RP:Worrying Doesn't Change Anything
Summary: After returning from Lionel's camp at Lake Frysta to ask him about returning to Raiez's cave, Khitti and Dominic address each others worries about things they have no control over.
Frostmaw Tavern
Khitti finally returned from meeting with Lionel well into the night. It was his fault really, he just had to be all the way out into the wilderness by Lake Frysta. Regardless of how inconvenient it had been, the mission had been successful. On the way through the inn, the vampiress gathered a few bottles of blood from the bar, and then headed upstairs. She had a feeling she was going to need it and didn't particularly want to go to Xalious to feed. Last time, she'd run into Krice, and right now, if she managed to see someone she knew, they'd probably see how anxious she was and she wasn't about to let that happen. Fumbling with the key to their room, she puts it in the keyhole, takes a deep breath to calm herself, and then heads on inside. There was a quick glance around to see if either Dominic or Brand are about and a faint smile would be mustered for whomever was present if they were awake before she heads to the table to set the bottles down. The vampiress would then peel off her coat, hang it up where it belongs, and sink onto the edge of the bed for a moment, eyeing the floor beneath her feet.
The book Dominic was reading was snapped hastily shut upon Khitti’s entry and was thrown amongst the pile of books he’d amassed on her side of the bed, a pile so large it would be impossible to tell quite which book he’d just discarded. As for Dominic himself, well, his back rested against the headboard on his half of the bed, his legs were splayed atop the covers, and there was a drink in his right hand. Wait, what? Yep. Dominic was drinking. He’d borrowed Brand’s whiskey from the look of things, though it appeared mixed with some unknown other substance, for it was of a light caramel hue rather than the dark mahogany of Brand’s usual fare. “H-hi,” said Dominic, looking a tad uneasy. “I, uh, went to the library…”
Whenever the redhead finally realized that Dominic had been drinking, she'd probably do that weird reversed cross-eyed look. You know the one. Seeing as how she can't though, she resorts to a few blinks and a suspicious narrowing of her eyes instead. "Um." And then she'd look at the pile of books. "I see zhis." And then back to him, eyeing that glass of his carefully. "Taking a page out of 'Brand's Guide To Dealing Vith Your Problems' too, hm?" There's a vaguely disapproving frown, but, she doesn't exactly stop him from doing so. He was a big boy, much like Brand, and he could make his own decisions--she just hoped he wasn't going to make it into a habit like the blonde had. She considered stacking his books elsewhere to join him at the head of the bed, but she didn't just yet, instead opting to remain at the foot of it. "Vhat have you been reading about?"
“Wh-what?” Dominic blinked right back at her, clearly shocked at the mere suggestion. “No, I… I just…” He stammered a bit more and then thrust the drink at Khitti. Its contents sloshed, but never quite spilled over the edge. The faintest wisp of vapor rose from the mug, indicating a fading heat. “It tastes good, is all…” he admitted sheepishly. “Try it. It’s got cream, and brown sugar, and that whiskey Brand likes so much. Wasn’t quite what I was looking for, but I found the recipe in one of the books and had to try it when I saw they called it Catalian coffee.” Conveniently, he’d sidestepped what exactly it was he -had- been looking for -- though he’d also let slip that he’d been looking for anything at all and not simply pleasure reading. Whoops. Maybe she’d be too distracted by the drink to notice.
Khitti only got more suspicious thanks to Dominic's stumbling over his words and of course still the alcohol. "Mhm." She -did- take the coffee though and sipped it. "Hm. It's good. Better zhan vhen Brand drinks zhat vhiskey straight." She makes a face and shudders at the thought, handing his drink back to him. "You didn't answer me..." That's all she said, not pressing him too much. "But, you don't have to tell me if you don't vant to." If he wanted it to stay as his business, she wouldn't force him into telling her. Instead, she pushes up off the bed, returning now to her own drinks as she snatches up one of the bottles and uncorked it, drinking a bit of the red liquid within.
