[h1][color=778899]A[/color]maryllis and [color=aba000]A[/color]licia[/h1][sub]Dredging Up The Past, Preparing For The Future[/sub] Considering the evacuated state of the city and all, Penrose Downtown Library, once an impressive Brutalist building with five stories full of books and bustling with children, students, and professionals alike, stood empty now. Their archives, where the rarest books had been kept, were emptied out, while the paperbacks on the main floor stood untouched, gathering dust as the months went on. The building, like many public facilities, was closed now, part of the western wall sundered by some magical attack from the rioters or the riot stoppers just last night, but as far as landmarks went, it was still easy enough to spot, easy enough to set as a meet-up point. Heels clacking against the rusted, snow-covered stairwell that formed the upper floor’s fire escape, Amaryllis walked up to the rooftop of the library, her temporary chain-prosthetic snaking around the railing. Her Sword was sheathed and her backpack, newly sewn up, hung over one shoulder. Unless Penrose’s misfortunate naming conventions screwed with her again, this should be the place...but at the same time, it would have been nice to meet in a proper Beacon facility instead. Reaching the top, the bespectacled girl, seeing no real reason to arrive transformed, leaned against a silent air vent as she waited for Alicia to arrive. It was interesting, seeing all of these places abandoned like this. Alicia moved past quiet stacks of books and through empties rooms almost like a ghost passing through history. One could almost imagine that mankind had gone extinct, wiped out by some virus or simply snatched off of the surface of the Earth. But that was not why she was here. So she walked on, headed up the stairs to the roof for the arranged meeting. Climbing the steps, Alicia soon emerged on to the roof. Like Amaryllis she was not transformed, though she lacked the backpack and the sword to go with her look. Almost by reflex her gaze drifted to the arm, before she forced it back whilst approaching the other girl. [color=aba000]”Hello,”[/color] she said. [color=aba000]”I’m glad to see you’re doing better, though I hope that wasn’t your dominant hand.”[/color] [color=778899]“I’m right-handed,”[/color] Amaryllis replied, waving with her flesh-one. [color=778899]“Though I [i]was[/i] wondering if Beacon’s got any healing facilities that I can, uh, take advantage of? I’m borrowing this from someone else.”[/color] Alicia considered the request for a moment before nodding. [color=aba000]”We should be able to do that. I know some of our medical resources are tied up with the Cardinal, but even if we don’t have everything I can call in what we’d need from one of the other branches.”[/color] It was the least she could do, considering what Amaryllis had done. It was too bad that she had been distracted by the sudden appearance of Eden and Mariette at the time to really see what had happened with the Monster Queen, but now she had another opportunity. Standing near the air vent, she turned to that subject. [color=aba000]”Still, I’m kind of surprised that you went for that option. You always seemed fairly cut and dry when it came to monsters the previous times we interacted.”[/color] [color=778899]“Thanks,”[/color] Amaryllis smiled. She rummaged through her backpack, before pulling out a box of caffeine-spiked chocolates. [color=778899]“Here, thought you might need it considering the whole thing.”[/color] Whether or not Alicia took the gift, the buxom girl responded to her statement with a shrug. [color=778899]“Horrors are horrors and monsters are monsters, but that one wasn’t a monster, was she?”[/color] The chains around the stump of her wrist rattled. [color=778899]“Everyone deserves a chance. Much to the chagrin of my Patron.”[/color] An eyebrow rose at the gift, but Alicia did not hesitate to take it. [color=aba000]”Thank you,”[/color] she replied in turn. This would help a lot, especially if things didn’t calm down. There was a slight tremble in her hands, but lacking any sort of infinite storage space she held onto the box for now. She couldn’t exactly argue with Amaryllis’ sentiment either. It was the sort of viewpoint that she espoused after all. [color=aba000]”True. It is easier said than done when that person is actively rampaging.”[/color] Still, there was no doubt that Amaryllis was aware of that fact and had been willing to pay the price. Her face fell, but for a brief moment. [color=aba000]”It’s hard to keep thinking that way, with everything that’s happened.”[/color] [color=778899]“That’s why I remind myself that, constantly.”[/color] Until it either became banal or inviolable. [color=778899]“But you hold more responsibility than me, so I guess it’s harder for you, huh? How’s the rest of Beacon taking it right now?”[/color] [color=aba000]“Hard,”[/color] Alicia replied as she gestured around the rooftop. [color=aba000]”This was something that doesn’t usually happen to Beacon; the planning and the scale of it made it as much of a shock as Justine’s bombing was. Some are scared, the Ascendancy is furious, and no one knows where it’s going to end up anymore. Initially the ascendancy was going to stick around until order was restored. But now? I don’t know when they’ll go.”[/color] [color=778899]“Yeah, can imagine that.”[/color] Amaryllis pulled her fingers through her bangs. [color=778899]“What’s the endpoint anyways though? As a matter of fact…”[/color] Her eyes narrowed then, and she turned out to look at the rest of the city. [color=778899]“...what’s even so valuable about Penrose, that so many of us are here?”