Thanks for the Memories

[Maxpphire]

The Thursday before the whole carnival event he finally had a night to himself were he wasn't busy dealing with the aftermath of becoming free. This relaxed him a bit in regards to everything that has happened, but also allowed him for some mild excitement to be able to spend this weekend free of all the stress and relax a little. However, first he decided to spend his one real night off from it all to properly say thank you to the group that helped him out, specifically Jeanne. Sure there were a couple of people that lead him to getting his freedom, Drew bringing him to Venture following Nox and Ari forcing them to stay and getting Jeanne, then the rest of Jeanne and Ari's family was it? That actually fought against the group.

He traveled a bit to end up in front of the gate to the estate. He first went to Echelon and picked up 3 wine bottles filled with blood. Two of them where the same that he intended the entire family to share, smoked with oak and hickory for a nice savory flavor. Then there was one smoked with apple, pecan, and maple for more of a sweeter taste, specifically for Jeanne. He wasn't sure if she'd like it, but it was one of their more top dollar type of smoked blood and figured that it would be a nice gesture regardless.

He stopped by Venture first, holding the bag with the bottles close to him as it seemed that eyes followed him around the bar. When he got to the counter and asked if Jeanne was there, he had been told she was off for the night. He quickly left to get away from the stares he felt upon his back and thought outside for a moment. He had heard her refer to Charon as "Gran-pere" and that was what? French for Grandfather? He knew French, and if such a term should be believed, then it was safe to assume that her and Charon were probably related in same way. He guessed likely a she was his fledge, or a fledge of one of his fledges given the term she had used. Worse came to worst, he could always ask Charon how to meet up with her, so he could give her that specific gift. Given how Charon was a district leader, he didn't expect him to be to terribly hard to get a hold of.

He took an uber to the church itself, figuring that starting there would be the better idea, but alas, it was closed and locked. He sighed and made his way to the gate, noticing the mansion in the background. It looked pretty big, and if Charon was rich enough to have a place like that, he guessed that even if he couldn't get ahold of either one of them, that they likely had a doorkeeper or someone who could collect the gifts and give them to the correct person in his steed. Part of him hoped that wasn't the case as he did want to say thank you in person, but could understand if they were busy.

Once he made it in front of the gate he noticed an intercom with a little button attached. He went to press it, then froze. He felt a little bit nervous as it felt weird coming all the way out here just to say thank you. He took a deep breath to calm himself and pressed the button, hoping it would be worthwhile in the end.

[Existentially Odd]

An efficient-sounding masculine voice responded to Dreki's prompt on the intercom.

"Penbrook Estate. Please state your business."

The intercom went quiet, the silence electric as whomever was on the other end awaited further instructions.

[Maxpphire]

"Hi, I'm Dreki Arach. I was wondering is Jeanne was here? If not then maybe Charon? I wish to say thank you to them." He kept it simple, hoping he didn't need to hold down the button to talk. It was always 50/50 with intercoms, and he hated that it was always a shot in the dark in what kind they were every time he encountered one, which luckily wasn't often.

[Existentially Odd]

"One moment, please," the gentleman's voice said and the intercom fell into its static-filled pregnant state once more. After a minute, there was a loud click as the lock in the gate disengaged and then the voice was back. "Welcome to Penbrook Estate. Please make your way to the front door."

Dreki would find the path beyond the gate rose on a relatively gentle but upward gradient, his shoes crackling on crushed shale the whole way. There were solar lights along the path to help define the journey and the front of the mansion was lit up by the time he got there. Before he reached the door, it opened to reveal Jeanne wearing a pair of skin-tight white capri pants and a light blue chambray shirt, casually untucked and loose around her hips. Her sleeves were rolled up to her elbows and the top three buttons were undone. Her hair was glossy and au naturel and she wore white ballet flats on her feet.

"Dreki!" she exclaimed, sounding delighted to see him as she threw her arms open to welcome him inside. "It is wonderful to see you, mon cher." If he stepped into her embrace, she would hug him, but if he seemed reluctant, she would simply grasp his upper arms lightly and kiss both his cheeks in turn.