“Eheh,” replied Dominic, and took a few more sips of his drink. He fell into thoughtful silence, but a pang of guilt had hit him the moment Khitti had called him out and now it ate away at him like one of her acid balls from before her rescue. It was so difficult to keep a secret from her. “I’m… still trying to find out more about that stone,” Dominic admitted at length, gaze buried deep into his drink. “The whole thing doesn’t sit right with me. I keep going over what happened, and I feel like I’m missing something. I hadn’t recorded what each face of the thing looked like, but now I really wish I had.” He sighed and took another swig of the drink. “I didn’t want you to worry, not when I don’t even have anything concrete to go off of. Just my gut.” Well, ‘gut’ wasn’t quite the word for it, but...
"It doesn't do vell to dwell on zhings. You should know better from seeing how Brand and I get," she said in between sips, a concerned side-eyed glance offered towards him. She finishes the bottle and tosses the remains into the trash, a sigh passing her lips. "If it makes you feel any better zhough, I'm a bit vorried too." Khitti doesn't even bother with the books now like she had planned as she chooses his lap as her seat, sitting so that she can face him and wrap her arms about him in a hug. "Zhis unfortunately might be one of zhose sitations vhere ve just have to vait and see vhat happens. If anything happens, zhat is."
Dominic pressed a series of kisses up Khitti’s arm and up to her cheek, but looked no more at ease than he had before. “No,” he insisted. “I always play ‘wait and see’. I’m never able to -do- anything about what happens to me. It ends up being Brand, or you, or Lionel. Everything happens -to- me and not -because- of me.” Well, now he sounded like Khitti. “I want to get ahead of it this time. I need to. I tried to ignore it, but then I start to feel like a glass bottle about to burst from too much pressure, and I can’t stand it.”
Khitti nodded, returning the kisses, her own finding homes on along his neck and jawline, "I know, love. Trust me, I do." She brushed his bangs out of his eyes, kissed his forehead, then allowed his hair to flop back down into its usual spot. "Getting drunk and stressing out isn't zhe vay to go, zhough." Once again, he should've known better--Khitti and Brand both excelled in those fields--but she wasn't going to chide him or point that out. "So, use your notes. Re-write zhem down if you must. Use zhat journal I gave you. Hell, fill a hundred of zhem vith all zhat you know and can find on zhe runes. Drinking isn't going to make zhings any clearer; it's just going to make zhings foggy and frustrate you even more." Of course, she'd never listen to any of this when she's freaking out about things. All logic and wisdom were tossed out the window at that point. Helping him, or attempting to, did calm her mind a little, was thankfully helping her to forget about her own worries. For the moment, at least.
Dominic blinked at the drink and then at her, brows drawn together. “It’s -one drink-, Khitti. And I made it because I thought it would taste good, not because I was trying to get drunk.” With a heavy sigh, Dominic set the drink down and nudged Khitti to remove herself from his lap, then pushed off the bed and padded over to the window. “I already wrote down everything I could think of on the runes while I still had the stone. I’d thoroughly dissected everything I possibly could about all of them by the time I’d sorted out the last one, and still --” Dominic peered at Khitti over a shoulder. “Well, you saw what happened.” His gaze returned out the window and he trailed a hand down one side of the curtains. “There was no rune on there to suggest or warn about it, so I’m left to wonder if maybe it was something about the stone itself. But I’ve got nothing but straws to grasp at.”
There was an echo of his sigh in regards to the alcohol, originating from the vampiress that crawled back onto the bed after he vacated it. She not-so-gently pushed the pile of books off of her side of the bed and laid down onto the pillow. She probably was being a little too paranoid about Dominic and the drink, but gods damn it, it was Brand's fault. She really didn't want to have to deal with two alcoholic lovers--though, truth be told, Dominic would likely be far easier to get along with then. "Maybe vhat you need isn't here zhen. Zhere's always zhe library in Cenril. Unfortunately, I'm no longer on good terms vith Larewen Dragana or else I'd raid her personal library for answers." She looked about as frustrated as Dominic now, "I'm not exactly useful vith any of zhis. At least you found -something- at all in zhe first place." Khitti turns over onto her back, shifting her attention to the ceiling. "Does Lionel know anything about zhe stones?"
