Nine

[pendantry]

[It's moving day.

It took her a while to think about it, and another while to really decide, but after more than enough talking to herself on the matter, Raven is moving out of building two and into an empty room in Leon's house. Maybe they aren't family anymore; it doesn't matter, Raven is sick of living so completely alone, with an empty floor and emptiness all above her, too.

Maybe she isn't so thrilled to have Sokka and Ikki's noisy house as close neighbors...but maybe she's also kind of glad for it. For the closeness of people she can pretend to teeter on the edge of trusting. Kyle will also be closer to Soren and she thinks that'll do her good.

She didn't think to warn Leon of any of this beyond a short message this morning, so at least the first part of her day involves a long walk carrying a few packed boxes. Kyle follows along behind, half-carrying a drawstring bag of things - it's not a very heavy bag, she's just being lackluster about it. It is a distance to house 59 and Raven keeps turning around to offer encouragement.]

You like Leon. It'll be okay. [Never mind all of her own private apprehension. As she passes through the plaza she looks at Slash 'n' Crash with a sigh, wondering if they found her note about being busy with moving and coming to work late.

Once Leon's sorted out her moving issues, though, she walks through the smithy door looking...content. Maybe smiling. Depends on who's in there.]

Comments

[fellpool]

[It takes a minute or two to answer the door, and he still looks confused and slightly worried.]

Raven! Hey-- I-- Er. [Okay, think, idiot. He steps out of the way and gestures her inside.] It's nice to see you.

[pendantry]

[She can tell something's not right by the tone of the greeting.]

I messed up, didn't I? [It is slowly crushing her even without confirmation of the mistake.] I can go back.

[fellpool]

[He's quick to shake his head and flail his hands, embarrassed -- as apparent by the way he starts to sweat and flush in the face.]

No, no! I wasn't expecting you to be so quick! [He takes a deep breath, trying to calm himself.] I would've helped if I'd known you'd planned to move-- er, everything in one day.

[It sure looks like she brought everything.]

[pendantry]

That wasn't quick. [Maybe he didn't get the message right when she left it. Either way, two boxes and a drawstring bag is- well, in Raven's case, it is most things. But not everything.]

You don't have to help. [She just shakes her head. Wasn't it enough to let her move in here?] It's fine.

[fellpool]

You shouldn't be moving things alone. [Now it's a weaker protest, because Raven had that simple, direct quality to her responses that always seemed reasonable.]

You can set you things down here in the kitchen. There's a few rooms you can choose from.

[He'll gesture for her to follow him further into the house.]

[pendantry]

Your house is so big. [As often happens in his presence with nobody else around, a little more feeling moves into her voice. It's huge. So many rooms, she can feel the space after she dislodges her boxes.]

[fellpool]

There used to be other people living with me. But even then, we spread out and didn't really use all the rooms as ... bedrooms. [He looks a little embarrassed, but walks towards the back hallway of the first floor.

He opens the first door to a smallish bedroom.] There's this one, which is kinda small but has easy access to the big bathroom and the living room and kitchen. [And then he walks down to the end of the hall, pushing the second bedroom and bathroom doors open so Raven can look in while he continues talking.]

The second bedroom here was pretty heavily modified by Precis. There's that elevator in the corner that connects up to the second floor.

[pendantry]

If it's hers, it should stay hers. In case she comes back and she wants it.

[Elevator? She's heard about those by now, and been on a few on drafts, but it never struck her as something for a house.]

I don't want to take someone else's. [But she would if she had to.]

[fellpool]

[He nods understandingly. He felt awkward every time he looked at the room, as its modifications made him think about how much time Precis had spent on it.]

Okay. There's some more rooms upstairs that we can look at.

[He'll sidle through the hallway and over to the living room, where the staircase leads up to the second floor. Right at the top of the stairs are two adjacent rooms, with another two rooms off to the right. He points at the two bedrooms that they immediately face.]

I use that room on the right as my bedroom, and the one on the left as my lab. These other two, with the windows facing the front of the house, are completely empty. [...] These rooms are all the same size.

