Pigs on Parade

[weathering_it]

Finally – Light, finally – spring is here. The weather, while not Westfall warm, is tolerable. The sun is out, the streets are cleared, and that pest of a winter spirit is gone. Thank fuck for that, Lawrence thinks as he wanders down the streets of the Nexus with Tamminy at his side and a dirty little pig pokémon scuttling ahead of him.

This part of town isn't an overly-foreign urban hellscape like the inner parts, but modeled after a pleasant countryside that he would describe as Goldshire-esque. Shallow little hills, cobblestone paths and stone cottages to match, blooming flower baskets hanging from windows, and pleasant townsfolk caring for all of it. So what if the people who live here look vaguely demonic? They're harmless, he's pretty sure, so might as well let them be. It's their village, after all.

His strides are small while Tamminy walks beside him, but she's still taking two steps for every one of his. She stands on his right, as if she were tall enough to obscure the fact that Lawrence's arm abruptly ends at the elbow as a red and aggravated stump with parts of his mechanical arm's damaged dock still clinging to his flesh.

But while Tamminy and Lawrence enjoy their relatively slow pace, Lil' Buddy the swinub is antsy to run. He hurries ahead of them on tick-a-tacking little hooves, turns, grunts, runs back, and repeats the process over and over. He's full of energy, people, can't you tell? He wants to play! He wants to run! So hurry up!

Comments

[fiveofnone]

The explanation fills Caspar with immediate, genuine disgust. "That sick frak," he says without a moment of hesitation, his entire frame tensing at the thought of it. He doesn't know Anna, but it's all too easy to imagine Reynard playing that same sort of twisted trick on Adia -- using her as a prop, a means of revenge. A plaything.

"I knew he was the worst kind of monster," he adds, his voice hardening into righteous indignation. "See, this is why I was worried, Adia, I knew one day that he'd --"

He turns towards Adia, but she's not standing beside him. She's fallen back a step or two, her eyes wide and her skin paler than he's ever seen. She looks stricken. Devastated. It reminds him of when she learned about 'Josh', but... no, it's not the same.

This is far worse. "Adia...?"

Her gaze snaps to him, then to the others. She takes a shaky breath, trying desperately to fight back the emotions that want to overwhelm her. "I... I'm going to run ahead to the park and claim a bench for us..."

Caspar reaches for her hand, and she snatches it away so fast that he flinches.

"Don't." Her word is like a gunshot, sharp and loud. She swallows and turns quickly, hurrying towards the direction of the park. Tepig casts a concerned glance at Caspar and then trots after her, to make sure she stays safe.

The Cylon blinks once. Twice. He runs a hand over his face and groans. Even when it isn't Winter, Reynard still manages to ruin things. "Just frak me already..."

[weathering_it]

Tamminy covers her mouth when Adia denies Caspar's touch, while Lawrence stares in open surprise. As soon as she flees he scrubs his hand down his face, and when it falls turns his guilty expression to Caspar.

"Shit," he wheezes, "I didn't know..."

How could he have known? People don't share their traumas publicly. And as much as he normally doesn't mind being an ass -- frankly he enjoys it from time to time -- this isn't one of those cases. Twisting a knife in a woman's psychological wounds doesn't bring him anything but shame.

Tamminy looks between the men and quietly says, "Maybe she shouldn't hear the rest? Why don't we give her a minute alone with the pokemon. We can tell Caspar everything that happened, and he can decide what Adia should and shouldn't know."

Lawrence nods before he glances after Adia and the pigs that worriedly follow her. Light. He didn't expect any of that...

[fiveofnone]

"It's not your fault," Caspar replies tiredly, his voice lacking its usual sarcastic dryness. He almost adds that it's not what they think, either, but... maybe it is? Frak. Frak. He'd been so busy fuming over Reynard's transgressions that he hadn't bothered to think of what sort of impact it'd have on Adia.

Goddammit, Caspar, you had one job. He sighs to himself before turning his head to look at Lawrence and Tamminy directly.

"Reynard was one of the first friends Adia made in the Nexus," he explains. "They were very close. Platonically." And thank god for that. His hands shake a little at the possibility of the alternative. "Naturally, he was an epic douche this winter, but Adia had been hoping that he'd come around..." Obviously not. "This is right after she learned that someone she considered a friend has been stalking her for the last year... a serial killer, no less... she was just starting to enjoy being in the Nexus again..."

His shoulders rise and fall, a shrug of acquiescence. "Sure, tell me the rest before we get there." He can scrub out the unsavory details and offer her a sanitized version if necessary. And he does want to know what happened specifically. He needs to learn if Harrowheart is a threat to Adia, too.

