[BAMF! You're in Rose's office.] (CRAP who let Emeril in here.) * Roseli leads Keiko into her office. It's a bit of a mess, as there's a bunch of clothes half stuffed in a duffel bag on the floor, and the couch against a wall has a rumpled blanket and pillows. Paperwork is all over the desk, though in semi-organized piles. On the sill in the back is a coffee maker, and there are shelves, though they're not exactly packed with books. * Roseli closes the door after Keiko walks in. "Sit down if you want." Options available: the couch, the chair in front of the desk, the chair behind the desk, the floor. * Keiko heads in and closes the door behind her, before returning both her hands to her duck. She shivers a moment before saying, flatly, "A hole. You tore a hole in her." She doesn't sit immediately. I know. * Keiko looks at her and hisses, "Why? Why did you tear a hole in her? There... there are better ways!" A small pause as she looks down, "I thought you might have been trying, but this..." * Roseli takes out a stick of gum and pops it in her mouth before going about folding the blanket. I know there are better ways. * Keiko steps forward and waves her duck at Rose. It's very nonthreatening. "Why? By..." she trails off and shakes her head. "No, I won't guess. Why?" * Roseli sets the blanket on one end of the couch, then has a seat next to it. She looks Keiko over, once again. Because if I didn't, she'd die. In one of two different ways. * Keiko is not in a dress for once, black t-shirt, jeans. Looks tired. "The politics." * Roseli shrugs. Life. Ten was a danger and a liability. She had to go. One way or another. * Keiko walks forward and leans on the chair, squishing her duck into the back. "I know. I know Ten was a problem. I always knew. But... she wasn't ready. She wasn't..." I know. I wanted her to reject Ten herself, or at least get her under control and eventually merge. Something this drastic runs the danger of her shutting down altogether or creating something in Ten's place. * Keiko closes her eyes and says quietly, "I... I wish I'd seen something this bad before. I could help her. I know I could. But that hole... it is jagged and..." she trails off and adds, "I wasn't sure if you were trying to help or not." It's my job. Do you want any hot chocolate? * Keiko shakes her head. "No." She takes a few shaky breaths. * Roseli smiles faintly. "Do you want to sit down?" * Keiko shakes her head again. "Maybe later." She squeezes her eyes tightly. "You tore a hole in her, but it hit all of us. Even Luana." I know. It had to be done. The alternatives were worse. * Keiko is silent a moment, then says quietly, "I could have helped. I can do something." * Roseli nods. "I didn't entirely trust you, And things got a bit out of hand. (, -> .) * Keiko replies dryly, "Nobody trusts me." She exhales slowly and looks back to her, saying in a more neutral tone, "I can still do something. I can try to heal the hole." How? (Oh please, like Keiko trusted Rose. She has no room to talk. :P) (Oh, she's not acting like they're crazy.) (It's sorta a fact of life.) * Keiko stands up and walks over to her, to whisper, "The hole is in her mind, not her body or her soul. I could try." * Roseli looks at Keiko curiously. "Perhaps, But I would like you to be supervised, by myself and Heinrick, at least. The last thing any of us need is additional problems. * Keiko blinks, then says slowly, puzzled, "You... would let me?" ( Tell me about it. It's been almost a year since we started this game and I've still barely scratched the surface of the plot. ) (Don't run games that require crazy people!) (Crazy people act crazy!) I doubt you'd want her to suffer more. Your distaste encompasses the guardians and likely the rest of the organization, but it doesn't seem to touch the other wards. And I doubt you like feeling a gaping hole in Jamie's mind any more than she likes having it there. * Roseli continues, firmly, "But you have to remember that Ten *was* Jamie. If we allow you to do this, I don't want you molding her into someone you can get along with; I want you to help her on her natural path." * Keiko is silent a moment, then says quietly, "There are a thousand paths she could take. A thousand thousand. As many as her dreams." Yes. And I'm fairly certain that, given enough time and effort, Jamie can heal herself. I'd be allowing you to help speed the process, not alter it. Do you think you can do that? * Keiko says slowly, after a moment of thought, "She'd need to be asleep. Even with what Heinrick and I are training on, it'll be draining." A small pause, then, "It wouldn't be fast. It might take a whole night. Or longer. And I... need to study." She bites her lip and pets her duck. You would have a little under a month until our next mission. Don't feel too pressed, but that is the deadline. I believe that, even without your direct help, she'll be far more together by the time she's called in. * Keiko is quiet for a moment, then replies, "It.... might be best to wait a little and see where she is going." She closes her eyes. "I hate waiting. I always hate waiting." * Roseli nods. Jamie needs time. I believe I know what you were doing in the rec room before I arrived, and while I understand, it's not going to work just yet. But you let her know you're there. That's good. * Keiko laughs weakly and turns away, going to sit in a chair. "Luana is there." * Roseli chuckles. "Luana is always there." ( She's not there now! ) * Keiko , once she sits down, slumps over and says, "She's better for it." She rubs the side of her head. "Luana's so..." she trails off. * Roseli nods, folding her hands. * Keiko just sits there, letting her breathing slow as she holds the side of her head. This takes probably 5 minutes, if Rose lets her! * Roseli lets her. She's not giving Keiko any further mental/emotional stress, at least. * Keiko finally says, in a flat voice, "You'll talk to Heinrick and let me know when you think she's ready. We'll both be very... very tired afterwards. So don't wait too long." * Roseli nods, unbothered by the change in Keiko's tone. "Very well." * Keiko puts her hand on the chair arm and stands slowly. "I... have to go. I have to eat before training again." Beat. "You're the warmest cold person I know." It might come as a surprise, but you're inability to feel me doesn't make me any less human. * Keiko looks at her. "You're cold even without that." She drifts over towards the door to leave. * Roseli doesn't seem particularly bothered by Keiko's statement, which is par for the course. "Good luck with your training." * Keiko is offered luck! Neat. And then she leaves to go get hit upside the head with a stick. It's very zen. (End it! END IT!) [End]