Dominic pivoted and began pacing slowly from the window to the opposite wall and back, his hands clasped behind him. “I don’t think so, but to be fair, I haven’t asked. I was actually intending to send a letter to someone I met in Vailkrin a few months ago. She’s only a child, but her and her father were able to help me figure out some of the runes and troubles I was having with the stone. It’s been a while since I was in touch.” Dominic’s line of sight flitted briefly to Khitti as he continued his trek back and forth. “I suppose it couldn’t hurt to send Lionel a letter too while I’m at it, but if he doesn’t have any insight I’d rather not bother him too much, busy as he is.”
A child? In Vailkrin? "A little girl...?" She blinked a few times, remembering back to when she lived there, "Did she have a twin brother and zhey both tagged along vith zheir dad, and a bat, and a monkey?" There had been a couple other various children that she'd come across there, all of them orphans, but none of them seemingly capable enough to know about runes and magic. "As for Lionel, save your paper and ink. He's going vith us to zhe cave. You could always as him zhen."
Dominic paused, squinting in Khitti’s direction. “I don’t remember seeing a monkey. But otherwise, yes, that’s the one.” The pacing resumed until his feet brought him back to the edge of the bed nearest where Khitti laid. One by one, he picked up the books Khitti had pushed to the floor and stacked them into two teetering piles, which he then brought to the dining table. “Only Lionel?” he inquired. “I suppose Pilar hasn’t yet healed from her ordeal, has she? And what of Linn and Odhranos? I haven’t heard much of either of them since that first escape.”
"Zhose kids vere strange, and zheir father equally so. You be careful around zhem. He's zhe ex-husband of Larewen, last I knew. Zhere seemed to have been feelings still on both ends, so no telling vhere zhat vent. Not zhat I give a damn, anyway. But, Larewen is dangerous, and zhey may as vell be so." She offers her bit of wisdom, side-eyeing him as he picks up the books that she carelessly shoved off the bed, soon after addressing his thoughts on the cave adventure, "I vould imagine she's healed mostly, but zhere's still zhe matter of her missing a leg. I'm not so sure it's vise to drag her along. As for Odhranos and Linn, I've not seen hide nor hair of either of them, but I intend on getting something for all of zhem. Zhere surely must be something useful in zhere for zhe zhree of zhem. Lionel, however, said he'd likely let Esche or Briar tag along. I did tell him zhat if zhe elf vas going, he'd need to keep an eye on him since Brand's not so fond of him."
Brand’s reaction was visible through Dominic as a temporary stiffening of posture just before the black-haired one turned to eye Khitti again. “You told Lionel about that?” Cue a slow exhale, accompanied by a look of ‘hoo boy, you’ve sure done it now.’ Dominic would have to find an… even-tempered way of playing messenger for Brand’s thoughts. The elder one was irate. “I’m not sure that was wise,” Dominic began, his speech measured. “For all we know, Lionel might well say something about that to Esche. And if he’s already taken an inordinate amount of interest in us, I can only imagine -knowing- it’s discomforting might convince him we’ve got something worth prying into. Bad news, considering Esche’s a telepath. And of course we’re not sure how gifted a telepath he is, exactly.”
Khitti opened her mouth to speak, buuuut that thought was quickly done away with. Instead, she opted for the shocked and appauled route, a scoff leaving her throat and a roll of her eyes given to accompany it. She finally did speak, after rolling out of bed away from Dominic and the possible ball of fire that might get sent her way via an angry Brand as she moved to sit in the armchair instead, "All I said vas zhat Brand zhought he vas creepy. Vhich he is! Vhat kind of freak goes around prying into people's heads?!" There was quite a lot of attitude pouring from the vampiress now as she sought to defend herself, though it was directed more towards the blonde in Dominic's head than Dominic himself. "And if he -is- doing zhat, Lionel ought to know about it. Vhat sort of warrior zhat's oh so dedicated to his people vould let something like continue anyway once he knew about it?" She sunk down into the chair, arms crossed over her chest as she fell into silence and sulked. Once again, not a day went by without Khitti managing to piss off Brand. Sadly, this time she hadn't intended it to happen...she had just been trying to help. Trying to help -him-, in fact.
