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[ct_7567]

WHO: Those who have been invited & anyone who would have a reason to visit Maurtia Falls #010! Wondering if you fit into that category? Just contact anyone with an involved character (Andy; Rex; Martin; Cassandra Igarashi; Dio; Archie) and ask!
WHERE: Maurtia Falls #010
WHEN: TONIGHT? TONIGHT.
WHAT: The soldierfam has decided that regular group dinners are good for Martin, and this time they've got a few party crashers!
WARNINGS: None anticipated; will change if necessary!



At a glance, one could easily mistake Maurtia Falls #010 for being entirely uninhabited. Dio rarely returns home and Rex and Marty only have a handful of belongings between the two of them and Rex is meticulously tidy, returning everything to exactly where it ought to be - if anything, it's Andy who makes the biggest mess around the place, and she doesn't even live here.

Despite every sign to the contrary, however, they do live here, and it winds up being a hub of activity whenever one of Martin's guardians - if that's truly what they can call themselves - decides that it's about time to get everyone together for dinner. In Anderson's absence, Rex has taken on the opinion that cooking can't be that hard, which is how they wind up with one window open, a casserole dish burned black soaking in the sink and an assortment of take-out on the table.

(As it turns out, it is that hard - and he found a combination pizza & Chinese food take-out place, whiich means that it can only be better.)

In all, there's not much to do or see here; there's food, Rex the goldfish in his tank, a soccer ball neatly tucked close to the house in the backyard, and a mysterious shelf called "Martin's Things" in the cupboard. Otherwise, you're stuck with nothing more than some potential awkward conversation. Have fun, kids!

Comments

[queenofseers]

She gulps down the rest of the glass of water she was holding, which she now really, really wishes was coffee. Or alcohol? For once, she wants to be drinking. Not a great sign.

"Yeah, we should." She sets down the glass on the nearest possible table and runs a hand through her hair. She's testing a million ways to say this to him, and none are good.

[yol8]

"Okay." Easy enough, his room is up the stairs, and a pretty decent distance from the rest of the party.

"Don't judge," he says, before opening up his bedroom door and it's so... average. There's dirty clothes on the floor (all near the basket, but some just don't make it all the way in, his bed's not made, and there's half eaten snack bags in various spots. Not filthy, but you know. Average dude bedroom. He didn't really take the time to decorate much.

[queenofseers]

"It's not that bad, Dio."

She says, but not too eagerly. Despite moving somewhere more private, she's still distracted, not quite prepared for any of this. She crosses her arms, kind of wanting to flatten herself against a wall. But she's nothing if not blunt, and if she doesn't trust Dio with info like this, she doesn't trust anyone.

"Do you remember the week with all those doppelgangers? Back in April. I know you weren't home often." That'd been easy enough to pick up on. "Did you hear anything about what happened here? Because now I'm wondering if you're...safe."

[yol8]

He nods, and responds slowly.

"...Yeah, heard about it on the news. I didn't know anything happened... here. What happened? Why wouldn't I be safe?"

[queenofseers]

She rolls her shoulders back. Sighs. Ought to get it over with.

"Because Woden had a least one. And he was super fucking into stabbing people. Including Martin, here." This is even worse to talk about now that she actually knows the poor kid, she realizes. She's not looking at Dio, but it doesn't look like that's lessening how upset she is at all.

"I came over here to try to figure out what the hell was happening, and then- Rex ended up having to kill him." That's an bad memory, too, even if she could care less about Woden himself. "I just...I don't know if he was here because the actual Woden has apparently met Martin before, or because-"

Because he wanted to murder you again.

"I mean. You get it."

[yol8]

Stabbed Martin? "What?"

And then Cassandra keeps going.

"What?"

...Give him a minute of just... staring, eyes wide as he looks to the ceiling, processing it all.

"So Woden's clone was here, Rex killed him, but what you're saying is that we don't know... if Woden's clone came here for Martin, or if Martin got in the way of Woden's clone looking for me."

[queenofseers]

She nods quickly, then takes a deep breath. "Yeah. He claimed the actual Woden had some history with Martin...during that Wild Hunt madness in the time loop. So it could just be that, not that Woden trying to stab a child is anything better."

She glances at Dio while he looks at the ceiling. She doesn't much like that this is easier when they're not looking at each other.