So far he's withholding judgement on the death knight. But one thing's for sure -- Reynard is now tied with 'Josh' for the top spot on his shit list.

[weathering_it]

Reynard and Adia... Friends? Lawrence's nose twists up like he's smelled something particularly unpleasant. Tamminy, for her part, seems more thoughtful. She furrows her pink brows and her downcast eyes drift around. Could it have been real friendship? Or was there an ulterior angle? She's got no evidence to support the former, but she's got no evidence to disprove it, either. Absence of evidence isn't evidence of absence, after all.

But then comes the news of serial killing, which gets an eyebrow rise and averted eyes from Lawrence. Tamminy shakes her head and purses her lips. What a string of unfortunate developments in Adia's life.

"Well," Lawrence says with a sigh, "Harrowheart's basically a serial killer too. We all chose to ignore it for our own convenience, but I know he's killed people. A lot of people. But at least he knows his friends from his enemies. Usually."

He stops to rub at his ribs before he resumes his story. "Harrowheart was watching Anna to make sure she didn't get herself hurt. She took him into the woods and I guess Reynard made her start digging a grave. She says he made her say things to Harrowheart – cruel things that she says she'd never say otherwise. She mocked him and made him angry, and he took it out on her. She says he back-handed her and she fell over, and judging by the bruise that was on her face the night she came home? I believe it. She's lucky he didn't break her cheekbone."

Tamminy crosses her arms and turns away. For once this is gossip she's not too interested in hearing... Though she can't help stealing glances at Caspar to gauge his reactions.

Lawrence continues, "When she fell on the ground I guess he, I don't know, grabbed her by the head? He start shaking her. She said she was so scared but she couldn't do anything about it because Reynard still had control of her. And that's when he appeared. Reynard and Harrowheart started to fight about what Harrowheart was doing with that woman's body. Anna was forced to stand between them like some kind of human shield. She said she couldn't stop herself from saying she'd die for him. Light, it made me so sick hearing her say that."

He shakes his head and has to pause. Recounting this whole situation still twists his stomach up.

"Reynard said he'd let Anna die for him. Harrowheart was willing to call his bluff. Anna said he was going to kill her. That he got his sword out and pointed it right at her stomach. He said he was sorry, and then she said he just... I don't know. She said he looked soulless. Scourged. She said he was going to kill her for sure, and she was so frightened, but she couldn't stop herself from smiling and laughing the whole time."

"I don't think he would have done it," Tamminy says quietly.

Lawrence bites his cheek and shakes his head. A brief silence passes between them.

"Well?" she says, "He didn't, did he? He could have. He stopped himself."

"Reynard said he'd take the rest of us as his own," Lawrence corrects. "He said that if Harrowheart killed Anna to free her from his magic, he'd just come for someone else. Reynard said the only thing that would convince him to go away would be for Harrowheart to put the corpse down and never do necromancy outside of Azeroth again."

Fuck, he's got to stop for a breather. He tries to bend and stretch but his ribs ache and he winces, pulling quickly back into a more comfortable half slouch. A few more measured breaths and he's ready again.

"Harrowheart wouldn't do it. He said his magic is who he is. He wasn't going to stop doing fucking necromancy to save his sister or his family. Anna says he got down on his knees and begged and cried. He'd rather beg like a fucking dog than give up disrespecting the dead. I don't even want to think about it."

Tamminy takes over for him. "According to Anna, Reynard and Harrowheart eventually struck a deal: Harrowheart had to put the corpse down and bury it in the grave that Reynard made Anna dig in the forest. Then he had to promise that if he does necromancy off of Azeroth he can't keep the body around for more than three days. He's not allowed to take bodies as trophies anymore."

Lawrence says, "Good riddance. I still can't fucking believe it though. Necromancy over his own favorite sister. Anna ran home as fast as she could when Reynard freed her. Light, you should have seen the bruises she had. She told us all what happened, and I wasn't going to take that sitting down. I got our rifle and waited for Harrowheart to come home. I told him he wasn't welcome anymore. It wasn't easy to do, but what the fuck, right? His own sister."

He snorts.

"He tried to go into Naugus' castle anyway, and I told him I'd shoot. Well, came down to it that I had to shoot. Got him in the shoulder and he turned on me right away. Tore my arm off and kicked the shit out of me. Our younger brother, Matthew, he heard everything going on and hurried out of the castle."

"Matthew is trying to become a paladin," Tamminy explains, "A Light-caster and a defender of people. He's been learning to channel the Light slowly."