Dominic rolled his shoulders. He’d meant it as a shrug, but it soon morphed into a stretch as he realized the tension those joints and muscles were carrying. All this research weighed upon him, and Esche, too. “He’s aware. Esche even said as much in the war room meeting before we rescued you. He must be more of an asset than a liability, or he’s meant to abide by some sort of moral constraints, or… something, I’m sure.” He cast his eyes to the ground, traced his sight along the patterns in the carpet. “Brand is particularly guarded, though, as I’m sure you’ve learned.” Even Dominic couldn’t access Brand’s thoughts or memories unless it was explicitly allowed. Those particular neurons were a tightly guarded fortress.
"No. Not at all. I hadn't noticed," was said with as much snark as she could muster at the moment, which was actually quite a lot. Khitti sunk further into the cushions of the chair, if that was even possible, an irritated frown residing on her features as she stared at the fireplace. "Neither of you need to go. You can stay here or do -vhatever- it is zhat you do vhile I'm gone. I really don't even need Lionel either, I vas just being cautious. Not gonna do it zhough if I can't even say one damned zhing to someone vithout getting yelled at for it. If Lionel doesn't have zhe brains to guard his zhoughts around zhat elf, zhen he's useless." She side-eyed Dominic around the edge of the chair briefly before shifting back to the fire, "And I'm not taking zhe two of you if ve're going to do nothing but argue zhe entire time. I get enough of zhat on a daily basis in zhis room alone, and even moreso in zhat damned cave. Don't need to add more to it." Of course, this was mostly directed at Brand, but there were a few rare occasions when Khitti and Dominic argued as well.
Dominic felt some irritation of his own bubble up in response. Or maybe that was Brand? Whatever it was, he didn’t want to be having this conversation anymore. “It’ll be fine,” he insisted, and turned back to the table without further elaboration. So many books to get through. There must be answers for him somewhere. There were books on Catal, books on runes, books on enchanted artifacts, books on illusions… everything he could think of even tangentially related to that blasted stone. After a brief detour to retrieve his drink, he pulled a chair out from the table and collapsed into it. Soon enough, he was burying his nose back in the book he’d been combing through before. Catal. He could swear he’d seen stones there like the one he’d carried with him for so long. He must have. It had come from someone on the ship, which meant it had come from Catal, right...?
There was another roll of Khitti's eyes after Dominic's insistence and then that long silence between the two as he started up his research again. It felt awkward on her end of things, and was starting to make her uncomfortable, so much so that she squirmed in the chair a bit. Finally, and with the heaviest of sighs, she slides from the piece of furniture and goes to make Dominic some tea. It's pushed onto the table next to him in silence, as a sort of peace offering, before she goes back to the chair. It's not like he was the one she was mad at; it was Brand, always Brand. Sometimes it felt more like she was dealing with a spoiled child than...whatever he was to her in regards to their relationship. She hoped the tea was enough of an apology to Dominic, but Brand? Brand wasn't getting one. Not right now anyway.
Dominic didn’t notice the tea being placed at his side. He was deep in the annals of Catalian wars, Catalian culture, Catalian magical development. The further he got, the more restless he felt. This didn’t have what he was looking for. He couldn’t say how he knew, but somehow he was traveling down the wrong track. He pushed the book across the table to the end of his reach and simultaneously finished what was left of the coffee. Ceramic clinked on ceramic as he moved to return the cup back to the table, and only then did he give note to his surroundings. How long had that tea been there? “Thank you,” he murmured to Khitti, and reached for another book. Well, it had to have been her. There were no benevolent tea-conjuring spirits waiting to supply him with his favorite drink.
Khitti might as well have been a benevolent tea-conjuring spirit now after all the times she provided him with the drink. "Yeah..." was muttered in return before the vampiress lapsed back into silence for some time. She listened to the pages of his books rustling about as he searched through them, though her thoughts did not mirror his own on Catal. "Dominic...?" She didn't move from her chair and neither did she look at him, her attention almost slowly on the flames now as they leapt about in the hearth. "She -is- dead...right?" It occured to her that she didn't care what his answer was almost immediately after asking the question-- she needed to see Raiez's corpse for herself.
