chapter five ♔ it'll be a day like this one when the sky falls down

[eldritchweaver]

the blues - switchfoot

WHO || The Knights
WHAT || Failboat returns from the disaster in LA as the Knighthood goes on lockdown
WHERE || The castle, London
WHEN || Directly after this, Fall 2017
HOW || Actionspam

Hasmed's announcement does not brook any rebuttal: all Knights are recalled to the Castle, where they must remain until the Section Heads and Jack Chessing have spoken about the events in Los Angeles that have left the Knighthood without their usual leader.  

The entire Los Angeles area is now covered with a dark miasma that has interfered with any signals that might be sent out from phones, etc., leaving the whole world wondering what exactly is happening down there.  Final images showed horrendous monsters, a panic of citizens, looting and violence from humans and Shadowkind alike.  

Hasmed has warned of extra magical wards on the castle, and anyone arriving will immediately take notice of one very prominent one: above the entire roof of the excessively large building hovers a black and red sigil in the air, a pentagram in a circle surrounded by runes or words in an unknown language, stretching for miles.  

[ This is the social log for post-LA lockdown.  Failboat must complete the top log before being allowed to tag outside of it. ]

Comments

vi ♃ open

[graveflowers]

late the first night ♃

[ after failboat returns, after they discuss things in the round table, after they disperse, the missing member rolls up to the castle in a stretch hummer limousine like... well, like a douche, but let's not talk about that. she climbs out of the hummer with a staff clutched in her hands and she walks up the steps to home covered in blood and dust and smelling faintly of some luxurious alcohol and ozone.

she stops when she sees the huge pentagram etched into the sky above the roof. ]

What the fuck?

[ ANYWAY, IN SHE GOES. she allows herself to be stopped on her way to do stuff, but her first stop is to find jack to tell him that she's, um, alive and then her daughter and then the rest of failboat. and then the cleric's wing to see myrilandel and felicity once she finds out about them. at no point does she let go of her new accessory. ]

[mr_manners]

[He's just managed to get Lucia to go down when Vi's footsteps round the corner, and he looks over at her with some surprised wide eyes.]

You're back!

[She didn't come in with the rest of the mission group and he feared the worst, and he's relieved just as much as he is pleased.]

I just got her to sleep.

[graveflowers]

[ vi momentarily ignores rory in order to hurry over to lucia's crib, peering down at her precious daughter with eyes that well with tears. her fingers comb through lucia's dark hair, fingertips brushing across the toddler's cheek. ]

Momma's home, Glowbug. I'm sorry I kept you waiting, it was... it's a long story.

[ lu doesn't so much as stir, clutching her blanket and breathing steadily with her face smushed against the mattress. vi doesn't even mind that lucia is sound asleep, she's just happy to see her little girl again. wiping her eyes, vi eventually turns back to rory. ]

So hey. My day was weird, how was yours?

[mr_manners]

I think weird's a good sum up, yeah.

[He smiles a bit when he sees her with her Lucia though. It's a good reunion, even if Lucia isn't awake for it.]

Things have been tense since the news of the concert hit, though. It made it hard to get her to settle.

[graveflowers]

Yeah, she would be upset about that. [ vi frowns as grief settles in her chest, curling her other hand around the staff and holding it against her chest like it's some kind of teddy bear. maybe it is. ]

She doesn't like it when people are sad.

[ which is rough considering her mother's winter depression. ]

[badexample]

[At some point, Andrew is tasked to retrieve a change of clothes and some other things from the Dennis-Gatewood room. But on the way, he spots a familiar face-- one he had been worried about with all the chaos in LA (but uh he's had other things on his mind).]

Vi! [He's kind of made of emotions right now so guess who is getting a big ol hug from a big ol nerd right now.] Holy shit, you're alive.

[graveflowers]

[ literally covered in blood so apologies for the state of ur clothes, boyo. she "oofs" into the hug, closing her eyes as familiarity washes over her. home and hugs feel really good right now. ]

I'm pretty sure that was my reaction, too. [ a beat, sniffling against his chest. she's fine! ] I figured I would make an entrance. Like grandfather, like grandaughter.

[badexample]

[He just watched a baby be born. A little blood (or a lot) is fine.]

Make any entrance you fucking want. Your timing is pretty great actually. [He pulls back and looks way too happy for someone who has been made aware of all the trauma that today has brought. It's a euphoria that will fade eventually. He's riding it out.]

He's here. The baby. And god Vi, he's just... perfect.

[graveflowers]

[ for a second vi... does not know what the fuck he is talking about. of course her baby is here, but lucia is not a boy as far as vi knows. she looks a little confused. and then it hits her like a lightning bolt of brain function. ]

Oh! Your baby. [ like fucking duh. it's been a long day. ] Oh my gosh, he's here? He's a he! A boy, you had a boy! Congratulations, Andrew. He probably is perfect, 'cause like your wife? [ she makes the okay sign with her hand. ]

[slay]

Vi?

[ it's after detaching herself from the would-be mutiny of the rest of failboat that buffy runs into her. we'll say they're both in the vicinity of the light wing because myri is precious and must be protected.

however, everything is dropped in favor of running and straight-up hug-tackling vi. for a girl who's felt like she lost everything today, it's good for one, just one of those things to be resolved. with her arms wrapped tightly around violet reedhym, buffy says, ] Gods, it's good to see you.

