Ain't it fun? Living in the real world

I have seen what the darkness does, Say goodbye to who I was

        "Morrig- Moggers?" Why did it feel like all the oxygen had left the room? Jupiter felt as though he'd been punched in the gut and then shoved off a cliff.

        "I go by Raven currently, Elder North," Morrigan -no, Raven- stated.

         If Jupiter were to have been looking, he would have seen Liyan's raised eyebrow. "You two know each other then, I presume?"

        "We- We've met," the young wundersmith said after a small voice crack. She cleared her throat. A hand rose to the side of her face that wasn't covered by the mask, and she rubbed at her eye.

        "Well then, I'd like to consult with these two now," Liyan said, nodding towards the door.

        Holliday was the first to respond. "Thank you for your time, Liyan." She rose from her seat and strutted to the door. Chanda was the second to leave, grabbing Jupiter by the arm as she walked past. She hoisted him out the chair and dragged him to the door. His eyes rested on the scarred and masked figure sitting next to Liyan. She looked as though she were trying to make herself smaller, or disappear into the chair. He was finally forced to look away as they turned the corner. Jupiter felt strangely dizzy, and he shook his head in an attempt to clear it. Logically, he had known Morrigan would have grown up since being kicked out of Nevermoor six years ago. He just hadn't expected her to be this... rough? Punk? Quiet? None of the words quite fit. She'd joined a society known for taking people away from situations they might not have otherwise gotten out of. Morrigan's skin was marked with scars and tattoos. She'd healed a stab wound for goodness' sake! When she was still living in Nevermoor, she had always been pretty easy to read. Witness or not, Morrigan was never great at ignoring or hiding her feelings. But now? Now, with the silver mask and her unnervingly flat expression, he didn't know what she was feeling or thinking. Didn't know how she felt or what she was planning to tell Liyan.

        He was just going to have to wait next to Chanda and Holliday in the foyer of the building. Speaking of her, Jupiter felt a squeeze on his hand and looked up to see Chanda holding his hand. She smiled at him and pulled him onto the couch next to her. "You okay?" she whispered.

        Jupiter shrugged, and she squeezed his hand again. As they waited, Holliday tapped her foot against the floor, a noise that seemed to echo through the wooden hallway. Finally, the door to Liyan's study opened and the three walked out, Liyan in the lead.

        Liyan held out his hand to Holliday. "Looks like you've got yourself a deal then! We just need to finalize some of the paperwork, and I'll announce the partnership as soon as that's done!"

        Chanda leapt to her feet and beamed at him. "Thank you for saying yes to this Liyan. All of us are looking forward to what opportunities this partnership may bring."

        Liyan chuckled and said, "The same goes for us, Chanda."

        Jupiter managed a smile and nod, all the while his eyes straying to the wundersmith leaning against the hallway wall. He nearly jumped out of his skin as someone next to him coughed. Alec had managed to sneakily approach. When Liyan looked at him, Alec uttered, "Permission to return to recon, sir?"

        "Permission granted." He turned over his shoulder and called out to Morrigan/Raven. "You can go back to sparring to, Rae. Try not to get stabbed!"

        She nodded, flashed him a smile, and stalked off into the shadows, leaving Jupiter feeling confused and lost with more questions than answers.

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