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Post by skyeknight on Feb 11, 2017 3:26:17 GMT
When Aqua came to her decision to go to the Seelie Court, it was before Namine was attacked by Vanitas. However, after the attack, the blonde was jumpier than ever. Even her own shadow could nearly scare her to tears. The faery did everything she could to make Namine more comfortable. Nothing she tried worked. She believed it was because she wasn't as close to Namine as others were so she invited Jane over to stay for a while because Namine was a little calmer around the woman. But even Jane had a life.
So Aqua also reached out to Omar, the one who had come to the police in the first place. She was pleasantly surprised by his readiness to drop by while she was away and check in on the blonde but she happily handed over a key. She had prepared enough meals to cover her three house guests while she was away. Omar may not have liked cops, but Aqua knew he liked Namine so that was reason enough for the faery to trust him in her home. Aqua also believed that Omar would have a better impact on getting Namine back to herself (albeit her timid and shy self but not so terrified).
Jane had stepped out to go check on her own apartment. Namine sat on the couch, listlessly staring at the wall. It was like she was in a trance. Barely sleeping. Barely eating. Vanitas had shaken her to her core. She thought she was safe now. She thought she never had to worry about getting hurt again. She had done everything right. She kept her head down. She never talked back to anyone. She certainly never gave anyone reason to dislike her and still... Vanitas had targeted her because of it. It scared her.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 11, 2017 4:24:44 GMT
Omar had been rather surprised at the fact the blue-haired faery-and a seelie faery at that-cop had actually dropped off a key to her apartment and told him to drop by anytime she was gone to cheer up Namine. Last time he and Aqua had dealt with each other, Omar was being arrested for a bar fight. A bar fight with Vanitas. Vanitas. That name boiled his blood. He'd taken the two most important people in Omar's life, and Omar had forgotten about one. Namine, his dear Namine. He'd been so busy getting to know his daughter he had forgotten all about Namine. It was a mistake he vowed to not make again in the blond's lifetime.
He knocked on the door of the apartment. "Namine? Honey? It's Omar. I brought cake" he didn't know what type of cake she even liked. But he had learned to bake over the centuries and had brought a general favorite with his kids when Jane had been young. Battenburg Cake. He figured the cubes of sweet covered in jam and frosting would make Namine a little happier. He fished out his keys an unlocked the door, coming inside and walking to where the blond sat. She looked terrible. "Honey? You alright?"
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Post by skyeknight on Feb 11, 2017 16:37:12 GMT
Namine jolted out of her trance almost violently. She turned, wide eyed and terrified to the sound of someone entering the apartment. Names died on her lips. Aqua - her more confrontation inclined roommate - was out of town. Jane - the loud and tough half troll girl - had gone out to check in on her apartment. Namine was alone. But she was stuck where she was. Her sheer terror of someone 'breaking in' had locked her in her place. She watched as the door opened to -
"O-Omar."
The utter relief was obvious in her voice. Aqua had told her that Jane would be staying at the apartment while she was away, not that Omar would visit. She bit her lip as he drew a little closer. She wasn't quite so scared now that she knew it was him, however, her heart was racing in her chest like a jackhammer. But even with all the fear coursing through her veins, she knew that Omar was safe. Safe to be around. He had brought the cavalry to come and save her and Jane after all, even sat with her while Sunshine treated her for her injuries. She hadn't been able to count on someone like that for a long time. Not since her mother...
"I-I-I'm okay."
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Post by Deleted on Feb 11, 2017 18:57:13 GMT
"You're not okay" he said flatly and walked the distance to where she was. He kneeled in front of her and touched her shoulder. "Honey, you're shaking like a leaf and are pale as a sheet. You're about as alright as I am properly human" He lifted up the cake and smiled. "Eat something, I swear it'll make you feel better. You just need some food and a little encouragement. You'll be right again in no time" he hoped.
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Post by skyeknight on Feb 11, 2017 19:10:08 GMT
Namine barely restrained flinching when he touched her shoulder. She knew she shouldn't have. Omar was safe. He wasn't like her father or Vanitas. Neither were Jane or Aqua but still, she had that sort of reaction over any physical contact. They weren't going to hurt her. She just had to keep telling herself that and maybe she would believe it. The three of them had been so kind and so understanding when even the police commissioner was getting frustrated because she hadn't come back in and there were drawings to be made.
