(open) strength be granted

[decrypter]

who: Helena Adams and open!
what: November catch all log. Prompts in comments below.
when: 11/2022
where: Across the ship.
notes: Will match format.

Comments

[ossie_oswald]

Ah, [ Oswald shares a glance with Giles, ] I was not aware that you and Ms Peters were roommates. This is... well, it's not an especially pleasant manner of business. To put it gently, a matter of Erin's past was... divulged by our captor. Publicly. Wrongdoing she had previously committed, in her own world. Er-

[ A gesture at Giles, because his sense of decorum won't let him speak plainly here. ]

[ring_for_giles]

[ Giles spends a long moment thinking, debating how to approach this, before he ultimately lands on a quiet simplicity. ]

Among other things, the Captain called her a slaver.

[decrypter]

[there's a moment of quiet there, passing between all three of them. she's beginning to think the captain is a mercurial creature at best. polite one moment, then terribly, horribly cruel another. why seems to be beyond her. but even more than that, there's the information that's been dropped into her lap like a handful of bloodsoaked rags, foul in scent and an odd weight.

what is she supposed to do, knowing this? is she supposed to brush it off, to say that it doesn't slide a needle under her skin to know it? is she supposed to reject the woman entirely, cast her aside when she's been helpful and kind, when she cared enough to keep Helena safe?

no, no, she can't be expected to instantly decide. that's unjust, it's too cruel. plenty of emotions flit through her expression, confused and troubled and unsettled, wishing if anything to know why such a thing came up at all. she can't reject the feelings that well up in her, but nor does she want to open her lips and condemn without more than the shrapnel thrown into everyone's chest.

when she finds her words, she settles on a different line of questioning.]

...Why would she send me to find you, to tell me that? Why are you the best to ask?

[another angle of perceiving the situation.]

[ossie_oswald]

Because, I suspect... we are also from a world where... Liz Malloy existed. The Pearl-Eyed Pirate. The version of herself that Erin Peters buried.

[ Ossie idly plinks out a few harmonious notes- something to occupy his hands while he gathers his thoughts. ]

There are sufficient differences that I don't believe we're from the same world, no, but the fact stands that there was a Liz Malloy in our world and she hurt people. Which I will admit, I have been chewing on. Rather rummy, and I'll admit to not having all my thoughts on the subject in the one heap, dear girl. But I suspect she asked you to find me specifically because...

[ More tinkling notes. It starts to sound like the beginning to Claire de Lune, and quickly he runs his fingers further down the keys. ]

We share a faith, of sorts. One that preaches rebirth. Renewal. Not as a Baptist washes away sins, but as the seed turns to flower. I do believe that Erin Peters is doing everything she possibly can to atone for what she's done. And I have to believe that everyone deserves the chance to start again.

[ And then gestures to Giles, for his part. ]

[ring_for_giles]

If their faith is in renewal, then mine is in accountability and knowing your enemy. I could tell you in detail all of the things the version of her that existed in our world did, the reasons her name alone was enough to strike fear into the hearts of any who heard it, but I doubt you will gain anything from it, and it is not my story to tell.

[ Giles breathes a slight sigh, rising from his seat near the piano to instead stand behind Ossie. He rests one hand on Ossie's shoulder, grounding himself with the touch before he continues ]

The fact of who she was and what she did cannot be erased, but there are measures in place to ensure everyone's safety should she return to that which she has forsaken. Having spoken to her both with and without the knowledge of who she used to be, I am reasonably confident that it will not come to that.

I hesitate to speak in her defence, but she is not hiding from what she has done, and she is doing what she can to be a better person, and that is as much as can be asked for here, forever distanced from the people she hurt.

[decrypter]

[she nods, knowing they'll see it, letting quiet and Ossie's piano playing fill the gap for the moment. no wonder Erin had said they'd be the most impartial sources. slowly, she rolls her cane in her hands, trying to think and add this information into her perspective. renewal. forgiveness. accountability. safeguards - good, thinks a voice very softly in her core. it's a lot to take in - and perhaps she doesn't want that story, compared to others.

the truth is always something Helena's going to seek out, strive for. but things like this need to be earned. not thrust out in public to do little but hurt someone with that revelation. it's an ugly sort of thing for an ugly sort of fact. it's something she can't un-know, can't pretend it won't be in her head. can't deny that it is going to make it so much harder to trust.

she wants to believe people deserve good things, and compassion. but. but, but, but.

finally, she speaks again, more hesitant.]

Is it...do you think it's okay, if I don't know what to do about it right now?

[maybe she should have an answer, be able to come to some intelligent conclusion, but she can't. not tonight. not when the newness of her own arrival still leaves her feeling awkward and adrift.]

[ossie_oswald]

Perfectly okay, [ Ossie's voice is gentle and reassuring, soft enough that he stops the piano playing to not have to raise his voice over it, ] you don't have to have it worked out right this very moment. You're free to discuss it with us, or spend some time mulling it over, whatever you'd like, but it is a tricky situation. It's alright, Helena.

[ring_for_giles]

You don't need to know what to do with it, or what to think. That clarity might come with time, or it might not. It's a difficult situation that nobody asked to have thrust into the foreground, but now that it has all there is to do is the best you can.

[decrypter]

[she nods again, the cane halting in its movements. a little more settled, even though she's still unsteady.]

Thank you. And I'm truly sorry, for appearing out of the blue and accosting you with these questions without any prelude. You barely know me, yet you've been terribly kind.

[it feels important to say. to thank them for their time, when it wasn't owed to her.]

[ossie_oswald]

Not at all, not at all. You needed answers, and we happened to have them. And I imagine it would be more pressing when it's ones own roommate, too. You do let us know if there's anything else you need, yes? I'm without a roommate presently, in case you come to the conclusion that you need somewhere else to stay, for instance.

[ Giles can probably feel the feathers from how hard Ossie's mother hen-ing. ]

[decrypter]

I appreciate your kindness in offering. Right now, it might be better to stay where I am, but should something come up, I'll let you know.

[and now, she can't help but shift, and seem a little embarrassed because something else has come to mind - something highly important. there's someone in this room she demanded difficult replies from, and he doesn't even have the courtesy of her name.]

...I said all that, and I neglected to introduce myself. My name is Helena Adams, Mr. Giles - thank you considerably for your patience.

[ring_for_giles]

[ It's only the fact that he's already grounding himself with a hand on Ossie that stops Giles from stiffening. He'd barely noticed the manner of address the first time, but that was only because there'd been far more pressing things to contend with. ]

Not a problem at all, Helena Adams, hopefully the next time we meet it will not be under such difficult circumstances

[ He pauses, takes a breath, his hand tightening almost imperceptibly on Oswald's shoulder ]

And... No 'Mr' if you would, I prefer to be known simply as Giles.

[ossie_oswald]

[ A hand drifts up to rest on Giles', offering quiet comfort. ]

It's really no trouble, as Giles says. We'll see you around, yes? You ought to come by for tea at some point.

[decrypter]

It'd be an honor. Please let me know when you'd feel up to it, so that I can bring something to contribute to the table.

[the food here might manage itself, and she can't cook, but she can figure out how not to show up empty handed. manners are still maintainable even here.]

[ossie_oswald]

Very kind of you, but please, you only need to bring yourself and your appetite. Anything else is entirely up to you.

[ A small, fond glance up at Giles, and his thumb brushes the backs of Giles' knuckles. ]