[He'll go over to his bedroom and open the door, which allow his cat to enter the hallway and assess their new housemate. Filia meows in a plaintively hungry way, but sticks around long enough to sniff at Raven.]

[pendantry]

[Bedrooms with front-facing windows. Raven sticks her head into one of them, and then the other. They're well-lit at this time of day. She kind of likes them. In the back of her mind she thinks of one as a bedroom and the other more like a...like a workshop. Somewhere to do things with crystals or metal or even...other things, without the constraints of projects and work.

It's a far-fetched dream and even the Leon who knew her to make sculptures from scrap metal would probably not want to give up so much space in his house for that. Her shoulders fall a little. If nothing else, though, she would rather be higher up.]

I like this one. [A nod to the right-hand bedroom.] Is that okay?

[Then she sees the cat, and with a slight tilt of her head, takes a few steps toward it and crouches, holding out her hand in greeting.]

[fellpool]

[Filia sniffs at Raven's hand as she offers it, then steps forward to rub her face against her palm. It takes another moment, but the cat also purrs in some kind of accepting greeting, cat flicking lazily.

Leon watches with a smile, nodding at Raven's question.]

Sure thing. I don't know how much more stuff you have, but you can put them in the other room if you need to arrange things. I'm not using it, anyway.

[...] Oh, and that's Filia. But she's already introduced herself, it looks like.

[The cat meows again.]

[pendantry]

[That is a very feline welcome, especially for a bird, and Raven strokes under her chin a little bit before standing again.]

She's very dignified. [Approval all around, it looks like. Kyle is a little less graceful about sizing up Filia though.]

I don't have a lot. Most of the furniture...just stays there, right?

[fellpool]

[Filia is very prim and proper for being Leon's cat, and she purrs a little more before heading downstairs in search of food. Leon steps away from the empty rooms to allow Raven to go in if she wants.]

I think so. Unless there's any specific furniture you wanted. There's not much in these rooms.

[Just a bed and desk and desk chair, in both rooms.]

[pendantry]

I don't need a lot.

[She will probably want to bring or get a bookshelf, and maybe some kind of wall shelf too. Otherwise, she's a woman of few needs, the desk and bed are plenty.]

This is nice. I like the windows.

[fellpool]

If you're sure. I really wouldn't mind helping with anything. [In fact, he feels like he really should help in some way, since he hasn't so far.]

Do you need anything? Er-- does Kyle need anything special? [He's definitely seen the Pokemon around before, but never lived with one.]

[pendantry]

Kyle eats special food, but I brought some. [Kyle who has...disappeared, following after the cat with much interest.] She doesn't always want to come to work with me, though. Will she be...okay here?

[fellpool]

She should be fine. [He scratches his cheek thoughtfully.] I haven't really been around her before. You just usually leave her inside your rooms?

[pendantry]

Sometimes. [Though Raven is naturally good with monsters, raising and training one is a different sphere.]

But she can come with me every day if that's better. [It might help her get used to living somewhere new.]

[fellpool]

If you think that'll help her adjust, I think it's a good idea. But I don't mind her staying in the house, as long as she and Filia can get along.

[And it looked like that was already happening with good progress.]

You need any help unpacking?

[pendantry]

I don't think so. [The number of people who are hellbent on helping her is impressive, though. Maybe she should start letting them.] You can carry up a box if you want.

[fellpool]

Okay, sure. I still feel bad that I didn't go over and help when I got your message...

[But some of that is alleviated by Raven allowing him to help now.]

Then we can get you settled and you can start calling this place your place, too.

[pendantry]

It's okay. I didn't need help.

[Her goodbyes to that apartment, said through packing up mostly alone, were meant to be that way.]

Will it be weird to call it that?

[fellpool]

[He doesn't really mean to give her a strange look at her question, but it happens anyway.]

Why would it be weird? You're living here, too.

[pendantry]

It was yours first.

[Simple enough.]

[fellpool]

[He purses his lips, taking a moment to figure out what he wants to say before speaking.]

I want you to be here. Even if it was weird, I wouldn't complain about it because it's so trivial in comparison to you being here.