[graveflowers]

[ vi hugs back as hard as her relatively weak strength will allow, burying her face in buffy's blonde hair and focusing on the thud of her heart against vi's chest. ]

I'm so glad you're okay, [ she breathes, voice trembling with relief. ] The last thing I saw was you and Nick on the stage but when I got there you were gone already and I prayed you were alright.

[ THE POWER OF PRAYER WORKS! and faith in buffy's ability to get up every time she is knocked down. ]

[slay]

Nick?

[ it doesn't seem to matter, now, but she can't help asking as she pulls back to get a look at vi. almost subconsciously, sisterly, she pushes vi's hair back from her face to get a good look at her, brushing gently across her cheek in a protective gesture. ]

Where did you go? Where have you been? How did you— [ no, the questions are too many. ] Tell me everything.

[graveflowers]

[ vi shifts accordingly so the staff she still hasn't let go of doesn't whack buffy in the head. contrary to the blood and grime still covering most of her, vi looks in relatively good health. still like she should go get her damn self healed, but not like she's going to keel over. ]

They took me to some room a couple halls away from the stage, probably a dressing room, I dunno. They had a TV set up and I was watching the show and when it all happened... [ she shrugs, dismissive. how she got out isn't important and she doesn't want to talk about it, honestly, feeling the sting in her chest, the sting of mortality. ] I went to find you, I saw you on one of the scream, but you'd gone by the time I got there.

[ she scoffs a little, bitter. ] I tried to pull the fire alarm, like it was going to help. Spoilers, it did not 'cause most of the ceiling caved in while I was crossing the stage.

[rationalizes]

[ eventually she finds gar, who just about shits a brick ] Vi?! [ she runs for her, throwing her arms around her neck ] Oh, thank God! Thank God.

[graveflowers]

[ vi gives a soft oof when gar barrels into her, tears stinging at her eyes almost automatically. ] Thank Zeus.

[ it sounds like a correction but also maybe just how vi says thank god now, we don't know. ]

[rationalizes]

[ she doesn't seem to think anything of it, to be honest. she's too busy having a guilt attack ] I'm so sorry, Vi. I'm so sorry that we left. We didn't--

[graveflowers]

Hey, no. [ vi draws back to cradle gar's face with one hand. ] You did exactly the right thing. If you had stayed, you would have put everyone at risk. Retreat was the only option.

[watcherjunior]

[ Did Vi want to get accosted by a relieved Dawn? Cause she's getting accosted by a relieved Dawn. It's probably even later in the night, after Vi's seen everyone else. Dawn should probably be asleep, but she can't, not after seeing what she saw on the television. She may not be a member of failboat, but she did spend like... months with them in Chicago. So. She was worried.

Dawn drops her drink in her haste to hug Vi. (Don't worry, it's in one of those Dawn-proof tumblers.) ]

You're back! You're back, oh god.

[graveflowers]

Oh Dawn, it's so good to see you. [ the relief is palpable in the way she slumps into dawn's arms, clearly more than happy to be embraced. ] I'm so glad you weren't there.

[ is that a terrible thing to say considering all the death? oh well, it's out and it's honest so vi isn't going to apologize for it. ]

[watcherjunior]

[ She doesn't make a move to let go, not just yet. ]

I can't imagine what being there was... [ Just watching what she could before the video cut out was nightmare fuel enough. ]

When the others came back and you weren't with them, I didn't know what to think. I may have sent a hundred texts or maybe I thought I did, I don't know right now.

[graveflowers]

[ oh. phone, right. that actually has vi drawing back in order to pull out a very cracked phone from where she had it tucked into the strap of her bra under her arm. ]

Ah. Even my phone is spiders. [ well, spiderweb cracks. it still lights up when she presses the home button so it's fine for now. probably. maybe. who knows. she'll head down to the hoard labs to swap out for a new phone before she goes to bed. ]

At least it wasn't between my boobs.

[killingtodeath]

[Stiles hasn't been himself lately. He's coping, but the light in his eyes is a little dimmer, and he moves through the castle a little less aware of his surroundings. He can't sleep in his room right now, has too many memories of Abigail there. Losing both her and Lydia was a one-two punch that's really shaken him up, so he's claimed one of the rec rooms with a big tv and has been binge watching sitcoms. He's exhausted and grieving, but the laugh track is keeping him company, at least.]

[graveflowers]

[ vi has briefly left lucia in the light wing in rory's care so she can shower (again) and is walking by the rec room when she hears the tv playing, but not one is around and she frowns. what a waste of electricity as if the castle's carbon foot print isn't massive already. she tries to compost all the food waste but no one actually puts it in the right bin and now someone's left the tv on all night?

ok.

she moves inside, muttering in annoyance to herself and is reaching for the remote when she sees stiles curled up on the couch, eyes vaguely focused on the television. ]

Stiles? You... oh, oh no. Honey. [ vi abruptly moves to crouch in front of the couch, gathering him up. ]

[killingtodeath]

[He's been doing his best to hold it together. But all it takes is one hug and he can feel the overwhelming swell of grief creeping up within him.]

I'm okay. [He's not and he doesn't even have the energy to try to make it believable.]

[graveflowers]

Mmm, I can see that.

[ vi will allow him his lies, curling her arms tightly around him. ]

I'm sorry, Stiles.