[closed log] technically a witch, something of a trial

[edalyn]

Who: Eda Clawthorne & Malcolm Bright
When: Sep 12, backdated
Where: ADI HQ
Summary: Eda's in some trouble for blatant magic use and a brief rampage. She's getting a talk about not doing that again.
Warnings: References to all her people being (she thinks) dead back home + likely touching on some severe depression

Eda isn't having a good day, to put it extremely lightly. She wasn't having a good day before she was being marched into an ADI building at taser-point, but it certainly isn't helping.

On the other hand, the guards are starting to realise that the tasers aren't strictly necessary. Eda might look rather scarier than usual, but she isn't resisting. In fact, she's barely responding. Aside from an emphatic comment towards Raine to stop trying to defend her, Eda's hardly said a word since being told to go with security on no uncertain terms.

She does, however, look much less human than they're used to. Normally the main giveaway that she's anything other than a rather striking middle aged woman is the pointy ears. Today, though, there's no mistaking her for human. She stands taller than usual, over seven feet--at least if she weren't hunching in on herself. This is at least partly due to the bird-like legs ending in large taloned feet. Most noticeable, though, are the owl wings. The feathers and black scleras don't help much either.

While she certainly isn't the only obvious non-human working here, she's getting more than a few looks. But then, some of those are due to the security detail--or perhaps coming from people who saw her chasing another witch around the compound while screeching like a hawk.

She continues to be mostly non-responsive as she's lead into what she vaguely recalls being one of the same rooms she was taken to as a new arrival. She doesn't object to being left here, and barely listens to the warning that the guards will be staying outside the door.

By the time anyone arrives to speak with her, she's just sort of slouched over the table she's sitting behind, idly scratching patterns into the surface with her claws. She doesn't look up.

Comments

[abrightboy]

Malcolm sits across from her, setting the file on the table in front of him.

“Hi Eda,” he says gently, in a bid to grab her attention. “You look striking today,” he compliments.

[edalyn]

Her ears twitch a little when he comes in, but she still doesn't seem inclined to pay attention. "Yeah, I'm aware exactly how hot I am," she agrees, still without actually looking up. "And I guess that everyone else's problem now." The quips come from habit, but she mostly just sounds tired.

After another brief pause she finally glances up. Oh, someone she knows. She's not sure if that makes this worse or better. "Look, if you're gonna put me down just do it already, don't beat around the bush." She's... probably joking. Hopefully. It's hard to tell.

[abrightboy]

Everyone else’s problem? His brow creases faintly. “What do you mean, put you down? That’s not what I’m here for; that’s not what I do.”

[edalyn]

Eda snorts quietly and mutters something that might be coward. Does she actually think you should solve all your problems with murder? No, but it's more or less what she expects from authority and she's having a day.

She finally sits back in her chair, shifting her wings behind it and then kicking it back to put her feet on the table. They have very large talons at the moment, but it's unclear if that's any sort of threat or if she's just acting the way she normally does regardless of shape.

"Then what are you here for? I'm not feeling chatty." She still sounds more tired than snappy. The black scleras go a ways toward making it less obvious, but it's probably possible to tell she was crying earlier.

[abrightboy]

"If not wanting to kill you for existing makes me a coward, get me a big 'Coward' name tag," Malcolm tells her. "I'll wear that. Gladly."

He leans forward slightly, leaning on his elbows.

"Eda, I know ADI told you what can happen to people who use their powers here."

[edalyn]

This gets a faint snort. It depends on whether he doesn't want to... or just doesn't want to do it himself. She normally likes Malcolm fine, but that doesn't mean she trusts him at the moment.

"The avatar part, or what they'll do to us?" The first one is a concern, depending on how true it is. Whether it really is as simple as power corrupts here or that's just the approach the ADI is taking. But she has to wonder about that. The second one is the more pressing concern, but mostly in the sense that she knows she fucked up by using her powers in front of them.

[abrightboy]

“Either? Both? The Avatar thing can really happen. I’ve seen it happen to a really good person. And if it comes to that, the ADI will step in. They cannot let Avatars keep propagating beyond their ability to deal with them. Do you understand the danger? And I don’t mean to you. I mean to everyone.” Malcolm explains.

[edalyn]

She's curious about that first part, or at least normally she would be. As for the danger to 'everyone' well... she certainly doesn't want a second apocalypse on her hands. But right now she feels numb.

"Yeah, magic bad. Look, it won't happen again and no one was in any danger. Least of all Raine, if anyone had actually stopped to listen..." She knows it looked bad, but still.

