tarot cards may show the way

[faciliheir]

Who: Freddie, her anxiety, and YOU
What: runaway corpse bride
Where: outside vista way/joffrey's
When: night/day after election

A. Vista Way

[it’s late at night-- or early in the morning, depending on how you see it. the window to the apartment Freddie shares with Ariel and Basil opens, and… a rope made from bedsheets is tossed from the window, and a figure starts to descend.

it’s been quite a while since she’s done this, which is why she underestimates the amount of length needed to safely reach the ground, and how to position it properly so her weight doesn’t snap the rope. which it does, while she is still quite a ways away from the ground, which she hits with an undignified thump.

at least it wasn’t too high of a fall, so all Freddie has is a bruised hip and a bruised dignity.]

B. Joffrey's Coffee Shop

[Freddie is sitting at a table in the coffee shop, sitting crossed legged on a chair as she shuffles the deck of cards she’s holding. a small purple gem sits on the other end of the table, and an iced latte with a visible layer of sugar on the bottom sits at her side. slowly and with great purpose, she places three cards in front of her.

ace of swords, reversed. four of pentacles, upright. two of swords.

she grimaces and shuffles again, placing another three cards.

nine of swords. the world, reversed. two of swords.

shuffling, harder. three more cards.

temperance, reversed. the hanged man. two of swords.

she makes a loud, frustrated noise and grabs the two of swords, violently tearing it up into a pile of confetti. struggling to control herself, she shuffles the deck again and again before taking another card…

two of swords.

she throws the entire deck in front of her and puts her head into her hands. She glares… at the gem.] I don’t need this right now! [she wanted answers. but she doesn’t like what she’s been given.]

Comments

[faciliheir]

I'm basically forks for her right now. [which is definitely an accurate interpretation and not crippling self-doubt at all]

Okay, so: In my world, she ended up marrying the Beast-- you remember him, big furry guy, decided to be an idiot with Charming? For a wedding gift, they basically conquer the world, unite all the good types under one flag. And all the bad types... See, most of our folks died after their evil plans failed. Villains don't exactly make it to the final curtain call. [unless you're in weirdo foreign lands, like Arendelle] Fairy Godmother brought them back from wherever we go when we die, and put them on an Isle. No magic. No resources. No escape. Just. Us.

So, you can see why me and mine would be a little concerned if she had more political power than a dogcatcher. I don't care if she's from another reality; there's nothing I've seen so far that would say any Belle or Beast wouldn't do what mine did.

1/2

[not_over_yet]

[ Oooh boy. That's. He gets to work with self-esteem problems. He definitely knows how to address those in any manner besides "bring it up at every opportunity because he's three times your size and you can't just--"

LETS FOCUS ON THAT ISLE THING. ]

Mmm. That's... [ not a colony. not a prison. not much of a death sentence, and he's got some lovely images to compare it to (thanks Randy) ] ...I take it none of these people considered hell to be... [ real? enough?? ...Oh god he can even see how the "good types" might have thought they were helping. ]

I don't think she'd have quite the same access to godlike powers here, but--I see the problem.

2/2

[not_over_yet]

[ ...Wait. ] I'm part of that "you and yours"--as is Miss Ariel--and yes, I most certainly do agree this is something we should have known. Had your friend not also been in the running, I'd likely have voted for Miss Belle--but not if I'd known all that!

[ Irritated sigh, because he's in the right but also that's not how one encourages cooperation. ]

...You believe Miss Ariel considers you to be no more valuable than a few forks?

[ That part's. probably more important than him being right. ]

[faciliheir]

Honestly, I don't even know where they brought them back from. Dad's stories always ended before that part. [it was probably another box. she only really believes in boxes at this point.]

You're right. I should've told you guys this ages ago... I kept most everything I knew a secret in the manor-- considering the situation, I always felt like it wouldn't be... fair, I guess. To them. [to hold it over someone who could die at any time, or maybe even be killed for it.] But after, and then here... I didn't even know it bothered me 'til Ariel told me who she voted for. It's my own fault, but I took it out on her.

[she pauses for a moment, considering what he said last... and then, nods slowly. yes, that about sums it up.]

[not_over_yet]

Unless all of them died to those shadowy-things, it's most likely the doctor was somewhere separate. Hardly matters now. [ Basil waves off that metaphysical tangent. There's a divine cloud-lion involved somehow, all arguments are invalid.

...Aaand then that moment when someone's behaved with far more decency than you'd have ever bothered with, but you're not sure if commenting on it would be offensive,,

Lets ignore it instead. ] Freddie, you... well, you know Miss Ariel far better than I. But do you truly mean to tell me she'd die over some forks? Die, and then still want those forks around for any length of time?

