeping his abilities to himself while in the house, or at least subtle enough that he would just seem like the elusive guy in black that lived upstairs.]

Looks can be deceiving. But to avoid his hold is difficult for those of us not of his world; we don't have the same space wizard defenses. I suggest a strong distraction.

[It seemed that a part of Maul had to concentrate to keep the hold, which made sense. How one achieved that kind of distraction would depend on the situation at hand honestly. He could avoid it easier than most.]

Oh. Him. [Reaper knew who was left of Lance's original crew. He had met Shiro twice, and they had not been fans of each other.] Well, he is welcome to try if he would like second-hand revenge. I understand the sentiment.

[Honourable was an interesting word choice. It almost had him laughing, but he held it in.]

[Yup, he pretty much was that to Luz most of the time].

That was exactly what I needed to escape him. he had a pretty good grip on me at the time.

[It was a good thing she had magic that was NOT reliant on the magic in this world, or that would have been her first death].

Oh, so you know him already. [That was a bit of a relief, but she still felt a little guilt she'd revealed Reaper's location at all, even if she knew Shiro wasn't the type to go hunting him down]. I don't think that's what he has planned anytime soon.

[He wouldn't have done anything to endanger anyone in the house. She knew that much].

I'm going to assume you're not going to go and try to find Lance anytime soon?

You're fortunate to have escaped.

[So he would give her credit where many had failed. He had come to know how dangerous Maul was, and he had been intent on putting the other man down. He had failed because he had been briefly blinded by his fondness for the Zabrak.

He couldn't imagine his abilities being magic driven. They were apparently physiological based. That's what one got for undergoing aggressive genetic experimentation.]

If he is who I think he is, then yes. [He shrugged his shoulders and waved a dismissive hand in the air.] I'm not concerned; I make certain not to disclose my location. [He wouldn't do anything to directly endanger the house.]

Define: soon.

Oh, I remember. I escaped from dying, but Margot wasn't so lucky.

[That, of course, brought out a bad memory of coming home and finding Margot choking on her own blood. Eda had helped her that day, and soon after, Eda herself was gone. Darth Maul going off the rails was sadly the start of one of the worst instances Luz had in Deerington. Things started going from bad to worse around that time.

Luz sucked in her breath].

I told him you lived here. At the time I had no idea you were, um, on people's crap list. He'd never come here to fight you, like he said. I think it's more of
a "we better not find each other" kind of situation.

[Luz did feel guilty about telling Shiro, if only because she wasn't aware Reaper had made enemies in Deerington. She somehow thought she'd be in the know about this beforehand].

Like, in the immediate future after your whole arena situation?

[Reaper nodded his head, understanding. He had barely saved Diarmuid from being killed by Maul, but it had come at the cost of his own life. That hadn't mattered, but he could recall the rise of concern and coldness when he found the boy suffering from wounds.

Many people had died that day in Maul's rampage. He might not have cared much about most of them given his limited association, but he was aware that their loss - even temporary - would send ripples through the entire Deerington population. It had also increased Maul's reputation as a loose cannon in the place.

Reaper actually stilled when Luz admitted to telling Shiro where he lived, and his expression hardened. Then his eyes dropped as thoughts ran through his head quickly, new contingencies being formed and sorted. It might not come to a fight - he and Shiro had never directly come into conflict - but was that a risk he was going to take?

He stroked his white goatee with his gloved fingers, mulling it over.] People say a lot of things, but considering the topics of this discussion, are you willing to take that risk?

[There was a reason that he kept so much to himself. If people knew, they could be at risk.]

Immediate future, certainly I will avoid him. [He would define what immediate was of course.]

I don't get a...bad impression from him. If you guys were to meet up, there might be an actual fight then, but he wouldn't come here to start trouble.

[Shiro had specifically said he wouldn't. If anything, Shiro was more concerned that Luz lived with Reaper at all, given the apparent reputation Reaper had that Luz was wholly unaware of].

But now that we've talked, I know now not to let people know you live here. No one told me that before, so I figured I could just tell people my housemates. I know better now.

[Which just made her more curious about things, but she knew enough to keep out of things for now].

That's probably for the best. Lance seems like he's dealt with a lot of stuff, and this probably didn't help.

[For him, impressions of people was such a naïve way of assessing someone's threat level. However, he had so many years of experience not trusting people completely that he knew it skewed his perception.]

I doubt he wants an encounter with me. We spent 3 years basically passing each other like two ships in the night.

[With all the problems that he and Lance had caused each other, Shiro had never seen fit to get involved. That precedence meant that this situation wasn't going to be any different. He wasn't actually concerned that he would have to worry about Shiro for a fight or even a conversation.]

I don't tell people where I live, and I prefer no one else does either. However, I don't make the rules on what people talk about. I can just have adult disapproval on my side.

[It was for security reasons that he didn't tell people where he lived, but it also wasn't something he would actively scold anyone over. Sometimes his reputation was good to keep trouble away.]

Perhaps a public airing of his mental breakdown will inspire him to finally get the assistance he needs.

[With Luz, everything was about the perceptions that she had on meeting people. This was not the first time she met Shiro, but she could see that he had his own quiet beliefs and people that he cared about. Lance, she could figure, was one of those in his circle].

That's kind of what he said to me about it: that he didn't want you and him to meet.

[She pretty much agreed with that, and figured the only way that they might even meet each other was if Shiro came to visit, which he might: he seemed to be familiar with a few of the people in the house].

I'll keep that in mind from now on. I, however, always tell people where I live, mostly because I love my group of weirdoes in this house.