"Look, I didn't even know you lived here. Maybe it's just a really fucked-up coincidence. But it's Woden, so I don't- I don't know. He could have cameras everywhere for all we know, he could..."

He could be doing plenty of horrible things. Or maybe he's not caring about them at all. She puts her head in her hands and leans against the wall, rubbing her eyes.

[yol8]

He drops his gaze from the ceiling, also rubbing at his eyes with his palms.

"Cameras..." He could. He could be spying on them right now. Fuck. "If... if that's true, I don't know where else I could go. Maybe he bugged my stuff, maybe he ..."

He doesn't know what to do.

[queenofseers]

She can tell he's lost, and she doesn't like it. In a strange way, she thought Dio always acted like he had everything figured out, even when he really didn't- seeing him unsure tends to make her unsure.

"Rex knows about shit like this. I've warned him, maybe he knows how to sweep for it- or I can divine it. If Woden hasn't made it immune to my powers..."

She runs a hand through her hair and stands up straight again, looking at him. This all hurts. A part of her wants to go back and pretend this never happened.

"God, Dio, I'm sorry. You don't deserve any of this. Especially not..." When you've been miraculously saved from death and have your only chance at a better, continuing life? "Here."

[yol8]

"Especially not since I already died?" He says even after she finishes her sentence, and looks back to her. The smile on his face is more bitter than he'd like it to be.

"Yeah. Me too. But we don't really get to choose who deserves what." He looks around the room, leaning his face in his hand. "Guess I'm just going to be nomadic for a while. I've done it before."

[queenofseers]

Well, there he goes and says it. She grimaces. A part of her doesn't like that he can smile about that, not because she'd rather him not be happy (of course she would), but because it seems like such a deflection of the issue.

"I'm not saying you should kick yourself out of your own home. Maybe for a little bit, but- we can figure something out. There's always Hades if you have to stay somewhere...I can't see Persephone saying no."

And, as she speaks, she realizes she'd very much like Dio to have a bed to sleep in. He looks exhausted enough.

"Seriously, are you...okay? You're calmer about this than I thought you'd be. Than you need to be. Because I would be losing my fucking mind."

[yol8]

"Right, Hades. Yeah, guess I could give that a try." Persephone wouldn't say no.

He hadn't seemed tired before, but he definitely seems it now.

"I'm ... I don't know. I don't really blow up unless someone's dying, or being held prisoner or something. But I'm not... happy? If that makes you feel like I'm dealing with my emotions better." Kind of a joke, kind of not. He's not smiling anymore, at least. "I'm still pissed, still... in shock."

About more than just Woden trying to kill Martin.

[queenofseers]

Dying or being held prisoner. Yeah, that sounds right. The angriest she'd ever seen him was confronting Morrigan in the Underground, just before, well, everything went down; Dio's type of anger is righteous if nothing else.

"Look, obviously I don't want you to be miserable. But I'd get it if you...were more upset. Fuck. I don't know."

It's more that Dionysus is a master at downplaying things, at pretending he's not as bad off as he really is. All those times he deflected whether or not he could sleep, all the way to pretending he was okay the night of that goddamn party. But she doesn't want to think about that right now. She really doesn't.

"We'll- we'll figure it out. Okay? You're the last person who should have to take care of this. I'll tell Baal and everyone else, people will keep an eye out- we can work it out."

She's saying that because she'll feel awful if she doesn't. But she sure doesn't sound sure.

[yol8]

"An eye out for Woden? Isn't that what everyone's doing already...?"

It doesn't feel like there's anything that can be done.

"He's... going to keep getting away with this, isn't he?"

[queenofseers]

"He can't."

A sudden response, and clearly not one she's sure of, but it's what she has to say. She doesn't want to believe there won't be an end to this; how would she ever be able to keep going if that was true? How could she expect anyone around her to feel safe if that was true? Rex and Martin, in this house- and Dio...

She feels like a hypocrite after saying she'd get it if he was hurt, but now that he's shown any sort of sadness she almost wishes she hadn't. It's a selfish reason, but now she's starting to get upset, and she told herself she shouldn't.

"Plenty of people hate his guts already! Just in the rest of the Pantheon we have- I don't know, an ambassador and at least one person with a secret lair or some shit! There can't be no way to deal with him. There can't."

Her stomach twists. Her hands are balled into fists, now. "We know he's coming this time. He won't catch us off-guard like he did again."

