12/05 Instance: Female Bonding

[Starfish]

Timeline: Current

Monet: Monet carried the tray carefully as she made her way slowly up the stairs and down the hall to Mayhem's room. She had needed tea and she wanted to spend time with him to discuss the upcoming Christmas break and some possible ideas she had. At his door, she set the tray on the hall table before knocking. With how sick she had been feeling, she didn't trust herself to hold the tray with one hand at the moment.

Hepzibah: A new scent caught Hepzibah's nose as she lay curled up in Hector's bed. Well... not new exactly. She had to think for a moment before her fragmented memory put a name and a face with the scent. Monet. She looked over at Mayhem's empty side of the room. Looks like she made a trip for nothing... "It's open," she called out, not feeling much like leaving the warm and relative safety of the blankets.

Monet: Monet frowned as Hepzibah's voice came from inside instead of Mayhem's mental one. Or even Karr's. She closed her eyes and felt for anyone else in the room before opening the door. At least he wasn't here at all. That was much better. She picked up the tray and made her way inside, setting the tray on Mayhem's desk. She could catch up with him later.

Monet: Monet looked over at Hepzibah and tilted her head. She was pretty like this. Hmmm.. Not as much of an alley cat in looks anymore. "Bonjour."

Hepzibah: "Hi," Hepz answered sitting up and pulling the blankets around herself. She frowned; Monet looked like she was barely able to stand. "Here, have a seat," she motioned to Mayhem's bed. "I see you're still sick..." she tried to make conversation.

Monet: Monet sat on the bed, facing Hepzibah, "Merci." She frowned, thoughtful, "You remember more then? Or should I re-introduce myself?" Oh what the hell, it could be fun. She stuck her hand out gingerly, "I'm Monet St. Croix. Mayhem's girlfriend."

Hepzibah: That actually made Hepz smile, very possibly a first for the two of them. "It's coming back - slowly but surely. I remember you, Mo... Monet." She was quiet for a moment. She had serious doubts Monet had come here to see her. "Sorry, Hec's gone off on 'business', I'm not sure where Mayhem is."

Monet: "I'm not sure either, actually. Which worries me, but I'm sure he's fine." She arched an eyebrow, "What shall I call you then? I heard tale that you're going by Jessica now. Very classic. Quite elegant."

Hepzibah: "Thanks, but it just Hepz now." she nodded a little surprised. Maybe she was remembering Monet more harshly than warranted? "It...That was my birth name. I stopped using it a long time ago." She sighed as Monet mentioned Mayhem. If she was sure Mayhem was fine - she hadn't met Karr.

Monet: "Why ever did you do that? And what made you pick Hepzibah?" She shook her head, some people she would never understand. "So how much do you remember then? Obviously you remember me because you very nearly called me Mo."

Hepzibah: She chuckled. "Yeah, I did. I can remember most things - details are a little sketchy. But I'm getting there." She was quiet for another minute. Hepz have nothing but painful memories attached to the name 'Jessica'. "Would you want to use the name given to you by a 'mother' who abandoned you?? The person who was supposed to love and protect you? " She didn't wait for Monet to answer. "I won't use it."

Monet: "I suppose not. But 'Hepzibah'? Such an odd name." She stood and moved back to the tray to pour some tea for herself. "Tea?"

Hepzibah: "If you've ever read Silas Marner - it fits." She smiled and stood herself. "Here, let me get that. You look like your dead on your feet."

Monet: Monet tilted her head, "The blonde girl raised by a strange man after her mother abandons her. That is fitting." She waved Hepzibah off, "No, I'm fine. Sugar or cream?"

Hepzibah: "Both...please," she nodded backing off and sitting back on the bed. She rubbed her bare arms and pulled her legs up to rest her chin on her knees. She didn't 'fit' in this body. Watching Monet, she tried to think of something to talk about. The two had never exactly been friends. Infact if her patchy memory was correct the last time she remembered talking to Monet, the other girl had called her a prostitute. That seemed like a life time ago. "So, any plans for Christmas?"

Monet: Monet fixed her cup of tea and passed it over before fixing one for herself. "That was part of why I came here. To talk to Mayhem about plans for the holidays." She sat back down and let out a breath. Standing for so long really was becoming a chore, but she was always one to push herself to the limits. "What about yourself and Hector? Are the two of you making any plans yet?"

Hepzibah: She took the cup with a nod of thanks. "I don't know what Hec has planned, but I'm not leaving this school. Hell, I may not even leave this room." She sipped hot tea. "Everytime I've stuck my head out the door of this place lately, the universe has bitch slapped me," she joked to hide how truly terrified she was of everything now.