'She’? ‘She’ who? Dominic was already a thousand years away again, enthralled by some thesis on overseas trade routes and their impact on Lithrydelian history over time. Maybe he’d even find something on the Sunderia in here -- oh. Right. Khitti had asked him a question, hadn’t she? She’d asked about someone being dead… ah. Raiez. Of course. Dominic tore himself away from the book long enough to turn to Khitti with an appropriately reassuring countenance. “She has to be,” he replied softly. “The injuries alone should have killed her, and then there was the cave in… there’s no way she made it out of that.”
"Right...yeah." She wasn't entirely convinced, but he likely was too busy with Catalian History 101 to notice. She pried herself from the chair again, restless and eager to get the adventure to the cave over with. She paced a bit, doing that flame flickering with her hand that Brand always did when he was irritated, though, with her it usually happened when she was stressed. Back and forth, flame on, flame off. But what if Raiez -had- survived? Would she be strong enough with this new magic to end her entirely this time around? It'd likely end up that Lionel or Brand would have to save the day again. Damned Catalians. Always taking the glory for themselves.
An hour could have passed and Dominic would be none the wiser. Back he’d dove into the tomes, here and there taking notes scribbled into the journal Khitti had gifted him for Yule. All the reading must be making him terribly uninteresting company, but even that he was oblivious to. The flame earned little distraction, only a mild, “Don’t burn the tavern down.” He knew she wouldn’t. If anyone did, it would be Brand. Or him, he thought with a shudder, remembering that handful of times he’d managed to conjure such a thing. No. None of that. Those were flukes. Back to the books. Focus, or there might be more of that sort of thing in his future.
Dominic was probably wrong about her not burning down the tavern--she -had- been the one to leave that scorch mark on the wall, you know. Khitti barely heard him now and his vague chiding, the purple fire along her fingertips sparking from and dissipating into a puff of shadows. More time passed in silence and neither her anxiety nor her restlessness waned. She'd soon pull on her boots again and head downstairs without a word to Dominic, taking as long as need be to place her order at the bar and receive it.
Another book closed, with all of Dominic’s efforts fruitless. Sighing, he scrutinized the bindings of each book. Yes, he’d taken notes, but did he honestly think they were going to lead him anywhere? What was here that he hadn’t already combed through before? Agitation seeped into his legs and pooled at his feet, and before he was quite aware of it he was slipping his shoes on and echoing Khitti’s steps down to the bar.
Khitti had just gotten her bottle of alcohol and was heading back up the stairs when she ran into Dominic. "Oh...I vas coming back. You vere obviously busy so I vasn't going to bother you." Maybe after all of her bitching he just didn't want to be around her? That was understandable, to her at least. She moved to the side of the staircase, peering up at him from a few steps below, letting him pass if he decided to leave without her. Only Brand knew what was going on inside of that head of Dominic's most likely, and she wish she knew the tiniest fragment of it, but likewise she wasn't going to pry. She clutched the clear bottle tightly, so as not to drop it, her line of sight falling to the step just above her, "Are you leaving...?"
Dominic’s brows furrowed when he caught sight of the bottle. “No, I… I needed a break. I came out to find you.” Well, at least he’d avoid the possibility of small talk with strangers if she was heading back to the room. “I thought alcohol didn’t really do anything to you…?” Was she pulling a Brand? Frustrated by something and driven to drinking to cope? He -had- been kind of ignoring her the last little while, he thought, with a nervous bite of his lip. Or maybe he was simply overanalyzing it.
"It...um...doesn't." She scrunched up her nose a bit, her own brows furrowing. "It vas for both of us. Sort of. And, I know I sound like a hypocrite and Brand's probably got zhat smirk of his going on in zhe back of your head because he's going to zhink he's in zhe right vhen I say zhis, but I zhink I sort of gets vhy he does it. To unwind a bit. But!" She pauses, looking up at him again, "I still zhink he's going about it vrong. Anger and drinking don't mix. I've seen it and not just vith Brand." There's another pause, and a sigh as she shakes her head, "But...you and I are both on edge and I zhought it vould help..." Pushing the bottle of peppermint schnapps towards him, Khitti frowned, "I've been told it tastes good in hot chocolate. I'm sure it's fine on its own too."