"B-But I-"
She might have said that she wasn't hungry but her stomach gave a soft and impatient growl. The cake he brought did look good. And she hadn't gone to Nevermore since Vanitas grabbed her. She went regularly. It probably worried the staff she hadn't come in for nearly a week. It was a wonder Sunshine hadn't left a gift basket on their doorstep or something. But then again, from what she overheard of Aqua's phone conversations, Sunshine had her own worries.
"W-Will you have some with me?" she asked.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 11, 2017 19:51:05 GMT
"Namine" he said gently but firmly. "Namine you're terrified. Jane told me you've barely been eating. That needs to stop. I know it's a scary thing but you've got to survive past this. For me, kay?" he smiled when her stomach growled and stood up so he could go to the kitchen and cut the cake. It was probably not the healthiest dinner, but it was the one way he knew to make people feel better. It was light, buttery and was four cubes of cake held together with jam and frosting to make one long square tube. It was great and he'd used it after his kids came home crying about bullies. He cut the cake, one slice for Namine and one slice for himself, and walked back to her with forks and the plates. "Honey, I know it's scary, but you can't let this rule your life" he said gently as he offered her a plate. "Probably not what you want to hear, but it's the truth. You've got to rise above"
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Post by skyeknight on Feb 11, 2017 20:30:42 GMT
"I know," Namine whispered.
It was the one thing she did know. The fear was irrational. Vanitas was behind bars. Her father was never going to hurt her again. Aqua, Jane and Omar only wanted to see her happy and safe again. But she didn't feel safe. She had been following her usual routine, despite how many times Omar scolded her for going out late or walking home by herself. Vanitas had cornered her, he might have gotten away with it too if Jane hadn't been walking past the dark alley where he had backed her into and tried to intervene. The brunette had been so fiery and fought Vanitas tooth and nail, but he gave Namine one good slap and all the progress she made since she left her father was out the window.
She took the small plate with the cake from Omar. She was trying not to think about her father, but the demon had brought forth memories Namine wished she could forget. There were sometimes where she was envious of Shadow because he didn't remember. She bowed her head, but she didn't start eating yet. She honestly didn't have the appetite and was afraid she would't be able to hold the cake down.
"W-What if he comes back?" she whispered.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 12, 2017 0:00:21 GMT
Omar sat next to her and wrapped her in a big hug. "If he comes back we'll fight him off. I'll save you, just like before" He told her firmly and nodded at the cake. "Eat. You can't waste away like you are. I don't want to lose you, Namine. Not yet" She was human, he'd lose her eventually. But not yet. He wasn't losing her because some demon had scared her so badly she couldn't function. "You're going to be strong, and you're going to be happy again. I promise"
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Post by skyeknight on Feb 12, 2017 2:50:06 GMT
Namine swallowed thickly. She wanted to believe him. A large part of her did. He had come just like he said he would. He even brought the police - the very people he disliked - to come to get her and Jane. But a small niggling part was doubtful. She hadn't placed trust in anyone with her safety in a very long time. Aside from the police themselves who had saved her from one bad lifestyle and saved her again when Vanitas stepped up. But it was their job, so she expected it of them. But for someone to willingly protect her because they wanted to? She didn't imagine the strange troll who offered to walk her home to become someone she trusted so much.
She might have smiled at one point but she didn't. He tried to coax her to eat, but she didn't. It wasn't the first time she had heard that she should eat. Aqua had been happy to get broth in her at a few points. Fork in hand, she took a bite of the cake. It was sweet and had she been in a better mood, she might have actually really truly enjoyed it, but instead it felt heavy on her tongue, even as she chewed and swallowed. She wouldn't cry. She had dried up all her tears and was fairly certain she wouldn't be doing that any time soon.
"I don't f-feel strong," she whispered. "I've n-never felt..."