Monet: Monet frowned, "Now, you'll have to leave the room at some point. Mayhem and I like time alone." She sipped at her tea for a moment. "It has bitch slapped you when you were with Mayhem and Pietro. Hector wouldn't let anything happen to you. If you stuck with him while going out, I'm sure you would be fine. And you don't have to worry about Pietro anymore. I know he was a major part of the problem."

Hepzibah: "I know, he's always had my back," she smiled at the mention of Hector. His scent permeated the air around her. It was one of the biggest reasons she hadn't ventured from his room since he'd left. She felt safe here. Her smile slipped some. "But Pietro wasn't the problem.... I mean he was - is...." she sighed and shook her head looking back down at her tea. "It's complicated."

Monet: Monet sipped her tea again then shook her head, "Of course he is. Or was, if you prefer. He's the one who made my boyfriend hate looking in the mirror. He also helped create Mayhem's...friend, if you would." She arched an eyebrow, "He also tried to come between you and Hector. He's a problem all around. He also helped turn you from the cat you were to the woman before me now. Rather, he did do that."

Hepzibah: Hepzibah's green eyes cut up at mention of Pietro trying to 'come between' herself and Hec. Just how much had Hector told her?? And what right did she even have to know?? She took a breath and gripped her cup a little tighter. She might need to talk to Hec about that later. But for now... "I'm not saying Pietro's blameless. But Magnus was the source. He manipulated Pietro." She thought back to her cell phone and the contact list. "He manipulated all of us. The man is... evil" 'Evil' didn't seem to do Magnus Maximoff justice, but it was the only word she could come up with.

Monet: "And that may be very well true. But Pietro did not have to succumb to the manipulations. Mayhem has told me about some sort of pain Magnus would inflict on Pietro if he didn't do as he was told." She sipped some more tea. "I, myself, would much rather go through any amount of pain than purposefully inflict it on the ones I love."

Monet: "Self sacrifice is the greater of the two options. And he obviously did not care enough about the two of you to sacrifice himself, now did he?"

Hepzibah: "I've seen Pietro endure that pain - still trying to defend me, Mo." Hepz looked back down at her steaming tea. "And in the end, he did sacrifice himself. I begged him to come with me when he told me about the escape plan. He wouldn't do it. Said his father would come after us if he left too. I didn't understand then; but now that my memories... he was right. Magnus was determined to get Pietro back. Mayhem and I were just bonuses."

Monet: Monet's eyes narrowed slightly, "My name is Monet. And no. He did not sacrifice himself. He's being smart. He knows that Hector and I will disembowel him and string him up from the nearest tree as soon as he sets foot back here for what he did to the two of you."

Monet: "I do agree with you on one point though, I believe his father would come after him if he left with you, but look around you, Hepzibah. He would be very safe here. The reason he wasn't before was because you ventured far from the grounds and we had a predator on the grounds. Pietro has no reason to not come back besides the threat of myself and Hector."

Hepzibah: Hepzibah's eyes narrowed in response. "Mayhem and I were the ones wronged Monet. Not you - or Hector. Or even Karr - truth be told." She smiled tiredly. "Yes, I know about Karr. And given that you're telepathic, I got to assume you do too." She finally set the cup down on the night stand. "It's not either of your place to decide what happens to him. I'm not stupid or niave. What Pietro did was wrong. I understand that, but he was just as much a prisoner as we were - his cage was just bigger that's all.”

Monet: Monet arched an eyebrow, "Oh, so if someone did all of this to Hector, you would be perfectly fine and not rip the person to shreds? After what you've already done to Mayhem's handsome face, I find that hard to believe." She crossed her ankles, "Yes, I know about Karr. I talk with him more often than Mayhem unfortunately."

Monet: Monet smirked a bit and took another sip of tea, "Keep telling yourself that, darling. You are more than welcome to believe what you will about your beloved Pietro. But Hector and I know the truth."

Hepzibah: She dopped her head and growled, "If someone did to Hector what was done to us. - I'd kill them all." She raised her head again, "But just because I would doesn't mean I'd justified in it, just angry. And you don't know 'the truth'. You have a few records from an abadoned lab. The truth is always far more complicated than it seems - and if you are as smart as you claim, you know that."

Monet: "My point exactly. You cannot condemn us for doing what you would do yourself." She arched an eyebrow again, "I have sketchbooks. Mayhem's account of the entire time. From Kraven to the end of Magnus. The records filled me in on a few blank spaces. Like who did what was done to you." She arched an eyebrow, "So, yes, I do know 'the truth'. You are in denial, but that's alright. You have to start somewhere with it."

Hepzibah: "I can and I would condemn you. Just because I would do it too doesn't make it right." She gave a self depreciating laugh. "Hell, Monet - if I would do it, you've got to know it's a bad idea!" She frowned again and sighed looking down at her human feet. "But you weren't there - half the time Mayhem wasn't there. Karr is telling the story as much or more than May."

