Really? You and Harley must have been together for a while if you're that out off practice.
[No judgement in her tone. That happened with long-term couples. Not that they so flirting, just that the kind of flirting changes enough that it's a wholely different creature.]
Oh. I didn't realize when you said "girlfriend" you meant it in the straight woman way.
[It didn't make sense. Jordana distinctly recalled a few instances where they talked about Ivy's girlfriend in a way that was certainly not just friendship. The tone of Ivy's voice made Jordana concerned that something was wrong.]
Probably would've jumped you earlier if... [She paused a moment, trying to make sense of what was going on.] I'm sorry if I came on too strong when we first met and you thought you needed to play a girlfriend card to keep me at bay. I'm not often so... I guess in that way I'm more bark than bite.
[Low sex drive and all. And Ivy wouldn't be the first woman out there to use a friend that would roll with it as a significant other when needed. It just... bothered Jordana as it really didn't feel like Ivy would need to do that. She was the kind of woman that would tell a spider goddess to fuck off; the Garou wasn't anyone special or a creepy man that couldn't take a hint. But what other possible explanation could it be other than those? It's not like someone went in and rewired Ivy's brain... right? There weren't spirits around to do that...]
[Jordana doesn't seem like the kind of person who'd get that twisted, especially all things considered. Ivy and Harley are close, but—the thought ends abruptly. But what? Ivy tries to finish it, but she can't quite. They're not together-together, are they?
Fuck, Ivy would know if they were.
But the certainty they aren't isn't there either.
Her mind warps around the idea, like kudzu that's grown around a tree only to strangle it out, leaving the shape behind but nothing living inside.]
I don't feel like I'd say that. It's annoying. And confusing. And something 70 year old straight women say.
[And Ivy is neither of those things.]
I'm not really the kind of person who has trouble saying 'no' to people.
I know, but I... I'm trying to come up with an explanation that makes some kind of sense. [Jordana no longer kept her concern out of her voice or her own confusion.]
Because that first time we kissed? As much as I didn't want to, I stopped and apologized for kissing you because you told me before that you had a girlfriend in a way that felt like a boundary being set. "Where were you before I met my girlfriend?"
...I'm sorry. I don't think you're lying to me - it makes no sense that you would - but I'm very confused. So just... let me know if I need to keep my hands to myself in the future.
[Does she? When Jordana says it, Ivy can almost remember it, like a word on the tip of her tongue or a song stuck in her head with lyrics that wouldn't quite resolve.]
I'm sorry, Jor, I think... [She tails off briefly, the uncertainty clear in her voice. What comes out is:]
[Ivy remembered but yet didn't remember. It got her Wyrm senses tingling... it also made Jordana's heart ache, because she didn't know if there was anything she could do to help figure out what was going on. What had this place done to Ivy?]
Alright, carina. If there's anything I can do - even if it feels stupid - let me know. I'm here, Ivy.
Ever since I woke up the last time, there's been something wrong. Not like the first time I was resurrected, it didn't hurt. It wasn't like something that shouldn't be inside of me. There's been this feeling like something is missing.
[Ivy's voice is level, but fast and fierce.]
Now I've finally figured out what the fuck it was. That bitch took it—either her, or the other one.
There's shit I just can't remember, like the last part of my memory is full of holes, but I couldn't even figure that out until I knew what I was trying to remember in the first place.
[The growl wasn't meant to come across the psychic connection, but it did and Jordana clamped down on it immediately. She needed to stay balanced and--
Oh good. Ivy wasn't going to force her to be a Philodox as she'd already considered that there was more than one possible thief about.]
That's terrible. I... [Had gotten into it with Balthiel about removing painful memories without permission. This wasn't that thought.]
I recall the man that could "hear" the spirits in the trees and it was about a random mundane event in their lives. [Like a memory.] Those trees don't come from the Wyrm-Spider.
[Which didn't absolve her, but the evidence was stronger that it was the Wyrm-Void that was responsible.]
When I get my hands on them, I'm going to rip them into pieces and use them as compost.
[Her temper won't calm down, and it's not doing anything good to the plants around her, wherever she chose to find a little solitude, turning them sharp and hungry.
Luckily she did get away from the settlement proper before she started poking at that wound.
It's not doing great for her zadza, either.]
Whichever one of them did it, they're going to pay for this.
[There's a note of fear behind the anger, but like a lot of it is just straight rage. Whoever did this, they took something from her. They did it without her permission. They took something important, and she doesn't think it's an accident.]
We should check in with the others. I know I wasn't the only one feeling it. Dana, at least.
[Jordana forced herself to keep her voice steady. She was afraid of what memories had been stripped from Scully. It upset her that neither redhead was the kind of woman to ask for or even admit that they needed a hug.