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Post by Deleted on Feb 13, 2017 22:51:06 GMT
Omar leaned back and looked at the ceiling. He took a deep breath, held it, and let it out. "Listen, Namine. I didn't used to be who I am today. I was a blacksmith from a small village in England. I was strong physically but...I let people have control over me. I didn't know I was a troll. Then I found out and my village turned on me. It shook me to my core" he paused, considered telling her about Davey, and decided now wasn't the time. "I was surviving, for hundreds of years. Not living. It took a century to realize I was more than what my village had thought of me, more than what I thought I could do. I was strong in my own way and I used that. It took a long time, I still don't see myself as that strong. But I'm getting there. So can you"
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Post by skyeknight on Feb 14, 2017 15:30:03 GMT
"But how?" Namine pleaded. "W-When Vanitas a-and..."
Her father. That had been it's own nightmare. Waking each day, hoping her father wasn't drunk or if he was he had already gotten to the point where he drank himself to sleep. Then the time she spent in Vanitas' hideout. Every little thing she did seemed to set the demon off. He only hit her the once, but that was enough for her to feel like she wasn't safe anymore. She didn't know how to take back control of her own life. Every time she thought she had some semblance of control, someone like Vanitas came in with a hammer and shattered her little glass wall of illusions.
"A-And people like him... when they..."
When they hurt her. She was on the verge of tears. Omar was strong. He could endure. But she had done her enduring and had been little rewarded for it.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 15, 2017 22:14:24 GMT
"You gotta forgive an do your best to find peace with what has been" he said gently. "You are stronger than you seem, an people will try ta take your strength away but if anything is worth something then you fight for it. You fight for it with all your heart. I have to fight for everything I have. And it's hard but nobody's gonna fight for me. I have to get up and swing the punch myself" She was on the verge of tears it looked like and he touched her face and rubbed his thumb over her cheek. "Honey, I don't know what to say except you have to keep trying"
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Post by skyeknight on Feb 16, 2017 2:24:07 GMT
"How d-did you do it?" she asked him.
Namine screwed her eyes shut. She could feel a knot twisting in her throat. She wanted nothing more than to forget. Ironic that she could control memories at her whim, but was too afraid to try, even on herself. Aside from minor accidents here or there, no one would have ever have known she could have done it in the first place. Omar was strong. But like he said, it took him nearly a century to let bygones be bygones. Namine wasn't allowed that luxury. She had a short human existence. Sprinkled with Other life.
He said what his village thought of him haunted him, long enough to keep him from being anything other than what they thought him as. Omar was centuries old, so Namine could only hazard a guess what sort of accusations they threw at him. Monster was first in her mind, but when she looked at him, she didn't see that. She saw someone she could trust and look up to... Someone who had fought against evil itself to protect her.
"H-How do you move p-past it?"
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Post by Deleted on Feb 16, 2017 18:58:47 GMT
He shrugged. "I faced my memories and I realized they were just that; memories. They didn't have any power I didn't give them. So I stopped giving them power" easier said than done. It had taken years to get to the point where it didn't bother him anymore. "I forgave my adoptive mother for abandoning me when I needed her, I forgave my village for trying to kill me. I had to, to be able to live. You need to look at your memories of whoever hurt you and say 'I forgive'. It's hard, really hard, but it's necessary" He paused at the last question and shrugged again. "I don't let doubts stop me. I just keep moving"
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Post by skyeknight on Feb 16, 2017 22:04:20 GMT
For the first time Namine could remember, someone actually cared about what happened to her. Her Seelie roommate hardly counted, because it was in Aqua’s nature to be kind. But the little blonde's heart sank. She couldn’t intrude on Omar like this. He had a daughter to worry about. Jane had been in the same situation as her, so the other woman likely needed Omar more than Namine could ever ask of him. She wasn’t related to him. Even if he fessed to thinking of Namine as fondly, it did not change the fact that Omar was not her father and her real father was nothing better than Vanitas. But what Omar was asking her to do was like telling her to paint the sky green. To forgive Vanitas and her father for hurting her? It felt near impossible. Unable to forgive, unable to forge, she was trapped in a vicious cycle and she couldn't break free.
"I-I'm sorry." She whispered.
For everything. For bothering him. For taking his time away from Jane. For the people who hurt him. For the way she couldn't just let this go. For how Vanitas and her father struck fear into her very core. For not being stronger. She wanted to be. She wanted to just forget all of this. To be happy and confident like Yang or Elsa.
"I j-just want to forget." She pressed on.
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