006 [Visual] No Torches & Pitchforks.

[valaunbound]

Vala knows she has to say something regarding recent events, but apologies aren't quite sitting right with her. If she apologises for Qetesh's actions, then she's accepting the responsibility for them aswell, and as she's struggling with the guilt enough as it is. She stares at the closed tablet for a while, contemplating how or even what to say, if anything at all. When she switches the tablet to visual mode, she's clearly masking any emotion and delivering the abortion of an apology/explanation with as much detachment and denial as she can manage. It ends up coming across as cold and defensive.

"Just to make it quite clear, that delightfully pleasant evil bitch that many of you had the pleasure of a few days ago, wasn't me. So if you were thinking of attempting any kind of revenge for her actions, I'm not the woman you're looking for. Thank you...

Uh... over and out."

Comments

[visual]

[likeajoan.livejournal.com]

As much as that is... possibly the worst attempt at a 'sorry' that Buffy has ever had the displeasure of witnessing, she can very much empathise with Vala's situation. Being out of control of one's actions, and then having to live with the memory of it... the memory of hurting people, the crushing guilt? She knows it well-- god knows she had to deal with it when Spike got his soul back. She's thankful the Buffybot was at least a harmless (or as harmless as these things can be) perversion of herself. She answers in an even, reserved tone of voice. The bruises on her face are already fading fast.

"It's okay, Vala. I understand that it wasn't you... Nobody's blaming." A pause, and then in a slightly lighter manner, but at the same time oddly steely in its flippancy, she adds. "And if anyone tries get all ill-advised caped crusader on you, I'll personally smack them down."

[aesthetic_mojo]

Charlotte watched the display with a small frown, uncertain what to make of it. It hadn't taken long for her to figure out that whatever the kitten threatening thing was, it wasn't the pleasant woman she'd spoken to on her arrival. She just had no frame of reference at all about what it was.

"Does that sort of thing happen to you often?"

[valaunbound]

"You do?" Vala's eyes shift skeptically, she can honestly say she really wasn't expecting that response, maybe she'd hoped. There's a long pause before she says anything else.

"No. That really won't be necessary, Buffy." Vala has no idea how to respond to this, she's staring at the bruises she caused and Buffy's offering to defend her? "If anyone does, then I'll deal with it somehow."

"You're okay though?" She asks hesitantly after a moment.

[valaunbound]

"Not usually, no." Vala replies cautiously, knowing there's no guarantee it won't from now on. After a few moments of awkwardness, she decides that a little explanation might be politic. She continues, albeit subdued and as removed from the memories as she can muster.

"I spent seven years as an unwilling host to her. Qetesh is a Goa'uld, a small snake-like creature. A symbiote. She was removed and killed, I have no idea how she managed her encore."

[likeajoan.livejournal.com]

"Yes. I do." Buffy replies, firmly, because it's pretty obvious that Vala's less than convinced. "I remember my recent Ditzatron 3000 episode- and I remember how I felt afterwards. And... I know what it's like to hurt people and have no control over it."

She just nods in response to Vala's answer, dropping the issue- though she would still be prepared to tackle any vigilantes, with permission or no.

"Pfff, I'm fine. Been in way worse fights than that." She waves a hand dismissively, before asking, a lot more carefully. "You?"

[aesthetic_mojo]

"Seven years is a very long time." Charlotte managed to convey only sympathy, not any of the curiosity she felt. That could be dealt with another time, in person. "I'm noticing a lot of strange things going on around here. Grown men becoming little boys... Of course, that's much less of a reach."

[valaunbound]

"Okay." The vaguely disbelieving reply comes with a smile that isn't exactly natural, honestly she thinks hatred would be easier to accept, at least that's something she's dealt with before, she knows how to deflect that. Whilst Buffy thinks she can relate, Vala doubts that she's slaughtered tens of thousands, but that's a story for... well for never, really.

"That's good then, I'm glad," Vala smiles again, placatory and dismissive. "And I'm absolutely fine."

[valaunbound]

"You'd be amazed how time flies when you're having so much fun," Vala responds cynically, her words edged with bitterness under the affected light humour. Handling the whole thing by denial is the only method she knows.

"Seems my theory of them waiting for us to go mad and start killing each other, wasn't so far off the mark after all." She snorts a laugh at Charlotte's joke, despite not really getting it.

[aesthetic_mojo]

"Oh, believe me, I know. My childhood just flew on by, really. A laugh riot." Not that her cushy childhood quite compared to being possessed for years, but she did get the principle. She knew there wasn't much she could to make anything better beyond not making too big a deal out of it all. It was over now.