[/color] Alicia followed suit, turning to face the city skyline beyond as she took a step towards the edge of the rooftop. [color=aba000]”The endpoint probably depends on who you ask,”[/color] she observed. [color=aba000]”I want to make a place where people are safe and can be the best of themselves, without judging just because they had the misfortune of being corrupted or a monster. Actions, not appearance.”[/color] A shrug followed. [color=aba000]”The Ascendancy wants peace and purity. Order restored and all darkness gone, however they have to do that. As for everyone else, I can’t say.”[/color] The following comment earned a small grin in turn as she considered it. [color=aba000]”as for why here, sometimes I wonder if there are girls in other cities right now wondering the same thing. But I don’t think there’s one specific answer to that either. Magical energy, schemes, rivals reacting to that scheming, and the like.”[/color] [color=778899]“Feel like peace is something that everyone wants,”[/color] Amaryllis mused. [color=778899]“But they also want to be on the winning side of ‘peace’.”[/color] She couldn’t say that, with the city as it was, she was against the Ascendancy either. Penrose couldn’t even really be considered a city anymore, not when so many residents were displaced and the ones that remained were at risk of being cut down or caught in the crossfire of magical girls and monsters alike. If she had taken a step off the path she had chosen, perhaps Amaryllis too would have concluded that twenty years of peace in Penrose was worth slaying every magical girl in the city. [color=778899]“How’s the monster queen doing, by the by? I’d have preferred she be free to go on her own way after purification, but I guess the White Coin doesn’t, like, work that way?”[/color] Alicia found it hard to argue with Amaryllis. That was what it seemed like. Understandable, even if it did make everything complicated. Turning to Hyun, Alicia could at least relax with the easier topic. [color=aba000]”She’s settling in. Still adjusting, but it hasn’t been that long,”[/color] she confirmed. [color=aba000]”We still have the traditional purification rituals and the like, but the Coin is imbued with a bit of our Spark, so recruitment is automatic.”[/color] A shrug followed, since there wasn’t much she could do about it. She hadn’t made the things after all. [color=778899]“Mm...suppose that’ll protect the girls from just getting recorrupted by their Patrons,”[/color] Amaryllis replied. She paused, frowning as the silence dragged on awkwardly. [color=778899]“Guess I’ll be expecting to see her ‘round town soon enough? Or will she be transferred somewhere less...volatile?”[/color] [color=aba000]”Haven’t decided yet,”[/color] Alicia admitted with a nonchalant shrug. [color=aba000]”We’re spread pretty thin, but it would be putting her up against former comrades. That could be a good or a bad thing.”[/color] After a moment she regarded Amaryllis out of the corner of her eye. [color=aba000]”Do you want to meet her? You know, deal with some of the baggage?[/color] Oh, and the arm biting thing. But that might be less important. [color=778899]“Former comrades...was she with PI? Or with Cindy’s people? And…”[/color] Another pause, more contemplative this time, before Amaryllis shook her head. [color=778899]“Naw, there’s no baggage to deal with. So long as Beacon fixes up my hand, yeah?”[/color] Realizing the lack of information, Alicia was quick to correct that deficit. [color=aba000]”With Cindy’s people,”[/color] she explained. [color=aba000]”Apparently she was just ‘on loan’ to the Independent for the events of the Rave. Then that song started and she went out of control.”[/color] That was how it had been explained to her anyway. The refusal was taken with all fairness as well. [color=aba000]”No problem. Just figured I would offer. I suppose this is the best way to get back in the action fast. Lord knows where the city will be in a week or two, much less a month.”[/color] [color=778899]“And can you even imagine a year from now?”[/color] Amaryllis laughed. [color=778899]“How many times would the world have narrowly avoided the end by then?”[/color] Alicia tapped her chin in thought, acting as if it was a much more serious question than it really was. [color=aba000]“Well, considering the previous track record we’ve had….I’d say at least ten, with a few extra plots that endanger just this city specifically.”[/color] Just thinking about it made things seem just a bit more ridiculous, didn’t it? Doing her best not to ruminate on depressing topics all the time, her hands collapsed together as she idly shifted in place. [color=aba000]“Well, I’ve got some plans of my own. Some direct action for a change, rather than just reacting to every threat that pops up when it’s almost too late to do anything about it.” [/color] Her eyes gleamed with determination, the inner fire stoked by her feelings and righteous anger. [color=778899]“So long as you set your kill switch off until it’s truly necessary. Drone strikes in the Middle East weren’t ever good publicity.”[/color] A bit too political? Maybe. Amaryllis brushed it off. [color=778899]“Where was Penny that night anyhow? What’s she up to these days?”[/color] Brushing aside the political comments for now (since Alicia had no intention of getting killhappy unless she was confident the ones she was going up against deserved it), she instead addressed Penny. [color=aba000]”Well, these days she’s acting as...I guess liaison would be the best word for it. She’s trying to control the people who used to be in Cindy’s group, keep them from adding to the chaos and all the fighting going on.”[/color] It was complicated, as things tended to be with her nowadays. [color=778899]“Working with Cindy’s people?”[/color] Amaryllis frowned, then spoke in a more hushed tone. [color=778899]“Does the Ascendancy know about this? Would they [i]approve[/i] of this?”