Hepzibah: She wrapped her arms around herself as she thought about what might be in that sketchbook. "That book... did it... what did it have in there about expirements with both of us?"

Monet: "Everything he went through. There's even one with Karr... standing behind Mayhem. Almost like a looming shadow..." She sipped a bit more of her tea and got up to pour herself more. "There's not much that Karr could tell me that isn't in the books, Hepzibah. I don't think you understand that."

Monet: She poured the tea and turned back to her, "And I do not think you understand the severity of things from my eyes. And you can't. Because I won't tell you, so I don't blame you. But know this: what Pietro did was the worst thing he could have done and he will get what is coming to him."

Hepzibah: "Then what are you going to do to me?" Hepzibah stood up as well, facing Monet as the other girl turned back around. "If you don't want to maim me beyond recognition - then you don't know everything."

Monet: "I do know everything." She took a sip of her tea and stepped around Hepzibah to sit back down on Mayhem's bed. "Just what is it that you don't think I know? About the experiments Magnus did with you? You had no other choice if you did not want Magnus to come after Hector. And nothing happened."

Hepzibah: "Not with Mayhem, but there were others..." she whispered, close to tearing up. "Lots of others." She honestly couldn't remember all their faces even. They just all seemed to run together in one long continual nightmare. She didn't move from her spot.

Monet: Monet narrowed her eyes, frowning, "Why would I want to tear you apart for men who are not my boyfriend?" Merde. She did not know how to comfort people she didn't care about. But Hepzibah had gone through something very traumatic, just as she had. She sighed and stood back up, putting her hand on Hepzibah's shoulder, "It was awful, but it is over and no one blames you."

Hepzibah: Hepz was honestly surprised at Monet's comforting words. She looked over at her with a sad expression. "What about their girlfriends? The 'test subjects' themselves? Being pushed to the point of raping me wasn't the test, Monet - it was the 'reward'." Hepzibah took a breath and thinned her lips.

Hepzibah: "The things I made those poor bastards do..." she shook her head. It made Mayhem's legs look like day surgery.

Monet: "I'm not saying what happened to them because of you is any less horrible, you understand. But, at the same time, if you did not do it, Magnus would hurt Hector. You were keeping him safe by making those men do those things. If you truly cared more about those men than your boyfriend, you wouldn't have done it and no one would have been able to make you. All in all, you did the right thing."

Hepzibah: "Right or not - it's done now," she nodded. "It was an impossible situation. And we all just did the best we could. Now - we have to live the consequences." She sat back down on Hector's bed. "Pietro lost everyone he cared for. Hector has a girlfriend who clings to him like Saran wrap but can't bare for him to touch her. And you..." She looked at Mayhem's bed. "You get to date Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde."

Monet: Monet actually laughed at that, "Yes, it is kind of like that, isn't it? I feel insane myself when I talk to the Karr character." She moved to sit back down on the bed and couldn't stop the amused smile as she ran a hand over Mayhem's nearly naked bed. "You realize all of this would make for a very good movie plot? Maybe we should write it down and sell it to Hollywood."

Hepzibah: Hepzibah could keep from laughing herself. It really was an impossible situation and if any of them came out sane it would be a miracle. "I think you might be onto something! We'd have to peddle it as fiction or sci-fi though - no one would buy it as a 'true crime' drama.” She grabbed Hector's pillow off the head board and hugged it to her, taking in it's scent.

Monet: "Then we can use the profits to pay for all of the insane therapist's bills we're all certain to have." She curled up on her side on the mattress where Mayhem usually laid when they rested together. "Of course, we have to wait until you two are alright enough to recount things so we can retell it. Otherwise, there really is no plot. It would skip the most interesting parts."

Hepzibah: Her smile dampened a little. "I think it's going to be awhile before we're 'alright' again..." she laid her head on Hec's pillow. She watched Monet for a moment as she lay down. "You love him don't you?"

Monet: "Of course it will be awhi- What?" Monet was caught off guard by that question and not entirely certain how to answer it... "He loves me." A non-answer. Perfect.

Hepzibah: She laughed again and shrugged. It felt good to laugh. "It's all right Monet. You're secret's safe with me. Nobody would believe me anyway. Everyone knows Monet doesn't even like people. Let alone, love one of them."

Monet: Monet frowned. She didn't like being laughed at. "He is very dear to me, oui." She propped her head up on her hand and immediately regretted it when the room started spinning. Monet closed her eyes and put her head back down. "Mayhem is... someone I truly care for." Did she love him? Yes. And Mayhem knew that. That was all that mattered. "And I don't hate everybody, you know. I just think I'm better than everybody. There's a difference."

Hepzibah: "I'll keep that in mind, Ms. St. Croix," Hepz grinned, then sobered. "Why don't you just crash out here for awhile? May'll probably be back in a little bit." Actually she had no idea when or if Mayhem was coming back. She rarely saw him now; Karr had dug in as the dominant personality.

