V & V - Rageous Rageon Rise

Drew's Demise

Kid Ritz POV:

I close the bedroom door, and a weird feeling passes over me. 

Kid Ritz: "Don't mind the missing door handle. We... had to break it off with a knife to get to Ven. He was in... in the bathtub."

Dom: "Because of me."

Kid Ritz: "Yeah. Because of you."

Dom nods as he looks down. I show him what he needs to know before leaving him to do what he will. I go to the closet I once shared with Ven that... I guess I'll share with Dom now instead. It's not like these clothes are any of ours anyway... yet it still feels morally wrong and weird to be helping the one guy who has ruined my life. At what point will I be healed enough to forgive him? 

Hating him is beyond justified, but it also hurts me. Holding so much negativity in my heart weighs me down... 

I ignore my thoughts, put his change of clothes on the bed, and leave the bedroom to focus on Jewels. I have no idea when she's last eaten, and she's gotten pretty small from it. I take her to the kitchen and scour everywhere I can. There is no fruit. Feeling a bit worried, I sigh until I spy a potted plant in the corner.

I walk over, feeling the leaves to see that it's real. Hmm. If I had some seeds, I reckon I could try growing something. Maybe fruit for my baby.

Dom: "What are you doing?"

Jewels and I jump hard, her little squeak in terror hurting my heart.

Kid Ritz: "No manches, wey. You scared the hell out of me. I didn't even hear you walk up."

Dom: "I'm used to... well, I guess creeping around."

Kid Ritz: "Yeah. No shit. If you really want to know, Jewels here needs fruit for food, but... we don't have any."

Jewels: "oo"

She squeaks sadly, making my heart hurt even more.

Kid Ritz: "I noticed the plant and figured I could grow something with my water magic if I just got some seeds."

Dom looks at Jewels, then at the plant.

Dom: "That sounds like a smart idea."

Kid Ritz: "Really?"

I half expected him to tell me I'm dumber than a rock, but that's okay. At this point, I'll take any positivity.

Dom: "Maybe... when everyone is up, you can suggest a trip to the store. I'm sure seeds and stuff haven't been looted as much."

Kid Ritz: "It'd be risky."

Dom: "I can do the hard stuff, like going in. An... innocent monkey... shouldn't be added to the list of those I've hurt."

He says it quietly, his voice reminiscent of his monotone tenor. Yet... I think he means what he said.

Kid Ritz: "Alright. I... will make the suggestion tomorrow."

Dom nods, turning to walk away.

Kid Ritz: "Dom."

He stops and looks back at me again.

Kid Ritz: "This... is really weird of me to say, but..."

He keeps a straight face, which is still a little intimidating to look at.

Kid Ritz: "Can you tell if Veneer is okay? I saw him briefly in my dream, but I couldn't really communicate. I know how you've interacted with him and me in the past when you weren't with us physically, but I was wondering if you could do that sort of thing again. Maybe... maybe find him however you did before?"