"Mmh," Lawrence confirms with a nod. "Just little stuff. Doesn't always come to him, and when it does he can't always control it. But he went out to try and save me, bless his heart. He managed to channel the Light, and Harrowheart went ballistic. He's got this magic power where he can choke people to death without touching them. He started doing that to Matthew, and the Light exploded out of his hand. Next thing I knew there was a scream and Harrowheart was gone. Haven't seen him since. No idea where he's at or what he's up to."

"Probably with the Durants," Tamminy offers, "But without his phone we don't know how to get in contact with them to ask."

"Or warn them at least."

[fiveofnone]

“Did he host a game show in which tortured people for fun and profit?” Caspar asks, some snark sneaking back into his voice. Don’t conflate the issue, Lawrence.

After that, he falls silent for a long time, listening to the sordid details with a disappointed frown on his face. He can’t help but wonder what Reynard made Anna say specifically to make Harrowheart so angry, but it doesn’t really matter. Everyone has their triggers. He remembers the way Alexander’s throat felt under his fingers, all soft and vulnerable, when he threatened to crush the life out of it. But that was different. That man was spoiling for a fight.

Damn, Harrowheart. Reynard set you up good.

The rest of it — the threats to Anna’s life, the begging, the compromises on his necromantic powers — it’s like a photograph slowly coming into focus. Despite Lawrence claiming that they should have known better, he’s not sure that the man truly understands the position that Harrowheart was put in.

“Two things,” he says quietly, when Lawrence and Tamminy are finished explaining. “One — I don’t think Harrowheart can simply ‘give up’ necromancy. It sucks that he’d rather raise the dead than protect his sister, but it might not be a choice he can actually make.”

Caspar may not know what it’s like to be a death knight, but he does know what it’s like to be inhuman. To be different, down to the very thread of the fabric of your being.

“Two.” He pats the pocket of his blazer, where he keeps his PINpoint. “I have Isidor’s number if you want it.”

Because he also understands the necessity of protecting one’s own. He would have done the same as Lawrence.

Except he would have aimed for the head.

But the vitriol that flows through him so easily at the thought of Reynard does not come for Harrowheart. Mostly, Caspar is disappointed that the death knight was played so easily by the winter spirit. Of course, he’ll have to see how Adia feels about this… his guilt returns, coiling around his chest and making him roll his shoulders uncomfortably. “Or you can get her brother’s number from Adia. The park’s right around the corner here.”

And indeed, turning the corner, one finds a pleasant quad of green, full of blooming cherry trees and lush, well-manicured lawns. Adia is sitting on one of the many benches, Tepig in her lap and Lil’ Buddy at her feet, munching on something that he might have found in the nearby trashcan, oops.

[weathering_it]

"It sucks?" Excuse Lawrence as he openly scoffs at your choice of words there. "He could have gotten by perfectly fine without raising up bodies. That Scourge shit should be in the past for him. He chooses to cling to necromancy just like he chooses to be called Harrowheart. If his necromancy is a choice, then I'm allowed to be disappointed in him. If it's not a choice, then I have to question how much of my brother is actually left in him. And if he's not family, and if he's dangerous – which he clearly can be – then why should we even entertain his company?"

Tamminy squirms at her partner's unfolding train of thought. "Lawrence," she croaks, "Now isn't the time to think these things through. Not out loud, anyway. Perhaps we can discuss all of this at home."

He turns to face her like he's about to protest, but his lips stay sealed when he sees the discomfort in her eyes.

Tamminy nods at Caspar's offer for Isidor's number, but when Adia is mentioned again and comes in sight soon after she thinks better of it. "I'll ask her," Tamminy says. It seems like an innocent enough conversation. She approaches the bench and Lawrence follows a ways behind with his thumb hooked in his belt loop.

Tamminy hops up next to Adia with a smile. "Hey Adia, hey... Princess, was it?" Lil' Buddy grunts and Tamminy laughs. "Hey to you too, Buddy. But, say, Adia? I was wondering if I could get Isidor's contact information from you. Lawrence realized we have no idea where Harrowheart is, and we figured she'd know best. Unless you know? You haven't seen him since we all went to Azeroth, have you?"

[fiveofnone]

"You literally said two minutes ago that you've been in denial about his true nature, and you're still doing it," Caspar replies. "Yeah, you're going to have to do a lot of questioning, welcome to the goddamn club."

It'd be way too easy to slide into a rant about humans and their assumptions, but a glance at Tamminy and he stifles it. The petite scientist reminds him of Adia and what she'd say if she were here. So he tugs at the cuffs of his sleeves again and drops it. Once he sees his girl he forgets what he's going to say anyway, concerned about how she's doing.