Did the Garou want to find Ivy and endanger herself to give her the hug she probably needed? She had thick hide but thorns still hurt.]
[That kind of question reminded her of Harley. What Ivy could remember of her. Shit. Jordana and Ivy's friend (more than friend) were so different in most ways, but there were some striking similarities.
Probably came from the psychology side of things.
Ivy rubs her eyes.]
I'm not sure yet. It's not exactly fair to tell you to keep me from doing anything stupid.
If that's what you need, then that's what I'll do. I have some gifts I can pull out to temporarily halt a force of nature if I must - monster or woman, but I'm not worried about that.
[Ivy’s feelings were valid. What was important was what she did with them, and if she had the self-awareness to know she may not direct them constructively, there was no shame in asking for help.]
Shall I come find you? I can bivouac through the brambles, carnivorous plants, and strangle vibes. It'll be like being back in Pangea.
[Ivy's first instinct is to say no. If she can't be violent about this, then she'd rather be alone. She wants to curl up in a bud (absolutely fucking literally) and not come out until she's been able to push all of her emotions down out of sight.
But that's not healthy.
And she doesn't actually want to be alone, without even the full access to the Green that should have been there to comfort her.
That last part is more compelling than the healthy bit.]
[Ivy isn't hard to find, and the jungle in her immediate surroundings grows especially wild. Starting around twenty or twenty five meters from the metahuman, it turns into a thick, protective living fortress of sorts, banyan trees and strangling vines turning it not quite impassible, but absolutely unwelcoming.
Inside the wall, things turn softer, with giant flowers and ferns creating a haven inside the thorns.
Ivy herself is sitting curled up in a nest of leaves, her knees hugged to her chest.]
[By the time Jordana made it throb to the center of the foliage, she had some thorns caught in her fur that failed to pierce through her hide anymore than superficial scratches that barely drew blood except for the thorn that had gotten her in the nose. The Garou had decided against clawing her way through the greenery, resisted cutting anything, and just muscled through.
Her ears and tail drooped seeing Ivy and she dropped from crinos to lupus for a careful approach. It wasn't until she crept up to the leaf nest that she stopped and waited a moment before shifting back to homid.
Jordana then just sat down next to Ivy. She didn't touch her even though all it would take was a slight lean over. She also didn't say anything. Her presence was more important than her words.]
[Ivy doesn't respond immediately, but she does notice the Garou's approach. As wired as she is, mind blurred with the plant life around her, she couldn't have missed the approach. She shouldn't be doing this. Her powers can exhaust her, and especially with autumn coming and the amount of work she's been doing on the settlement, she's burning into her reserves with this tantrum.
She needs to, though. If she doesn't, then she's going to either pick a fight or let her monster out.
Or both.
But after a moment, she sighs and leans closer.]
I can't believe she's just gone. [That's hyperbole, but it feels like it.] I didn't even realize what was gone, what, two months?
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[No judgement in her tone. That happened with long-term couples. Not that they so flirting, just that the kind of flirting changes enough that it's a wholely different creature.]
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[Ivy's sure she's mentioned Harls—she's her best friend—but the idea they'd be flirting is...
She frowns, trying to wrestle with a thought that won't quite materialize.]
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[And why it took so long for them to bang.]
It's ok. I have girlfriend, too... which I should've told you about when we...
Vex and I have an open relationship - she's got a boyfriend - so it's nothing to worry about.
[Hopefully. Jordana prayed to Gaia that Ivy wouldn't have the same response as Scully.]
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[Confusion came through clearly in Ivy's voice as she tried to wrap her head around that.]
Harley is my best friend. But we're not...
[Somewhere, she's rubbing her temple, trying to remember when they talked about Harley.]
We're not together.
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[It didn't make sense. Jordana distinctly recalled a few instances where they talked about Ivy's girlfriend in a way that was certainly not just friendship. The tone of Ivy's voice made Jordana concerned that something was wrong.]
Probably would've jumped you earlier if... [She paused a moment, trying to make sense of what was going on.] I'm sorry if I came on too strong when we first met and you thought you needed to play a girlfriend card to keep me at bay. I'm not often so... I guess in that way I'm more bark than bite.
[Low sex drive and all. And Ivy wouldn't be the first woman out there to use a friend that would roll with it as a significant other when needed. It just... bothered Jordana as it really didn't feel like Ivy would need to do that. She was the kind of woman that would tell a spider goddess to fuck off; the Garou wasn't anyone special or a creepy man that couldn't take a hint. But what other possible explanation could it be other than those? It's not like someone went in and rewired Ivy's brain... right? There weren't spirits around to do that...]
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[Jordana doesn't seem like the kind of person who'd get that twisted, especially all things considered. Ivy and Harley are close, but—the thought ends abruptly. But what? Ivy tries to finish it, but she can't quite. They're not together-together, are they?