Monet: "No. Karr will be back in a little bit." She sighed, "He and I don't get along. We're far too similar, I'm afraid." Monet looked at Hepzibah critically for a moment, "I will probably kick myself later, but I wonder if you could give me some advice. Female to female."

Hepzibah: Hepz blinked. Monet wanted advice from her? She must be out of her mind with fever or something... "Sure," she nodded.

Monet: "You're not to breathe a word of this to anyone. Even that I asked you for advice. Agreed?"

Hepzibah: "Do you honestly think anybody would believe me??" But she nodded, "I swear, not a peep - not even to Hector." Though he seemed willing enough to share my secrets with you...

Monet: "Merci." She took a deep breath, "I don't know what to do with this Karr person. He's taking over Mayhem's life and with Karr in place, there is no need for me. When I tried to break it off with Mayhem, I couldn't tell him why... Karr doesn't want me to tell Mayhem about him. So obviously, we're still together because it was extremely unfair. Not that I want to be without him anyway, but that doesn't much matter."

Hepzibah: Hepz bit her lip, and thought for a moment. "With Karr in place, I think Mayhem needs you even more Monet. You're right, he's taking over Mayhem. Karr is...." She tried to think of the word to describe him, "powerful... almost addictive." She frowned. "But Mayhem created Karr - not the other way around. If the servant is allowed to become the master..." She let the thought trail off. "If that happens we might all lose Mayhem." She

Monet: Monet leaned over the edge of the bed and felt around for Mayhem's pillow, pulling it up to hug under her head. "Karr's purpose defeats mine. I am Mayhem's protector. Or, was anyway. He now has Karr to shield him and keep him safe." She stared blankly at the wall, "I'm afraid we've already lost Mayhem. It's just a matter of time before he's gone completely."

Hepzibah: "You think that's all you are to him? That that's the reason he's with you?" She shook her head. "If you believe that then you underestimate him... and yourself. Karr might protect him, but that's not enough. I really think Mayhem loves you. Hell - he'd have to put up with you. Either that or he was crazy a long time before Magnus got a hold of him." She toyed with the edge of the pillowcase. She hoped Monet was wrong about Mayhem being already lost - but in truth she wasn't sure she disagreed.

Monet: "I know he does. I have no questions about that." She rolled onto her back and looked up at the ceiling fan, lazily turning above them. "But Karr? He could very well hate me. And with that in mind, I'm not sure how to help Mayhem 'take over' as it were... Especially because when Mayhem is 'awake', Karr is there... Paying attention. Listening. While, when Karr is 'awake', Mayhem is sleeping. He has no idea of anything that happens when Karr is up front." She turned her head to look at Hepzibah, "I'm at a loss."

Hepzibah: "That would be a little bit creepy..." Hepz agreed laying down herself, grateful Hector still had all his marbles. Though he might be losing a few of them beating his head against the wall at her behavior since she got home. "You may just have to think of Karr as that pain-in-the-ass in-law everyone hates. Always poking his nose where it doesn't belong. Trying to break you up."

Hepzibah: She laid down herself. "You and Karr both have the same goal. To take care of Mayhem. It's kinda funny in a sad way. You're bitter enemies trying to accomplish the same goal." She tucked the pillow under her head.

Monet: "But he doesn't want us to break up. He got extremely mad at me when I said I was going to." She closed her eyes and held her breath against a sneeze she felt coming. When it had passed she opened her eyes again. "And how am I supposed to get rid of him without him starting another fight with me? He likes being the dominant one. You can tell by just talking to him. But he's not healthy for mon chat."

Hepzibah: "I know. Mayhem is broken." She thought back to her first conversation with 'Karr'. "Karr once told me that he was there because Mayhem couldn't cope. Makes sense I guess. Maybe if you could help him learn to cope... he just wouldn't need Karr anymore." Hepz frowned, wishing she could point to a solution and say 'that's it!' - but Mayhem's problem was complicated - the solution would be too.

Monet: "He is. Very broken. But no one expected him to come back whole. Traumatic experiences tend to break people." Monet covered her eyes with the heels of her hands, pressing against the constant headache. "I don't know how to help him cope. My methods of coping would break him more. He would become like me. I don't want him like me."

Hepzibah: "I don't know what the answer is Monet. I've never been smart about stuff like this." She stared for a moment as a distrubing thought crept up. "Hector brought me back after Kraven... Because underneath the feral, I was still me - scared and in pain, but still me. What if Karr is who Mayhem really is underneath it all - or at least who he has always wanted to be?"

Monet: "Then I've lost mon chat and there is no hope. Let us pray that isn't the case."

Hepzibah: Hepz nodded, and closed her eyes. "I will, Monet. For both your sakes."