[This she said with a smile, because not everything needed to be super serious in their conversation].

Let's hope nothing crazier than another Arena situation happens then! Oh no. I doomed us all, didn't I? Should not have said that.

That shouldn't be a problem. We have no interest in associating with each other.

[And it seemed perfectly mutual honestly. He had met Shiro twice, and it was plainly clear to him that the other man had a definite opinion about him. He expected it was related to Lance and probably Chloe way back in the day. He had made a few choice public actions that had turned much of the original Sleepers he had come around with dislike him immensely. Which had been part of the plan.

It worked like a charm and he had learned how death would affect him. Yes, there had been a whole mess some of the people of his world had had to deal with, but that was just acceptable collateral damage at the time. He wouldn't make the same choices now.]

You could exercise some caution all the same. We don't know how Trench affects people long term, and it might be prudent to avoid offering private areas for attack.

[But he was unusually strategic when it came to information. That was him, and kids tended to be far more open with their information.]

You might have, but it would come whether you said something or not.

That definitely seemed like the impression I got.

[It was beginning to be clear to Luz that despite them all being here against their will, there were still histories and grievances that people were not going to be able to abandon. Deerington had its own grip on the ones that lives there the longest, and that would not go away just because they'd been reborn as squids].

I will exercise caution, but I don't believe in fearing fellow Sleepers. We were all brought here to try and coexist with each other. If we can't even do that, what type of life are we supposed to have here?

[It was a frustrating thing that even as she said this, she could still grasp the point that Reaper was making: not all people in this world were trying to be friendly, not all intentions were good. After all, Bill Cipher had been a captive of Deerington, and that had not stopped him from dooming some of his fellow Sleepers. Bad intentions were going to manifest themselves no matter how Luz wanted things to be].

I mean, if you want to get all cryptic about it.

So there is no particular need for such a topic of discussion.

[As far as he was concerned, there was little reason to believe Shiro would dare to come here looking for trouble. It wasn't the other man's style so far, and Reaper wasn't about to test that boundary thus far. Uneasy 'truce' was far easier to maintain.]

I would urge caution all the same. Not all Sleepers have the hold-hands-and-sing-songs mentality. They may be here for a new life, but their version can and will be vastly different from your own and your friends.

[There were plenty of selfish people, and they were going to do whatever their agenda wanted them to in order to build a comfortable life. If that involved stepping on others, so be it. He personally wasn't interested in power; he'd had enough of that for forty years.]

Cryptic is a viable tactic.

Uh huh.

I've seen the, uh, darker side of Sleepers too. You can't be friends with Darth Maul and not be exposed to that. Just knowing the wrong kind of people probably makes you look a certain way to some people.

[She could only imagine what she would have looked like to people back home, OR the Boiling Isles. But she'd make sure she'd steer clear of the hurtful ones, the ones that only valued pain and destruction with their new life].

Point proven.

There are plenty of dark souls in this place, but Maul makes himself more apparent than most. [One wasn't a lover to that Zabrak and not knowing exactly what was being dealt with. He wouldn't change Maul at all either.] If you aren't cautious, you will be taken advantage of.

[Reaper had seen, interacted with and been apart of people with long-standing agendas and the power to push those narratives too. They were dangerous, but those with the smiling face and the nice disposition were often those to avoid the most. They were highly dangerous and effective.]

Oh, I know. It's one thing you can count on with Darth Maul: he won't bend on the principals he think work for him.

[Whether they worked for others was another issue, but Luz was certainly not going to think of him as anyone but a person still looking for their truth. She was doing the same thing, but all the same? She still hoped that Darth Maul didn't give in to his worst impulses, and hold out hope that he would at least come to be a little less intense in his way of thinking].

You're right about that. I wish it wasn't that way. I'd like it if I could at least trust Sleepers.

[But Luz knew full well that at the end of the day, she had go with her instincts rather than naivete. One misstep and you'd come to regret it].

But I do want to trust everyone in this house, at least.

He is consistent that way, yes. Best to understand his goals and take the path of least resistance when he's set on his path.

[Very few people would stand a chance against Maul and it wasn't often the Zabrak could be convinced away from a particular course of action. Of course, Reaper knew he could probably convince Maul, but that wasn't something he did often, if at all. He didn't see the point of altering Maul's course after all.]

You can trust them as much as you can trust the rest of humanity. Listen, ask questions and decide for yourself if their principles are something you can rely on.

[She did seem to have naïve, but that was fine. With age came experience. She seemed to have a better head on her shoulders than some.]

That, I believe, you can do.

I try.

[Luz knew there would be things about Darth Maul she would never understand. He had a longer time living the way he did than she herself was alive, and he had been on the brink of death many times. He was much older and had seen much more than she had. What she hoped for, more than anything, was that Darth Maul could live his life free of the influence of his Master and the things that made him the assassin he'd been a time ago.

Whatever that made him, well, time would tell].

That's pretty much all I can do. Heck, it's why we're having this meeting.

[That was honestly the thing she wanted to know most].

I'm glad. Nothing matters more to me than making sure that everyone in here is OK.

[Reaper liked to think that he knew Maul rather intimately and he could judge what motivations would take precedence over others. Others seemed to find that out the hard way, and usually that just amused him greatly.]

And hopefully the answers here satisfy.

[Ah, she was one of those bleeding hearts, was she? That was going to get her injured or killed someday. He supposed he should make some soup for when that day came.]

Everyone will be fine. Roughed up but fine, chica.

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