[yol8]

“Yeah,” is all he says, quiet and under his breath. He wants to believe it. He really does. But something tells him… this isn’t over.

He’s still quiet when he continues. “Remember when all we had to worry about was what to do tomorrow? Getting laundry done, getting rent paid…”

Being normal seemed like so far away. Less than two years, but it felt like centuries.

[queenofseers]

Dio has never been a god who reminisced much- he was the type who she got the impression was comfortable with his divinity, even when he was often so down-to-earth compared to other members of the Pantheon that he could seem shockingly normal. Maybe it's just that they're good friends, but him wanting to return to before when he always seemed so determined to use his powers to help others seems like a worrying sign.

But she's too exhausted to needle him about it immediately. She crosses her arms and looks at the ceiling, mostly for the sake of looking at anything.

"God, sometimes I'd get so obsessed with a deadline in a week or a month that'd I wouldn't even care about that shit." Not something she'd admit to many people, but Dio wouldn't drag her for it, if anyone. "You're wired differently from me, or something. You know that."

[yol8]

He was- is! Is, comfortable with it...

Mostly.

It isn't that he's lying to everyone. He doesn't want to be thought of as lying, he isn't... trying to keep the truth.

He just doesn't want anyone to worry, either. And Cassandra's the biggest worrier he knows.

"I know. I was thinking about that, kinda." He gives a half-hearted shrug, a little grateful the subject change stuck. "You're really... goal-orientated, yeah? And I'm not. I just never had any... big dreams, I guess. Is that weird? To just want to exist?"

[queenofseers]

"It's probably way less constantly stressful."

When has there been a time in her life that she wasn't hoping for something more? She doesn't quite realize it herself, but she'd never be satisfied- even if she had figured out what the story behind the Pantheon was, even if they'd realized what the purpose of the fucking Machine was, she would have jumped into working on something else. It's just how she is.

"I'd probably get completely restless. But at least I wouldn't feel like everything was imploding all the time." She frowns. It's a personal question, but she doesn't think it's going too far. "Seriously, how do you do it? Just...go with whatever's going on all the time. Adapt."

[yol8]

"How do I adapt?" He repeats it with a laugh, but it's a little humorless, and the smile fades.

He doesn't actually know... if he should answer that. He might be comfortable telling this to Baphomet, to Cam, but... Cassandra's different. He doesn't feel like he could do anything wrong in Cameron's eyes, but there's a nervousness here to reveal a part of himself he doesn't really like talking about. Usually he's so open with who he is, because most parts of himself, he's not ashamed of.

But this?

...Cassandra wouldn't judge, right?

"People think you're really cool when it seems like nothing phases you, but it's more like... I'm really terrible at dealing with personal things. Pantheon things- I can't ignore those, because it means other people are involved. But everything else..."

Like crushes.

"...I try to ignore it until it goes away."

[queenofseers]

It's hard not to remember Dio's feelings for her when she hears his tone; it feels strange, because for something so major, he's never given her much of a reason to be worried about it. He'd somehow handled the situation well, something so rare she can barely comprehend anyone else in her life pulling such a thing off. Perhaps it'd given the impression that he was better at dealing with these things than he is.

After all, this is a person that she knows actively refuses to sleep for weeks on end and lives entirely on energy drinks. If he seems more stable than most of the Pantheon, it may only be because any chaos is visible in smaller ways.

"...You don't have to be that hard on yourself. It's not like you make a goddamn spectacle out of whatever your problems are. We know plenty of people who do." Once those words come out of her mouth, she suspects she might be scolded for them, but it's too late now.

"And what we're talking about isn't just your issue. This Woden bullshit. You know that, right?"

[yol8]

Luckily, he's not really in the scolding mood right now, so she gets a pass on that one for now.

"I know. Yeah, I know..."

[queenofseers]

Cassandra starts to shift towards the door. She's starting to get the impression that pushing this any further will just hurt both of them, and making Dionysus sad is the sort of draining thing that she'll never want to partake in.

"Just- keep me posted if any weird shit happens, alright? It's not like we're the only ones in the Pantheon who know Woden's a miserable fuck. We'll have plenty of backup."

Not that she sounds the most assured when she says that. It's not that she doubts what she says- it's just that she doesn't like to think of the situation where they'd need backup.

[yol8]

"Yeah, I will."

Except he won't have a chance to, will he?