callmeemily | OPEN to all - robin hood comes home to roost

OPEN to all - robin hood comes home to roost

"Hey! Stop!"

Raleigh's walking Oscar - it's a long walk today, even though it's definitely making her leg regret it - and she doesn't even pause when she hears somebody behind her yell. It's the beginning of tourist season, and the sidewalk's full of people she doesn't know, and she's so worn out from the last week that she doesn't really have the energy.

"I said stop! I know you!"

Huffing out a breath, she keeps going; she hates it when people yell in public. She's got that Southern mentality, the one that keeps disputes behind closed doors where it's between the two of you and everyone else listening at cracks to figure out the gossip.

The last thing she expects is the rough hand on her arm that yanks her around. Stumbling, she catches herself on the parking meter that's next to her as the guy - mid forties, handsome in that New-England-Polo-Shirt-and-Sperrys kind of way - stares at her.

"It's you! It is!" Oscar's exploded into a barking, growling, half-grown dog between them, and the guy steps back as he raises his voice. "You know what I'm doing? I'm calling the cops. This is the girl who shot me! Back when we were medieval or whatever? She shot me and took all my money! She's a thief!" The tourists had backed up into a circle around them, with Raleigh, Oscar, and the guy in the middle. "She could have killed me!" He's pulling out his phone even as Raleigh protests and tries to explain as the people who're just staring at her shake their heads, and a phone, then another gets pulled out to film the whole thing.

"It's not- I'm not- I'm not a thief, I- It wasn't me--"

OOC: Raleigh's Fairy-tale shenanigans have come home to roost! Open to anybody. :D

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Davin comes across the commotion just as it seems to be breaking up. He keeps moving because he's very much avoiding stressful situations as of late, but he spots Raleigh out of the corner of his eye and he stops. She looks freaked out and Oscar is bouncing around like someone upset his human, so Davin bites his lip and looks both ways before crossing the street.

He moves slowly, thanks to his ribs, and he wrinkles his nose at a twinge of pain when he steps up onto the curb. Oscar barks at him and wriggles between his legs, rubbing up against him and jumping up to put his paws on Davin's knee. It hurts to bend over, so Davin just takes a step back and looks at Raleigh in concern. "Hey, are ya alright?"

The crowd's dispersed because eventually, one of the townies had told him to lay off, because obviously Raleigh was different than whoever the girl who shot him had been, and the guy leaned close and said he'd find her later-- it left her standing on the sidewalk, her skin pale and she's heavily favoring her leg from when she'd lost her balance.

"Yeah," she lies, not terribly convincingly at all. "Yeah, I'm--" She swallows hard and finally looks up at Davin, her face pale with bright spots of color on her cheeks. "I'm okay, uhm. How... how much of that did you hear?" She has no idea, although she knows it could be all over the next edition of the Cove, if she's not lucky. She hates that she's shaken, she's thrown by the whole thing, her brows furrowed together as she tries to catch her breath. "How're you doing?" Trying to change the subject, even though right now, everything was a mess.

"Not much," Davin admits. "I've kinda been keepin' my head down. I was just grabbin' somethin' t'eat."

He holds up a bag of take out with his left hand, keeping the one with the cast held carefully at his side. His fingers are stiff and sore, and it hurts terribly when he hits his hand against something.

Raleigh is obviously upset and Davin steps forward with his brow furrowed, swallowing hard. He's sort of feeding off of her emotions, and it would do them both good to calm down. "I got enough t'feed an army. Why don't ya come have some food with me, aye? Oscar can come too, o' course."

She doesn't deal well with people grabbing her. She hasn't for almost a year, since she was taken, and it's rattled her really badly - not even talking about the cops, about everything she did when they were in that fairy-tale mess...

"Yeah. yeah, I- That would be great. I..." She trails off, her shoulders a little hunched because she knows that Davin's got more than enough on his mind already. "I have a lot on my mind, I guess," is what she finally says, her voice low and quiet. "So thank you."

"Aye well, you're definitely not alone in that," Davin says with a wry smile. It isn't far to his apartment, and he climbs the stairs stiffly and slowly, looking over at Raleigh with an apologetic smile. He unlocks the door and steps through it, and then remembers himself and turns to see Raleigh standing at the entrance. "Sorry, Joel came over an' helped me ward the place. Uh, Raleigh, I invite ya in."

It feels a little ridiculous, having to invite people in like they're vampires, but as long as it keeps him safe, he can deal with it.

"That's good, Davin. It's really good, Joel warded my place, too. And their house, he's really good at it." She's repeating herself more than a little, but she tugs in Oscar after her, and she takes a deep breath, running her hand over her face. "You're really- It was really nice of you to invite me over, thanks. Can I- I mean. Uh. You were coming home already, right? Like, I didn't make you go out of your way?"

Somehow, it seemed really important right this second. She knew she should just let Oscar off his leash and sit the hell down, but she felt so antsy that she was still standing.

"Yeah, it makes me feel a lot better," Davin assures her, smiling a little and shaking his head fondly at her. "Aye, ya didn't. I'm not really up for big outings yet. I was just tryin' t'get some food an' fresh air."