[faciliheir]

[smiles wryly]

Well, she didn't die over me at all, did she. She died because of me. And then she just... You can't just forgive somebody for that, just like that! If it'd happened to me, I would've never... 'least forks never betrayed her 'cause they were stupid.

[not_over_yet]

That was my entire point--she still wants you around. If she were at all likely to drop you for an "upgrade", she'd have done it long before now. Valuing a given person over not dying is... that's its own degree of commitment.

[ ...Oh. ]

Which of these is the more pressing concern: Miss Ariel's level of investment in you, or your... [ guilt? regret? fear? ] ...believing that she. oughtn't. to be invested in you.

[ Basil knows about "relationships that would ordinarily already be over due to various homicidal circumstances". He's got experience to draw on there. Not so much the other thing. ]

[faciliheir]

... [just. grabs her coffee. because inhaling sugar sounds much easier than talking right about now. but there's only so much left, and then you're just alone with your thoughts.]

You're worse than the damn cards. [forcing her to acknowledge the reality of the situation and shit] Oughta go back in time and find myself and say, "Hey, don't become emotionally attached to the detective, how's that gonna turn out."

[not_over_yet]

Mm. I don't know why people keep doing that...

[ The response is automatic, Basil's focus elsewhere because damnit that is not the answer he'd wanted to hear.

Abrupt bouncing back onto his feet and starts pacing the table. He paces a good while. When he stops again it's with a dissatisfied-sounding huff. ]

I see two viable courses of action. I suspect you're not going to like either, but unless you've come up with something brilliant just now...?

[faciliheir]

Remember the last time I had a brilliant idea? [people died]

[not_over_yet]

[ people dying was the goal tho ]

Tch, fine then.

Option one: accept that Miss Ariel is fully capable of making her own decisions, recognize that she has made her decision, and respect that decision: simply take what the both of you want and stop fretting about whether it is or isn't "what's best for her".

That would really be simplest for everyone involved, and the route I'd recommend. [ pause, then an awkward (and apologetic??) grimace as he continues: ] .....but. it. ah, requires a degree of selfishness and disregard for ethical concerns that I. don't... think you have.

[ You're just very bad at being bad, Freddie. ]

Otherwise, I'm afraid the only way forward is for you and Miss Ariel to talk about this, until you figure out some arrangement that you'll both accept. I'd thought you two had settled this, but it clearly wasn't to your satisfaction--not if you feel the need to escape out a window in the middle of the night.

[faciliheir]

[nnnn talking. she. don't wanna.]

Is "hiding forever" not an option? It's kinda what I'm working with right now.

[not_over_yet]

Not a viable one. The pocket dimension is small enough to make searching you out feasible--not easy, but doable.

...Though, given the nature of this problem, I had assumed the heartbreak was never intended as more than a passing sort of thing--if it's on the table as an acceptable outcome, this is all easily dealt with! Break the engagement. Find a postcard or something--aim for cruel yet concise, aids the finality.

[faciliheir]

[LOOKS VISIBLY DISTRESSED]

I can't do that! She'd be... I can't. I'll just...

I don't know. My plan honestly didn't go much farther past the window?

[not_over_yet]

Well if you're not going to break it off and you can't live with things as they stand, that just leaves the talking, doesn't it.

[ FRUSTRATION which is not utterly hypocritical of him, shush.

Starts pacing the table again. ] There has to be someplace you can start.

There's your world's Beast and Belle. There's you... clearly having not forgiven yourself over fumbling one murder. [ Cause that's. Totally not a Big Deal all on its own. ]

[faciliheir]

Just because you are in a relationship with a guy who's killed multiple people doesn't mean murder is just a minor issue, Basil.

[she sighs, rubbing the bridge of her nose.] If Ariel wants to be friends with this Belle, I'm not gonna... stop her or nothing. I've never liked the whole "my friends can't be your friends" thing...

I just... need some time, before we talk. I need some time to myself. Sometimes it feels like I haven't had a moment to think since I woke up in the manor.

[not_over_yet]

[ Ratigan is not the sole source of moral failings in Basil's life, he's perfectly capable of being awful on his own, thank you very much. Past that one point though...

Mmmmmm--yeah past that detail, Freddie seems to have a handle on things. Stops his pacing with a slight shrug. ]

Fair enough. We could all do with a bit of quiet, I suspect.

...On that note: looking for company, or for me to head off?

[faciliheir]

... I mean, I'm not gonna turn you away or anything.

[don't make her ask has today not been draining enough.

instead, she busies herself with cleaning up the torn up card, gathering all the little pieces and forming them into a ball before placing it in her pocket. after a moment's thought, she scoops up the jewel and places it in there too.]