Adia looks up when Tamminy approaches. Some color has returned to her face, and though it's obvious she's been crying, she's already wiped her eyes dry. “O-oh,” she says in response to the question. “S-sure, one second…” Princess hops off her lap so that she can pull her PINpoint out of her pocket and bring up Isidor’s contact information. “Here you go… I, um… no, I haven’t seen him…”

Caspar sits down on her other side. “Hey, baby,” he says, taking her hand, and this time she doesn’t pull away, turning into his side instead like a lost child. He presses a kiss to the top of her head and murmurs an apology, but he doesn’t have to say anything. She can feel his guilt as easily as the warmth of his embrace.

She draws in a deep breath and pulls herself together. As wounded as she is by Reynard’s behavior, this isn’t about her. This is about Anna… poor Anna… and Lawrence, too.

“I’m so sorry,” she says to Lawrence. “What Reynard did to Anna. It’s inexcusable.” And then she unconsciously tenses, because she realizes she hasn’t heard the rest of the story yet, and… and what if Harrowheart did something even worse?

Catching onto her worry, Caspar glances at Lawrence and then gestures aggressively to the bench. Hey, sit down, Achy McRibs. You’re the whole reason they’re here. He even gets up so that the man will have room, kneeling in front of Adia as if he’s about to propose. “Give me a minute to catch her up to speed?”

[weathering_it]

Tamminy, who of course brought a pen and a tiny note pad, writes down the information Adia gives her. When she's through she swings the pad shut and stows it back in her pocket with a very satisfied expression. Look, Adia, you helped out!

Lawrence is less eager to look like he's taking directions from someone else. Caspar gestures for him to sit and he grumbles before he does. He was gonna, all right? He doesn't need to be told like a child.

The second he's on his butt Lil' Buddy grunts with Glee and mischief. He leaps onto Lawrence's lap and wiggles to find a comfortable position. For a tiny pig with stumpy little legs he sure can jump!

To Caspar's question Lawrence grunts a little, "Mmh." Lil' Buddy mocks his human with an emphatic, "Grn!" Tamminy laughs at the likeness and Buddy is more encouraged than ever. He spends the next few sentences grunting like his grumpy human as Tamminy laughs, until she remembers this is a serious moment. She reaches out to Pat his head and when she's done dusts off her hand. My, but he's such a dirty little thing...

[fiveofnone]

Not to be outdone, Princess hops back onto the bench, this time sitting primly next to Tamminy. She wants some pets, too, please! And look, she is not filthy at all, only a little dusty from playing with Lil’ Buddy. Also there is some sticky bun residue in the fur around her mouth, but ignore that. She is beautiful and perfect, and she knows this because Caspar tells her so all the time.

The playfulness of the two pigs brings a small, watery smile to Adia’s face. Pokémon are good for the soul, and for quieting the nerves of anxious young women. She takes another deep breath, then makes eye contact with Caspar and nods. She’d ready to listen.

“Reynard made Anna say some terrible things to Harrowheart,” Caspar begins, picking up where they left off. “Terrible enough to make him lose his temper. He hit her — as hard as my brother hit you — and then roughed her up.”

His comparison seems to make some impact, because Adia’s eyes widen, her lips pursing together in worry.

“That’s when Reynard made his appearance. He wanted Harrowheart to give up his necromancy.” He pauses, licking his lips, not looking forward to recounting the next part. “Harrowheart wouldn’t budge. He seemed willing to let Anna die when Reynard used her as a shield, and it wasn’t until Reynard threatened his whole family that Harrowheart finally relented. They struck a bargain of some kind, and then Reynard released his control of Anna and frakked off to wherever he came from.”

He can’t hide the contempt in his voice for the winter spirit. As for Harrowheart, he waits for Adia to make some small acknowledgement for him to continue. It’s important that she understands how serious this is, that necromancy is so vital to Harrowheart’s existence that either he won’t or can’t stop creating undead minions.

“Anyway, Anna got home first and told everyone what happened. When Harrowheart returned home, Lawrence had to shoot him because he wouldn’t leave, so Harrowheart ripped off his arm. Then Matthew—“

“The brother who’s learning to channel the Light?” Adia interrupts. A sinking feeling in her chest tells her exactly where this is going.

“Yeah.” Caspar sighs and gently rubs the back of Adia’s hands with his thumbs. “He tried to protect Lawrence, so Harrowheart started choking him with magic, and the Light exploded. It sent Harrowheart running off.”

In the silence that follows, Caspar keeps rubbing her hands. It keeps her grounded while she tries to absorb all the details of what happened. An ache settles deep within her, similar to the pain caused by Reynard’s actions, but different, too. What Harrowheart did was terrible, but… as awful as it is contemplate… not totally unexpected.

