Blessed Day [Open]

[psychopepsquad]

Who: Tara Maclay and OPEN
What: Dealing with her Blessed Day
When: May 7
Where: The Sanctuary Courtyard, the Gardens

Content Warnings: Talk of death, numbness and grief.

The Sanctuary

[Seated in front of the guardian sapling, Tara managed to connect her energy to the earth and everything beneath. It was risky, possibly drawing in darker forces than her magic ever allowed. The puzzle of it, was finding the pure energy and weeding out the bad. She liked the challenge, it kept her occupied and pressed her to have more active control over her abilities. This place largely had good energy, what she had been searching for.

There were flashes of memory, even as she tried to put everything else from her mind. 'Your shirt'. A "POP", a sudden sting and then nothing. Endless peace, comfort, and rest.

Tara sighed, severing the connection to the earth. She pressed her gloved hands to her eyes, well aware that meditation wasn't happening today of all days. Though she had no idea what any of it meant. Blessed day. What exactly was supposed to happen or what was she supposed to feel? At the moment, she felt numb, not really feeling "blessed" on her death day.

She noticed a figure from the corner of her eye and forced a smile to her face, getting to her feet.]

Are you here to see the grounds or are you here for help?

The Gardens

[Bausphomette. They were the most honest and empathetic of the Pthumerians, though why she had never reached out to them, she couldn't say. Maybe because it was an effort to figure it out, along with so much else in this place. She had been here for half a year, but still never spoke to her Pthumerian Patron. It occupied her as she tried to remember if someone had told her before, leaving her restless.

She likely looked like she was lost, pacing back and forth around the grounds.

Summoning was easier in Sunnydale, here, did it require blood or something?

There were others here, though she didn't pay much attention to them at first. Some came, others went, it just meant there were figures in the park. It was only when someone came directly in her path that she pulled out of her daze, fumbling to smile.]

S...sorry, am I in your way?

Comments

[slayerskiss]

[She lets out a small embarassed laugh.] I mean, I agree. I'm hot as fuck, for one, that's pretty admirable.

[Emotionaly vulnerability and accepting compliments not tied to her appearance are always a bit hard for her. She's more used to people calling her things like... nice or kind or any other number of things that don't frankly feel true.] I think just seeking them out is enough. They'll show up when they're needed, so, probably soon enough. But if you really wanna find them, they'll tend to be scaling the taller buildings and chilling out on rooftop.

[She nods. A day doesn't necessarily have to be pleasant to be an important memory in your life, and a death is important enough. She smiles, though. It's nice to see Tara laughing, even if it is about her own death.]

Guessing that means you don't want the present I got you?

[psychopepsquad]

Is it weird when your friend kind of agrees with you? I think that's one of the Slayer superpowers?

[She admires Faith for a lot more than that. Save for Dawn, it's hard to imagine someone that she's closer friends with. Somehow, in desperation, she let down her defenses and saw how similar she was to Faith. How if her anger at her family, rather than her fear, had taken control. Would they be that much different? Faith might love herself as much as she should, but Tara was content to love her enough for both of them.]

I hope so. I wanted to see if I could get some advice on what I'm trying to do to...feel again? Have you spoken to yours?

[She genuinely smiles, surprised and touched at Faith's thoughtfulness.]

You got me a present? Really? I mean, yes, I'd love that, but you didn't have to-

[slayerskiss]

[Faith grins.] I'd be damn offended if you didn't. But nah, that's just a me special. And a Buffy special too, if you were wondering. There's been some ugly ones by my judgement.

[She did go on a tour through the long, long, long line of her lineage when she took that spice last month. That was weird, but informative. Sineya certainly explained some things, in her own cryptic way. And the many others, including the two killed by William the Bloody, they answered a few of her questions too.] Yeah. We've got the same one, remember? Think Willow does too. Baus is easier to find than most, especially this month. I've seen them up on the roofs a fair bit.

[Faith shrugs, bashful and covering it up with a cool aloofness that still broadcasts that she cares.]

