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]

[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.

[pendantry]

[For too many moments, all she can do is look at him.

She remembers waiting for him to come home, on the day she was fired from a car garage what is a car garage that no longer exists, anxious and upset and so very sure she would disappoint him.

I want you to be here.

Though it's different than it was the last time someone said a similar thing, it only takes two steps to close the distance and one breath to hug him.]

[fellpool]

[With his eyes momentarily focused away from Raven, Leon doesn't catch her movement until she's hugging him -- and his facial expression perfectly displays his surprise at such affection from her.

Up until the situation with the elaborate Shift, the shows of emotion from Raven were restrained or small in some way. To have her hugging him in this way...

Well, he can only hug her back, his face a bit flushed.]

H-- hey, I don't think I'm saying anything groundbreaking here...

[pendantry]

[There is nothing so groundbreaking for her as "I want you here". Nothing, even when Leon doesn't know all the risks.]

Sorry.

[And she lets him go, red-faced, shifting around without really moving.]

[fellpool]

[He shakes his head, even though that does nothing to make his own reddened face less visible. A glance at her face at least confirms that she's also embarrassed, so he lets out a sigh.]

...It's okay. Come on, I can show you around a little more now, if you're ready.

[And he'll do that just that if she has no complaints.]