He heads for the kitchen and lifts the bags onto the counter. The cupboard overhead opens as Davin reaches for it and he glances at her, but she's looking down at Oscar. He pulls out some plates and cutlery, then starts spreading the food out on the counter. He'd sort of overdone it at the Chinese place, but he was counting on leftovers. Even if she and Raleigh eat their fill, and James has some later, there will still be a fair amount left for him to eat later.

"Ya know you're welcome here anytime, lamb," he says with a smile, gesturing to the extra plate as he starts loading up his own. "Help yourself. If Oscar needs water or anythin', bowls are in the cupboard in the corner."

"I know," she agrees when he says that she's always welcome. She is, and she knows it - deep down, in her bones sort of knowing, but that's not why she's here right now. She would have gone home, if that guy hadn't stopped her, and right now.... right now she's rattled, she's off-balance and she's trying not to think of all the things it could have been and Davin's the last person she can talk to about it.

So it's kind of self-explanatory, it's sort of just the thing they're not going to talk about, and Raleigh gets a bowl of water for Oscar before she gets herself some food. It's not a lot - she's not super hungry, but it's more about not being alone right this second. "You're always super generous with your take out. You better be careful, or else you'll have every friend you've got eating you out of house and home," she says with a smile, even if her tone's not quite right for the levity she's looking for. She sits down with him, Oscar happily snuffling in his borrowed water dish, his tongue lolling as he looks between them both.

"I wouldn't mind that so bad," Davin says with a smile, rubbing his chopsticks together before twirling one around his fingers. "I like havin' people over. Maybe I'll even throw a party when I'm feelin' better."

It's partially bravado. He does like having people over, but the thought of having too many people around him right now freaks him out. They eat quietly for a moment and Davin smiles as he watches Oscar. He picks up a chow mein noodle with his chopsticks and holds it out to him, laughing as he snaps it up.

"So, are ya alright?" Davin asks, trying to keep his voice casual. "That looked pretty intense."

"You should, if you want to! Maybe a little one?" She knows how hard it is to get back to 'normal', but she knows too that it's a good thing to get back to where you used to be. She focuses on the food, and she's trying to find something to say that's not her apologizing again, or replaying the whole thing over again in her head, and she's pulled out of it when Davin feeds Oscar a noodle, and she smiles.

That's when he asks her if she's alright, and Raleigh looks up at raised eyebrows, looking a little more deer-in-the-headlights than she'd actually wanted to. "Hm? Oh. Uh. Yeah, I'm-" She's sort of lying, but Davin's already had a hell of a time of it. "Just sort of... intense, yeah. But I'm okay." She is. Not great, definitely rattled, but she'll survive. "It was- I sort of got my Robin Hood on when it was all... middle-ages or whatever, and I kind of shot some people, including that guy. He was... sort of understandably upset about it." She picks at her food a little more, before her eyes flick up to Davin's and she kind of shrugs her shoulders.

"Yeah, I think that might be a good idea. Once things have settled a little." He listens to her as she speaks, chewing thoughtfully and setting his chopsticks down so he can reach over and put his good hand on her back, rubbing a little. "Hey, it's not yer fault, lamb. No one was themselves durin' the spell. Look at Coop. He did all sorts o' terrible shit, an' no one with half a brain blames him for it. 'cause that wasn't us, Raleigh. It was the spell."

He sighs and pulls her in against his side, pressing a quick kiss to her temple. "So try an' put it outta your mind, aye? There's nothin' ya could have done."

Raleigh's eyes flick to his, and her brows are furrowed. "I... Coop did bad things?" She didn't know - she'd been avoiding talking about it with anyone. "I just-- it's so weird, you know? Because I did them, I remember doing them, I remember shooting him, the same way I remember taking Oscar out this morning, and--" He presses a kiss to her forehead, and she closes her eyes tightly.

"Sometimes, it's so hard being human, you know? Like, could they just... do that, to a random person? Change who you are, and what you'd do, just... like that?"

"Yeah, but it wasn't him," Davin says quietly, "just like it wasn't you."

When she says that it's hard being human, Davin tenses up and in his emotional state, he takes offense. "I hope by they ya don't mean all witches."

Raleigh doesn't know that Davin is a witch, but she knows about Joel. She knows how good he is. Between this spell and James' views eating away at him, Davin has had about enough. "Because this was the work of a select few, not a group as a whole. There are bad witches, just like there are bad humans."

Davin swallows hard and gets up, taking his plate over to the counter and setting it down with shaky fingers. "It was a human that kidnapped me an' Spencer an' beat the shit out of us, after all. An' I'm not about t'lump him in with the rest o' the humans an' write 'em off."

When she hears the offense in his voice - and she does, because he's not even trying to hide it, she just sort of freezes where she is for a long second.

"I..." She tries to delicately phrase it, but her fingers are white-knuckled on her chopsticks. "I did, yeah. I mean, no, not just all witches, because it's all sirens, too. What I was asking," she says, her voice sharper than she means, because she's so incredibly tired of having everybody and god sweep this under the rug, and she's honestly scared. "Is just if this kind of thing is actually possible. Like, Coop heals people. Is Nerium like... special, and she can somehow make people not know who they are because it's her... I don't know, specialty? Or could anybody with magic do that? It's a valid question, Davin."