You're my roommate. What are friends for, y'know? It's uh... a crystal ball. Back home, wrapped it up in this fancy cloth. I didn't really know what to get you, so... didn't get super creative, I guess.

[psychopepsquad]

Really? [Why hadn't she thought much about past slayers before? Buffy hadn't talked much about it, neither did Giles. She knew Buffy looked into them before, but it was related to their deaths. Aside from that, she didn't know too many names.] Have you done research about them?

[She nodded. It was a nice coincidence for the Sunnydale crew, all sharing the same Patron.]

You have? Do they seem as empathetic as people say?

[So did she just wander until she found them?]

That's not a bad gift. I don't know what happened to the one Giles got me, so I could use the replacement. That's very thoughtful of you. Thanks.

[slayerskiss]

What do I look like? A nerd? [Jokes aside, she shifts a little, the slightest bit nervous.] Nah... I just took these weird space drugs at a party. Apparently it allowed me to... talk to my descendents, I guess? There were a lot of them.

[She shrugs, trying to play it cool. She won't bring up that she saw Buffy. Only Buffy didn't remember her. She'd just freshly died, after all.] They're pretty chill. About as empathetic as the Pthumerians can get. They're different from humans, but Baus is trying.

Honestly, I just... figured it's probably what a witch would want, I guess. I've never really had anyone to get gifts for. [Maybe if she'd stayed with the Mayor long enough to get to father's day, she would have. Maybe if she'd stayed with Buffy, she'd have reached another Christmas where she could afford better gifts for them than the cruddy ones she got them. But they're both gone now.]

[psychopepsquad]

I mean, nerds don't always look like Giles. [Ah, but she missed him.] Really? Wow, I never thought that much about other slayers, but that must have been very...um, heavy? Just the whole weight of time and destiny...

Sorry. That's probably not something you want to think about? [Buffy talked about it a lot more than Faith, so it was hard to guess what she might think of being a slayer.]

So it's not so dangerous to ask Baus for help?

[She's deeply touched by Faith's gesture and knowing that it's not something she can do a great deal. She thought about pulling the slayer into a hug before deciding against it. That was probably too much.]

My family never really did gifts. My dad and brother didn't like me very much and my cousin tended to give backhanded gifts. The sort that is kind of an insult? So this, this is nice. Thank you.

[slayerskiss]

You never met Wesley. Like a Mini-Giles. [She doesn't like talking about any of the Watchers, really. There's a fair bit of resentment there. And guilt, particularly for what she did to Wesley. Just another road block on her quest to get herself killed.

She shrugs, trying for aloof.]

I guess. [Does it matter anymore?] I never really felt that back in our world. Like the world rested on my shoulders. It was weird hearing them talk about it. About the burdens of being... someone who matters, I guess.

But uh, no, don't think it's dangerous.

[She gives Tara a sidelong glance at that, a flicker of empathy and understanding.]

My... mom got gifts sometimes. When she remembered my birthday, anyway. [She smiles, bittersweet.] When I was a kid, I kept begging her to get me a dog. Don't know why, really. Think I was just lonely.

[She knows exactly why.]

Doesn't matter much, I guess. Our families are either dead or they sucked or both. So we can make our own traditions, y'know?

[psychopepsquad]

I heard about him. [But not so much to get an idea what he looked like. She can tell the topic isn't an easy one for Faith, so she lets it go.

It's interesting to hear Faith talk about her feelings towards her destiny. In a way, it makes sense. Why would she feel she has the weight of the world on her shoulders? She was never the only Slayer in the way that Buffy was. There was always the sense that there was someone else, taking the burden off of her.

It's a bit sad in a way, reminding Tara a little of herself. While there was never a "chosen one" sense going on, Tara felt sidelined by Willow's powers and strength. Knowing there was someone more determined, more powerful, it could lead someone to feel like they shouldn't bother.]

I've always been a bit afraid of dogs. Having an animal is nice though. I was raised on a farm, so I had a horse. She was pretty much my only companion. You know, after my mom died.

Yeah and our own traditions can be better.