Dominic met Khitti’s words with a look of mild surprise. “I… sure, I guess there’s no harm in that. I’m done with the books for the day, I think. There’s too much. I feel as if I’m running a lot to go precisely nowhere.” After a glance at the label, Dominic took the bottle from Khitti and turned back for their room. “Alcohol comes in peppermint flavoring? Is there a flavor someone -hasn’t- made alcoholic…?”
Khitti squints a little at Dominic's mention of 'running', her mind taking a trip back in time a few weeks ago to when her and Brand had that conversation about the topic. "Yeah...I kind of know vhat you mean." She tilts her head, following him back upstairs, "Apparently and I'm sure zhere's some flavors people von't make into alcohol. Vomit and earwax are ones I don't zhink I'd like to try." The tiniest hint of a grin appears, her hand reaching up to take his unoccupied one as they climbed the steps.
Dominic’s expression was an odd mix of disgust and amusement -- a faint smile and a crinkled nose. “Oh, I’ve tried the vomit one. That’s just when you drink too much and it comes back up again.” Yeah, thanks for that, Brand. You jerk. “I think I’ll stay clear of earwax, though. And spinach-flavored spirits. Or anything remotely related to fermin.” With their return to the room, Dominic flopped face-first onto the bed, limbs stretched towards each corner. Khitti would have to push him aside if she wanted anything more than a seat at the edge.
Khitti crawled on top of Dominic for now, situating herself on his butt. In a weird sort of crouched, gargoyle-like position, she leans over him, using her nails to knead and massage his back and shoulders carefully in a very cat-like fashion. "Zhat doesn't look like drinking at all to me, you know. Vould you rather I just leave you to sleep instead?" She doesn't stay perched on top of him for long, and also doesn't push him to the side, her feet planting themselves on the floor again as they were a bit ago.
Dominic twisted his neck in an attempt to catch some part of Khitti in his vision. “What? No, I want to try that thing you brought. But also, this bed is comfy and my back aches from spending so long hunched over those books.” Dominic sighed and rolled over after Khitti got off of him, then used both his pillows and hers to prop himself up somewhat. “I don’t know what I thought I was going to find that I hadn’t read already.”
"Sometimes you overlook zhings. It happens all zhe time. But, if you're sure you've read zhrough -everything-, zhen start somewhere else. Or, maybe, zhere's just nothing here on it. At least, at zhe Xalious library maybe. Zhere -is- Cenril's. It's much closer to zhe sea, so maybe zhey've more about Catal zhere zhan vhat zhe mages' have. I zhink I vaguely recall someone in Cenril telling me about a library in Rynvale too vhen I vas looking for zhings on zhe Shadow Plane, but something like zhat vould not have been zhere." She shrugged a bit, then grabbed the bottle they brought up, and went to make hot chocolate--the easy way, of course, with her magic. When she returned to him, at the side of the bed, she offered him the mug which had not only the hot chocolate, but the alcohol as well, "Our vay?", then held out a glass full of clear and definitely peppermint liquid. "Or zhe Brand vay?" She raises a eyebrow as she pauses a moment, pondering something before continuing, "Or...both?", giving him options.
Dominic shrugged Khitti’s advice off. He was too frustrated to think about it any further, for the time being. The drinks, though… Dominic raised a hand that floated, pointing between the two drinks. It drifted indecisively to the mug… then veered back to the glass… and finally settled firmly back onto the hot chocolate mix. “Our way, for now,” Dominic stated, “though I reserve the right to succumb to Brand’s ways if necessary.” His grin said there’d be no actual need for that. Not today, and hopefully not ever.
Khitti let out a 'hrm' as he opted for the hot chocolate, almost as if she were hoping he'd go with the glass of straight schnapps. She -did- have to wait for him to get drunk before she could, you know. She eyed the glass as it remained in her hand, then brought it to her lips and took a decent-sized gulp of it. She winced at the burning, yet still strangely cool liquid as it ran down her throat, "Vell, zhat is definitely like I remembered it." Wait...hadn't she told Brand she'd never drank before? She set the remainder of the glass down on the table next to the bed, then snuggled up against him. Maybe she didn't need alcohol after all right now. Maybe she just needed a good cuddle session.