"Not far, no. It looked like people were pretty quick to try and stop you...her, which is good. Could have just let it go, let her take over." Not that Charlotte would have sat still for that, but she knew she was second string.

[valaunbound]

"Well quite. Hopefully if it did ever happen again there'd be fewer amateurs eager to queue up for their chance though. There weren't any prizes being handed out to those who could last longest in the ring, after all."

And that was Vala's subtle way of publicising there might be a repeat performance, who's to say? Clearly events here were as unpredictable as the melée of endless arrivals.

As grateful as she'd be for Charlotte's intention to play down the affair, her social etiquette skills aren't so well versed as to return the favour. Besides, it's a convenient subject change. "And they say our childhood should be the time of our lives, at least I think that's what they say."

[likeajoan.livejournal.com]

As somebody well-versed in telling people she's 'okay' and 'fine' when she's everything but, Buffy can clearly recognise the signs of evasiveness coming from Vala.

"You don't have to lie." She says, simply. "But I understand if you don't want to talk about it."

[valaunbound]

"Right then," she seems a little taken aback by the no frills straight-forwardness. Despite the option here to just agree, Vala decides disputing it would still be best. "But really, I'm fine. I've been through worse, and come out of the other side intact."

[likeajoan.livejournal.com]

She takes that as her cue to stop trying. Honestly, in Vala's place, she would in all likelihood do the same. It's probably clear from a certain weary knowingness in her expresion, though, that she's unconvinced by the act.

"Okay. Well... take care."

[valaunbound]

Vala's relief that the questioning has subsided is clear in her smile. "You too, Buffy."

As an afterthought, it occurs to her that she never enquired as to how Buffy's injuries were holding up, or how bad it was. That's what you're supposed to do in these situations isn't it? She makes a move as if she was about to correct her faux pas, then decides better of it and the gesture melts away unfinished. Oh well, she's glad she missed that part out, really. She'd rather not know.

[Voice]

[cane-n-vicodin.livejournal.com]

You're apolgizing?
Come on! That was the most hilarious thing I have ever seen.

[valaunbound]

Yes, it was hilarious wasn't it. Sorry to disappoint, but there won't be a sequel. [okaay what the hell is he on?]

[cane-n-vicodin.livejournal.com]

The part about being a God was. [Vicodin!]

No one in their right mind would ever believe that.

[valaunbound]

I agree, now I'm back in my right mind I no longer believe it. [Earth idioms - she doesn't always get them]

[voice]

[fudgingkillyou.livejournal.com]

Yeah, tell that to my broken ribs. [Comes Dean's squeaky voice. He's back in his thirty-year-old mindset, but he doesn't know for how long. It's been switching a lot.]

[valaunbound]

[Vala has no idea who this is, they took her tablet off her while she was still Qetesh, so she's not up to speed with events. She doesn't remember hurting a child. Oh God - has she really hurt a child? And if she's forgotten him, who else has she forgotten about?]

I'm so sorry. [for the first time she sounds genuinely grief stricken]

[fudgingkillyou.livejournal.com]

[Hoo boy, that was unfair, Dean. He doesn't realize that she doesn't realize who he is. Not that he's forgotten he's little, he's just assuming, and we all know what happens when people assume.]

Yeah, well. See if I ever hit on you again. [... Which sounds odd. And Dean's not too angry, because he knows what happened. Possession sucks.]

[valaunbound]

...? [What? What the hell?] I'm going to say that's proobably a good thing.

[It's really true what they say, they do grow up too fast these days! Either that, or she's hearing voices - after what's happened recently, it's more likely the latter, she considers worriedly.]

[fudgingkillyou.livejournal.com]

[Oh, right. Dean's six.]

... Uh, this is Dean, by the way. [Belatedly.] I, uh. Turned six. Dunno how.

[valaunbound]

You're serious? [sometime moods can be lifted VERY quickly, Vala's a little bit crazy at the best of times, so it's not that big a stretch for her suddenly to be laughing at the revelation. Which she is... until it sends a shot of unbearable pain through the great big stitched up hole in her shoulder... and she cries out in pain!]

Well that's the revenge part sorted on your side of things. [she manages once the pain subsides - she might have split the stitches there.]

[hearts-of-gold.livejournal.com]

Inara peered at tablet's display with a frown of clear concern and more than a little caution, the tables now good and turned as she waited for some sign that Vala was going to launch into trying to rule the world - or their little corner of it - with magical powers like something out of a story.

"You're feeling...better, then?" Better really didn't seem like the best way to put it but she couldn't very well say You're feeling less like ruling over or killing us all, then?.