Caught out in Milliways

[heatherandsteel]

It had been a long night with a tiring session with Etienne then going to Goldengreen to check in with Toby and see how she's doing.

After that, no one was free to give him a ride back so he decided to take a bus back to Toby's apartment. He should be able to make it before dawn without a problem and later he could tell Toby, she would like that he'd taken the bus.

The bus driver hadn't blinked at the leaves he'd made seem like coins and it was quiet until they broke down a few blocks from Toby's place and he could feel dawn pressing down.

He quickly got out and made his way into the park, but the trees changed and then dawn hit and he held onto a tree and tried to remember how to breath.

Comments

[the_lioness]

His question startles her. Alanna's eyes meet his in an almost uncomfortably close look, wide and bright with emotion. She'd been listening, but she'd also been wondering about so much.

"Of course. Why wouldn't I be?"

Maybe she'd been too obvious. Goddess, why isn't she better about keeping her guard up here?

"I was trying to figure out what you meant about the blood talking to your knight."

[heatherandsteel]

Her look isn't good and he leans forward a bit,

"I can think of a couple of reasons why you might be uncomfortable around me. I mean Fae don't have the best reputation and I lied to you before and I'm a blood worker."

[the_lioness]

"Again, I don't know what that means," Alanna points out, "but I am quite capable of looking after myself."

Faithful has climbed into her lap and curled up, watching Quentin closely during all this. Protecting his person.

"And I've probably told worse lies," his person mutters.

[heatherandsteel]

"Blood holds who we are, memories and magic. My race of Fae and Toby's, we can sense all of what's in blood and use it. I remember when we were investigating some murders, the woman who did it, she called us corpse-lickers. Toby's not really one but still. How? I lied about almost everything except for my name and where I'm from,"

Quentin sighs and rubs his shoulder, he's saying this all wrong, he wants Alan to like him, to be his friend. Alan makes him think of Raj who gets so much even though he's lying to Raj too, but that's part of a blind fosterage, "Faithful, I'm not going to do anything, I promise. If I do, you're free to scratch me as I probably deserve it."

[the_lioness]

Faithful accepts this explanation as his due, closing first one eye, then the other for a nap. Knowing her cat, however, Alanna suspects he's still listening.

And so is she. Her excitement at the idea of a woman knight has faded somewhat, the ease with which it does so a product of her time in Milliways. She bites her lip again as she considers the implication of being able to use blood in such a way as Quentin has described.

"I don't think I'd want my enemies to be able to do that," she says mildly, at last, giving him a smile. As for his lies, "Does it matter? You've shown me the truth now."

Her eyes flick to his ears.

His answer seems important to her.

"Quentin, why did you ask me about my magic? What did you sense?"

[heatherandsteel]

"I think it does. You helped me a lot today and you didn't have to. I owed you more of the truth," Debts are important as is the truth though both always seem to come with strings attached.

He looks at her, trying to make sense of what he feels of her magic, "Its almost like a don't-look-here, a hint of your magic but it doesn't want me to look at it."

[the_lioness]

"Huh."

For some reason, that makes her nervous. Nervous enough to blush and try to hide it.

"You don't owe me." Her fingers grab at some grass. "I'd like to call you my friend. Friendship doesn't mean keeping a tally of who does what for whom."

[heatherandsteel]

"No, it shouldn't and I'd like to be your friend too,"

The blush is unexpected and he keeps his gaze on her trying to see past whatever her magic is doing. He's still learning about magic but illusions are what he's good at it.

[the_lioness]

"Friends, then."

She meets his eyes and smiles, trying to ignore the sense that he sees a little too much.

[heatherandsteel]

He smiles and for a moment thinks he can see the shape of what's around her,

"Why shouldn't I look too closely at you? You're human and open about your magic."

[the_lioness]

Her reaction is immediate. She scowls and rears back, enough that she sees more of his face.

Realizing it, she orders herself to calm down.



"I... don't know. Maybe it has to do with your magic interacting with mine."

Goddess.

[heatherandsteel]

When she scowls, he sits back on his heels with a frown,

"Sorry, maybe that's it, just feels like an illusion."

[the_lioness]

Well it would, wouldn't it?

Isn't everything about her an illusion?

Alanna swallows and nods, glancing over.

"Don't apologize."

[heatherandsteel]

"But I'm being nosy. Toby's a private investigator and she's always asking and poking. I mean friends ask,"

There's a question of sorts in there, he's had friends and has them but he knows he's not always been the best of friends.

[the_lioness]

Thus far, he seems fairly considerate to Alanna.

"Friends ask," she confirms. "I asked questions of you."

She runs fingers through her hair, making it stand up in spots.

[heatherandsteel]

"Do you know what's going on with your magic?"

It might be a case of him simply not understanding what's happening.

[the_lioness]

Alanna looks pensive for a long moment.

"No. Not really, unless it is yours and mine reacting strangely."

Beat.

"But you can try to figure it out, I suppose."

She thinks she knows what that might mean. Letting out a deep breath, she wills herself to relax.

[heatherandsteel]

When Alan relaxes, he does as well, shifting to be more comfortable, resting on his heels is weird.

He's still close but not as much as Raj does sometimes, "I did mean it when I said my friend's a Prince of Cats, he's a kind of Fae that are cats too. Okay, but shove me off if I'm being a pain."

This time he tries to think of how Toby sees/tastes magic and focuses in on the purple feel of Alan's magic, the way it hazily surrounds Alan.

[the_lioness]

She nods, feeling a little thrill at the idea of letting someone decipher her secret. Had Carol not already known and helped her reason through the risks of people in Milliways being aware, she isn't sure she'd still be sitting here.

But Alanna has always been reckless. Just... not usually with this.

"Okay."

She focuses on breathing normally.

"Can you speak with him? Your cat friend?"

[heatherandsteel]

"Yes, he understands in cat form though can't talk back other than in meows and he can change into a man,"

The illusion is powerful and subtle but if he thinks of it like a don't-look-here then if he truly looks at it, that will make it go away. Since its enough like his own magic that he's able to ignore what the spell wants him to do.

[the_lioness]

"Can he?" Alanna's eyes widen. "Faithful, that's a trick you haven't learned yet."

He gives her a baleful look, but comes to sit on her feet. It settles her even further.

[heatherandsteel]

"I think only Cait Sidhe can do it. Ah, there,"

He smiles as a whiff of the heather and steel of his magic fills the air and he can see through the illusion.

[the_lioness]

Alanna tenses. How can she not?

Her hair is short, her chest is bound, her stride is masculine, and her muscles are well-developed: these things will not change. What might appear more evident to Quentin are softer lines and other physiological clues that might make the people who spend day in and out with Alanna, who know she's nearing seventeen years, start to wonder.

The Goddess likes to muddle their perceptions a bit.

[heatherandsteel]

Now he leans back, the differences are subtle and he blinks,

"I don't understand. Are you a girl?"

[the_lioness]

There it is.

Alanna leans her head back against the tree.

"If I was, could I trust you to keep that a secret? I don't fancy death by execution."

Or banishment, which would feel almost as awful. Maybe worse.