[/color] Glancing away, Alicia’s answer was more noncommittal than she might like. [color=aba000]”I was told they would talk about it soon. I guess she’s waiting for the right moment.”[/color] She couldn’t say how it would turn out though, regrettably. Who knew how it would go with how things were these days. [color=778899]“Hopefully such a moment exists,”[/color] Amaryllis mused. Her fingers scraped against the links of chain around her wrist. [color=778899]“So why did you shoot Mariette?”[/color] [color=aba000]”So do I,”[/color] Alicia agreed. She didn’t want to see her friend Excommunicated, but none of them could take back what had already happened. They just had to live with the consequences, no matter how painful those might be. Faced with that, the subject of Mariette was almost a relief. It was a familiar anger to draw upon. [color=aba000]”Because she needs to be stopped,”[/color] was the Seraph’s succinct answer. [color=aba000]”Because she needs to be held accountable for her actions.”[/color] [color=778899]“I wasn’t active in Penrose back then,”[/color] Amaryllis replied, resting her elbows on her thighs. [color=778899]“What happened? I’ve heard of stuff like Justine and the bombing of the HQ, but…”[/color] It took a few moments for Alicia to organize her thoughts and work out how she wanted to present this. Once she had done so, she began her explanation. [color=aba000]”Okay, so when Justine was active Mariette worked with her by abducting girls for Justine to use in her grand ritual. This included Janet, who would be involved in that bombing. At some point they had a falling out and Justine tried to kill Mariette. At which point Mariette contacted me.”[/color] There was a shrug before she went on. [color=aba000]”Which is fair. I can’t blame her for following the route of self preservation. Mariette wanted Beacon to help her stop Justine before Justine got to her first. At the time she did seem like the bigger priority, so it seemed like a sensible deal.”[/color] Her frown deepened as she reached the main event. [color=aba000]”However, while the fight with Justine was going on she used the opportunity to take most of the girls she had previously acquired for Justine. Plus more items besides, though I have less proof mof that. But she gave us a list of the girls she’d taken, and none of them have returned home. That’s why there has to be justice.”[/color] Sure, her Patron may have played some part in that, but it didn’t seem like she had a problem doing what her Patron wanted. In a case like that, understanding was hard to come by. [color=778899]“Abducting normal girls? Or magical girls? And wait...Mariette gave you the list of girls?”[/color] The clarification was swift. [color=aba000]”Other magical girls. And yes. It was one of her bargaining chips to give us a reason to not just kill her right then and there,”[/color] Alicia explained. She still had that list, back in her office. [color=778899]“And the Patrons of all those magical girls didn’t do a thing about it either, huh?”[/color] Amaryllis frowned. [color=778899]“Did you get any chances to meet with Mariette other than the night before, Alicia?”[/color] [color=aba000]”Me? No, I didn’t. Too busy running astound playing damage control on Justine’s actions for my part, and I suppose Mariette was busy with whatever it is that she got up to those days too.”[/color] Alicia was honest with her answer, mostly because she wondered if there was something that Amaryllis was getting at, or if it was mere curiosity that drove her questions now. [color=778899]“Well, uh, as it turns out, I’m sorta maybe friends with Mariette? So long as you promise not to go at each other immediately, I wouldn’t mind arranging and mediating a conversation between the two of you.”[/color] Alicia winced as Amaryllis made her dilemma clear. Yeah, she could see how that would end up being awkward. Not that she held it against her, since it had already been made clear that she didn’t know what the girl had gotten up to before they met. [color=aba000]”Sorry, but after that stuff I just don’t feel like I can trust her.”[/color] Amaryllis sighed. [color=778899]“I think sufficient time has passed for people to change, but, I guess if you’re adamant about it, I won’t press it.”[/color] She paused, wondering how much more she could say. [color=778899]“Guess my advice would just be to like, not to go for the kill right off the bat? Revenge is a self-fulfilling prophecy n all. If that makes sense.”[/color] It was hard for Alicia to say that she wouldn’t. After all, Martiette was likely to portal away at the first opportunity if given the chance. Then she would be gone and everything would be back at square one. Still, she respected Amaryllis enough to at least take heed of her words. [color=aba000]”I’ll keep that in mind,”[/color] she agreed , even if she wasn’t sure how it would work out. [color=aba000]”Oh, I’ll send you a message on Glimmr when I’ve got the hand thing worked out.”[/color] That way they wouldn’t have to worry as much about the timing of meeting again. [color=778899]“I’d appreciate that,”[/color] Amaryllis nodded. [color=778899]“Think I’d best to head off now. I’m sure you’ll be busy trying to deal with all the factions popping up in Penrose too, eh?”[/color] [color=aba000]”Like you wouldn’t believe,”[/color] Alicia assured her with an exaggerated eyeroll as she stepped back towards the stairs that led down from the roof into the library. [color=aba000]”I’ll see you around.”[/color] [color=778899]“Hopefully not just when we’re stopping the end of the world.”[/color] Amaryllis smiled, paused, and then frowned awkwardly, before she too began to walk down the same staircase Alicia did.