She takes a deep breath. "And it would be really great if you just didn't assume I was being... I don't even know the word. Bigoted, I guess, towards magic users. Just because people are capable doesn't mean they will, but if I know it's not something that everyone can do, then I know a little bit more what I need to be ready for because I live in this town. That's why I asked."

It's not until the end - the end, when it's this weird mix of him unboxing what happened to him, but there's this implication that she's writing off magic users or something by asking a question that makes her stomach twist and the words just spill out of her mouth. "A siren and a witch kidnapped me, tortured me, and were about ten minutes from sacrificing me so they could get eternal life, and most of my friends minus you, Spencer, Sylvie, and Mira are witches. So, yeah. Not lumping them together. Thanks." She's never talked about it in such frank terms before, and her face is about the color of milk. She hadn't even meant to bring it up, but it's so harsh and Davin was the last person she'd expected to hear that from.

"Listen, I don't want to argue with you, I should have just gone home. I got freaked out by the whole thing that happened in the street, and it messed me up a little. Maybe- I think I should maybe go. Get some air."

Davin is on the edge of saying that yes, maybe she should go, because he can't deal with this right now. He doesn't think that he should have to right now. But he can tell that she's scared, and he has answers to her questions. She seems to just be thinking of herself in this moment, but that's the nature of people, he supposes.

"No, not every witch can do that," Davin grits out, facing away from her as he stacks dishes into the sink. He's shaking, and he winces a little when she lists off her human friends and includes Davin on the list. Now, it just feels like lying. "Not even Nerium could do it by herself. She had help, multiple witches working together t'cast a powerful spell. James and I-- she almost killed us, but she couldn't, not after I--"

Not after he broke the spell. He grips the edge of the sink with his good hand and then turns around, jaw clenching as he looks at her. "Coop can heal, Joel has visions, and I--" He swallows hard and lets out a shaky breath, looking at the silverware on the counter and making it all float a few inches above the surface. "And I'm a telekinetic, among other things."

The silverware clatters to the counter and he meets her eye. "I broke Nerium's spell, and her powers are gone. She can't hurt anyone, not anymore. Not with magic, at least."

Davin is so tired, and he sinks against the counter and covers his face for his good hand for just a moment. He never meant to actively keep it from Raleigh, but now it feels like lying. And if she's going to be sharing her fears about witches, she should at least know that she's talking to one.

"So I assume ya can imagine why I got upset," Davin says as he pulls his hand away. "Seein' as you're talkin' about me an' mine."

He says not every witch can, and it's like the tension just winds out of her, somewhat. She's got no idea what witches can or can't do, and she's not been able to get a straight answer from most people - Les is worse than useless in that regard. That's all she'd been really trying to find out, and yes... it's been scaring her. It's been scaring the shit out of her, and she has no idea why Davin's being so touchy about it past him generally having a hard few days.

But then.

She's staring as he makes the silverware float, and it's like her mind's just sort of stuck in the this isn't happening that it originally comes up with. She jumps, when it clatters to the counter, and she looks... betrayed, is probably close to the right word. Hurt, definitely. Confused, some. But then he says she's talking about me and mine, and saying it makes sense he got upset, and her face twists to something different.

Anger.

"No. I don't understand why you got upset, Davin. Because I asked you - and it's got nothing to do with you being a witch - if something really bad and horrible that could put me in jail is something that any witch can do. Because I don't know what witches can do, and I can't do anything to stop spells or anything like that. You? Are not allowed to be offended that I asked a question because I'm trying to keep myself safe. No matter what your answer was, I wasn't going to suddenly think that every witch I know was going to hurt me, but it would mean that I would know better what people who I've never met before are capable of."

"It's good to know, what you told me. Because Nerium had help, which means there are people out there who agree with her, and I know that I need Joel to beef up the wardings on my apartment, and that I need to put money in a separate account away from here to automatically pay my bills in case I just end up thinking I'm someone else again. And that? You're not allowed to be offended, just because I don't know how magic works."

Instantly, Davin regrets telling her. There was a reason she didn't know, and he regrets his honesty. He wishes he could take it back.

She's angry, and Davin can feel it. He can vaguely make out what she's saying, that she's telling him what he's not allowed to feel, and his breath hitches. This is too much, and when he closes his eyes, he sees Roman.

He stumbles backwards and hits his counter painfully, eyes wide as he stares at her. It's like he's back in that warehouse, and he's freezing cold. He wants to reply, wants to yell at her, but he can't seem to breathe.

He's terrified, and he's panicking.

"I-- I need need you to go," he chokes out, shaking his head and backing away from her. His chest is aching and he doesn't really know what's happening, but he can't do this. He's backed as far into the corner of his kitchen as he can get, and he feels trapped. He knew going out for food was a bad idea. He just knew. A shuddering breath escapes him and he shakes his head again, resisting the urge to curl in on himself.

"Get out, Raleigh," Davin grits out, voice choked and panicked. "Please."

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OPEN to all - robin hood comes home to roost

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