She shuts her eyes and sighs heavily. Gods. How could she have been so blind to what was in front of her this entire time? He’s a death knight. It’s right here in the title. She should have tried harder to understand his true nature, to try to talk some sense into him when she saw his minion. Maybe all of this could have been avoided, maybe a better compromise could have been reached…

“Adia,” Caspar says softly. He tugs on her hands until she opens her eyes and looks at him. “This has nothing to do with you.”

It sounds harsh, but between the gentle way he says it and the tender, worried expression he gives her, she takes it in good faith. Her gaze swings over to Lawrence apologetically. “I’m sorry. Is there anything I can do to help? I could try talking to —“

“Nope,” Caspar interrupts, less gently this time. “If anyone’s talking to him, it’s me.”

Adia rolls her eyes. “I was going to say Anna. She… she really needs someone to talk to.” Someone who doesn’t brush off her erratic behavior, and someone who isn’t Doctor Hill, even if he was helping her.

She needs a friend.

[weathering_it]

Tamminy will pet you, clean if very slightly sticky piggy. In fact, the little tepig is so pleasantly warm that it's hard to stop petting her once she starts. It makes listening to Caspar retell the story a little easier.

Caspar reveals he has a brother and Lawrence and Tamminy exchange looks. Isn't he a robot? Can robots have brothers? They'll debate this later, certainly. Both of them return to neutrally listening to the rest, Lawrence now and then nodding to confirm what Caspar is saying. He's telling basically the whole truth, ignoring a few of the less pleasant details.

"I think that would be lovely, Adia," Tamminy says, smiling feintly but honestly. "From what I gather Anna has had a very sheltered life."

Lawrence instantly interjects, "For her own safety."

Tamminy bounces her eyebrows and blinks. That's his opinion, apparently. "For various reasons," Tamminy concludes. "She hasn't got friends outside of the family. She likes Isidor well enough, but..."

Lawrence grunts. He can't say anything about that no matter how he feels about his brother at the moment.

"Come on over whenever you're free," he says to Adia. Then he turns his attention to Caspar, looks him up and down with naked skepticism and eventually begins to nod. "If you can find him, talk to him. If he doesn't come to any conclusions, fuck it. He'll come around or he won't. So long as he doesn't show up at our place again without acknowledging how crossed his wires are, at this point what he does with his unlife is his own business. We all got along just fine without him for the six years he was gone."

[fiveofnone]

Princess enjoys the attention, oinking quietly to herself and wagging her curly tail. She can see why Lil' Buddy enjoys the company of these bipeds.

It sounds as though Adia is getting the green light to talk to Anna -- if she wants to, of course. Adia looks from Tamminy to Lawrence anyway, as if double-checking their approval. "I've always enjoyed spending time with her," she says earnestly. This isn't about pity, even if her heartstrings are being pulled over the poor girl's situation. "I could introduce her to some other nice people, too." People who won't use her in some elaborate revenge plot.

As for Caspar, he matches that skepticism with an unwavering stare. He said he'd do it, so he'll do it, all right? "I'll strongly advise him to stay away from all of you unless he's got an apology and a good explanation."

Then he stands up, dusting off his pants from where he kneeled on ground. "Anything else I should know if I end up spotting him?"

[weathering_it]

Is there anything else to know? Lawrence and Tamminy exchange a look and a think as they consider this. If there is something worth telling they'd rather not forget it, but nothing comes to either of their minds. Both of them are left shaking their heads.

"Just come around to the castle whenever you want, Adia," Tamminy says softly. "We'll tell Anna that we bumped into you and you wanted to see her. She'll be happy to know someone wants to be around her for the right reasons, I'm sure of it."

[fiveofnone]

Sounds like the story Lawrence shared is what he has to work with. That's fine, it paints a fairly detailed picture. The trick will be if Harrowheart is willing to share his side of the story. As easy as it would be to write off the... friendship??? ... he had been cultivating with the death knight, he'd rather give the idiot a chance to explain himself.

"Okay," Adia says to the diminutive scientist, just as softly. "But, um... you should let her know that I know what happened, okay? I don't want any more surprises for her."

Caspar rises to his feet and pulls his PINpoint out of his blazer. "Here," he says to Tamminy, after unlocking it with a swipe of his thumb. "My number. Stay in touch with me about the prosthetic. Adia's number is on there, too." That's right, Lawrence, he's helping fix your arm whether you like it or not.

Sensing that this impromptu gathering is at an end, Tepig hops off the bench and snorts goodbye to Lil' Buddy. Farewell, new friend!