Fuck, Ivy would know if they were.
But the certainty they aren't isn't there either.
Her mind warps around the idea, like kudzu that's grown around a tree only to strangle it out, leaving the shape behind but nothing living inside.]
I don't feel like I'd say that. It's annoying. And confusing. And something 70 year old straight women say.
[And Ivy is neither of those things.]
I'm not really the kind of person who has trouble saying 'no' to people.
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Because that first time we kissed? As much as I didn't want to, I stopped and apologized for kissing you because you told me before that you had a girlfriend in a way that felt like a boundary being set. "Where were you before I met my girlfriend?"
...I'm sorry. I don't think you're lying to me - it makes no sense that you would - but I'm very confused. So just... let me know if I need to keep my hands to myself in the future.
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[Does she? When Jordana says it, Ivy can almost remember it, like a word on the tip of her tongue or a song stuck in her head with lyrics that wouldn't quite resolve.]
I'm sorry, Jor, I think... [She tails off briefly, the uncertainty clear in her voice. What comes out is:]
I need to meditate. Get my head straight.
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Alright, carina. If there's anything I can do - even if it feels stupid - let me know. I'm here, Ivy.
sometime later
She took it.
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What do you mean by that?
cw: gendered insults
[Ivy's voice is level, but fast and fierce.]
Now I've finally figured out what the fuck it was. That bitch took it—either her, or the other one.
There's shit I just can't remember, like the last part of my memory is full of holes, but I couldn't even figure that out until I knew what I was trying to remember in the first place.
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Oh good. Ivy wasn't going to force her to be a Philodox as she'd already considered that there was more than one possible thief about.]
That's terrible. I... [Had gotten into it with Balthiel about removing painful memories without permission. This wasn't that thought.]
I recall the man that could "hear" the spirits in the trees and it was about a random mundane event in their lives. [Like a memory.] Those trees don't come from the Wyrm-Spider.
[Which didn't absolve her, but the evidence was stronger that it was the Wyrm-Void that was responsible.]
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[Her temper won't calm down, and it's not doing anything good to the plants around her, wherever she chose to find a little solitude, turning them sharp and hungry.
Luckily she did get away from the settlement proper before she started poking at that wound.
It's not doing great for her zadza, either.]
Whichever one of them did it, they're going to pay for this.
[There's a note of fear behind the anger, but like a lot of it is just straight rage. Whoever did this, they took something from her. They did it without her permission. They took something important, and she doesn't think it's an accident.]
We should check in with the others. I know I wasn't the only one feeling it. Dana, at least.
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[Jordana forced herself to keep her voice steady. She was afraid of what memories had been stripped from Scully. It upset her that neither redhead was the kind of woman to ask for or even admit that they needed a hug.
Did the Garou want to find Ivy and endanger herself to give her the hug she probably needed? She had thick hide but thorns still hurt.]
What can I do for you?
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Probably came from the psychology side of things.
Ivy rubs her eyes.]
I'm not sure yet. It's not exactly fair to tell you to keep me from doing anything stupid.
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[Ivy’s feelings were valid. What was important was what she did with them, and if she had the self-awareness to know she may not direct them constructively, there was no shame in asking for help.]
Shall I come find you? I can bivouac through the brambles, carnivorous plants, and strangle vibes. It'll be like being back in Pangea.
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But that's not healthy.
And she doesn't actually want to be alone, without even the full access to the Green that should have been there to comfort her.
That last part is more compelling than the healthy bit.]
Yeah. I'll try to tone it down.
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[Tuning Pulse of the Prey into Ivy, Jordana rode her way. She wouldn't drive all the way just to make sure the bike didn't get damaged.]
I'll be there soon enough.
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[Ivy isn't hard to find, and the jungle in her immediate surroundings grows especially wild. Starting around twenty or twenty five meters from the metahuman, it turns into a thick, protective living fortress of sorts, banyan trees and strangling vines turning it not quite impassible, but absolutely unwelcoming.
Inside the wall, things turn softer, with giant flowers and ferns creating a haven inside the thorns.
Ivy herself is sitting curled up in a nest of leaves, her knees hugged to her chest.]
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Her ears and tail drooped seeing Ivy and she dropped from crinos to lupus for a careful approach. It wasn't until she crept up to the leaf nest that she stopped and waited a moment before shifting back to homid.
Jordana then just sat down next to Ivy. She didn't touch her even though all it would take was a slight lean over. She also didn't say anything. Her presence was more important than her words.]
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She needs to, though. If she doesn't, then she's going to either pick a fight or let her monster out.
Or both.
But after a moment, she sighs and leans closer.]
I can't believe she's just gone. [That's hyperbole, but it feels like it.] I didn't even realize what was gone, what, two months?
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