"If I am just getting a slap on the wrist are we done here?" She wants to be alone, or maybe alone with Raine. She really isn't in a talkative mood.

[abrightboy]

“No, I’d like to hear the part that nobody stopped to listen to,” Malcolm tells her.

[edalyn]

Eda huffs slightly and looks away. On the one hand, she was complaining that no one was listening, but that doesn't mean she actually wants to talk.

"Look, I was just... I was upset with Raine. Over what is none of your business. None of anyone's business if they're not from our dimension." Should she talk to someone? Probably, but that should be up to her.

"I just needed them to talk to me and they weren't so I--cornered them about it. That's all I did, that's all I was trying to do. I wouldn't hurt them. And then... they talked to me. We talked it out." She shrugs, still not intending to give more detail on what they talked out.

"But your guys didn't care that we were already all snuggled up having a peaceful conversation. Or that Raine said it wasn't what it looked like."

[abrightboy]

"They're not 'my guys'; you're 'my guys'," Malcolm points out to her. "If you were snuggled up, what made them think something nefarious was going on?"

[edalyn]

The first bit gets a little snort. She wants to believe that, but she isn't convinced right now.

"Cause I looked like this?" She shrugs and flares her wings out a little. "Or 'cause the yelling and all had been a bad look. Then again... if it was really about Raine's safety they wouldn't have gotten rough with 'em for trying to stand up for me.

And it's brief, but he might notice that this is the first flash of genuine anger she's shown, rather than just exhaustion and general resentment. She may have been yelling at Raine, may feel bad for scaring them, but no one is allowed to hurt them.

[abrightboy]

"Did you use magic?" Malcolm asks her. "Did you demonstrate magic?"

[edalyn]

Now she's back to irritated, because she feels patronized and that is, unfortunately, one of the quicker ways to shut down a conversation with her.

"Yeah, we've been over the part where the wings are new," she grumbles.

"Which is why I said it was actually about looking like this. Never said I didn't fuck up on that count. But they still acted like I was about to hurt someone without paying attention to... anything, when they got there."

And whether it's fair or not, being treated like that specifically for using, well, wild magic? That presses all kinds of buttons right now. The kind that make her loathe to trust humans or governments and most of all both.

She might have been perfectly friendly every other time they've met, but she's wary and miserable in a way that's brand new.

[abrightboy]

“I mean other than that,” he explains. “Do you feed an Entity on a regular basis or was this the first time?”

[edalyn]

He seems like the type who'd probably catch a direct lie... so she doesn't go for a direct one.

"I was able to protect someone back in Wolf Pen. Best I could figure out it was probably because it scared those white things." It's true, though she doesn't specify who just in case of getting him in trouble for not reporting her at the time.

"Didn't expect it to work then, and I didn't expect this to work now... but Raine hadn't seen harpy mode. Guess it scared 'em, or maybe just having to talk to me did." She shrugs. Her tone is tired, but she's definitely hiding how bad she feels about that bit, because it's really none of Malcolm's business.

"Look, I don't want an apocalypse any more than you guys do." And that, at least, is very true. One's enough.

[abrightboy]

“I believe you, but I also know how hard it is not to use those powers, and that’s where the ADI’s concern lies. They’re going to let you go, but they’re also going to assign someone to you for the next 48 hours. After that, they’ll still be watching for a couple of weeks. Any further… violations and the penalty will be greater,” he tells her.

[edalyn]

Eda is just as glad he didn't press the subject, but she still wrinkles her nose a little. "I don't need a babysitter," she grumbles. "But whatever."

She still feels numb enough that it doesn't really matter what the ADI does.

[abrightboy]

"Please don't provoke them," Malcolm requests.

[edalyn]

"Don't worry, I'm not planning to make it that easy to get rid of your local witches."

Sure, Malcolm might or might not be on her side, but she wouldn't be surprised if some of the others tried getting her to misbehave as an excuse.

[abrightboy]

"Thank you," he tells her. "It's you that I'm worried about." He tilts his head towards the door. "You can go now."

[edalyn]

"Yeah? Finally." She yawns, and it's unclear if that's meant to make a point of her boredom or to show off the many sharp teeth. Possibly both. Or neither--she really is just exhausted on many levels.

She takes her feet off the table, stretches for a moment, and gets up. She might be a little surprised there wasn't more prying into why this happened--or what's wrong in general--but it's not like she wants to share.