[Maxpphire]

He felt relieved when they heard him fine and he didn't have to press the button. When they told him to come up to the door, he felt a bit relieved, knowing he was at least going to drop off the stuff. However when the door open to reveal Jeanne herself to greet him, a smile formed upon his face and he went to hug her back, mimicking her European greeting. He was careful to not hit her with the bag as they greeted each other. He wore his usual semi-formal wear of a button up shirt, a vest, slacks, and his hair was up in a low pony-tail.

"Oh it's fantastic to see you too," he said with a smile, and once they let go, he held up the bag with the bottles of blood. "I brought some thank you gifts. The one with the bow is specifically yours and the other two are for everyone. It has a bow because I can't read the label and asked that they make it different." He explained because while he didn't mind that her bottle looked a little nicer, but that it wasn't done with the specific purpose of looking nice, in case it came across as too special. He didn't want to scare her off and had a habit of second guessing what was ok and what wasn't. He wasn't even sure if he should mention he tried looking for her at Venture first or not, but it seemed as if him coming by wasn't too big of a deal this time given the warm welcome he received.

[Existentially Odd]

Jeanne made appreciative and excited noises as she took the bag off him, lifting out the bottles in turn and squealing with delight when she waved them beneath her nose. "They smell divine!" she cooed, "I will enjoy it very much, that is so thoughtful of you! Please, come in," she invited and turned to lead Dreki into the foyer.

Once inside, she handed the bag off to a hovering staff member wearing a ruffled white shirt and black slacks not unlike Dreki's outfit. She gave instructions for refrigerating the blood and bringing the bag back to the Autumnal room, where she intended to lead her guest. After that, she fell into step beside the blond, aware of what he could see - and how well - simply because she'd spent quite a long time in the young angel's head. She hooked her arm companionably through his for the journey.

They moved into a carpeted sitting room decorated with LeCorbusier seating and glass Bauhaus end and coffee tables and then past a small galleria with marble floors and tall white walls with hanging paintings. Moving through a door adjacent to the one they'd come through, a short corridor led to a drawing room with a fireplace.

The crackle of the fire permeated heat into a room decorated just as warmly, with rich reds, golds and browns. Usually referred to as the Autumnal room (for the mansion had a second drawing room in the east wing that mirrored its location), visitors were usually asked to wait within it, for it was central within the house and had no windows. The only light came from the fireplace and a few strategically lit table-lamps around the large room. The furniture here was heavier and statelier than the sitting room, the wood stained a much darker brown to better enhance the golden and red leathers of the chair and sofa cushions.

Once inside, Jeanne led them to the pair of golden leather sofas situated in front of the fire, unwinding her arm from Dreki's so that he could choose whether he sat beside her or on the three seater opposite. She positioned herself at the right end, resting her elbow on the arm of the sofa and crossing her legs stylishly. "So, tell me. How have you been?" she enquired with genuine concern on her face and in her voice. She sounded sympathetic because she knew the answer wouldn't be good. She was the reason, after all.

[Maxpphire]

He smiled with glee watching her reaction to the blood. While part of him wished he could have thought of a better gift in return to the gift she gave him, her happiness said that he didn't do too badly at all. He, of course, followed her inside, allowing her to guide him throughout the massive home as he took in the more grandiose outlines of furniture, railings, doors and their frames. The touch of the wooden stair rail was smooth, and well taken care of. The mansion itself smelled clean, not like a hospital type of clean, but refreshing.

He entered the room with her and sat down on the couch next to her. Noticing how well placed everything was, that it was set up for conversations, without worry of how long they would take. The fireplace  kept the room comfortable both in temperature and atmosphere. He felt relaxed, at least until she asked her question. Part of him debated saying he was fine, but he knew that she would catch that lie instantly.

"Well," he started, taking a deep breath to keep his tone steady, "I've never felt more alone in my life." It was an odd experience for him, he usually always had someone breathing down his neck in some way or another, but now he didn't. "It makes me miss Hofflan even though he was a thoroughly disgusting man. While I'm forever thankful for the freedom I've been given and you fixing my mind, it's been a harder adjustment than I was expecting." He hadn't mentioned Emma at all. He refused to really even think about her, except the one time he visited her grave on his birthday. That day he took off from work using vacation time. He had spent maybe 30-60 minutes there but the rest of the time he was awake and at home, he had been a useless mess of a person. It was embarrassing, he couldn't even go through what little effects she had left or even the medical records that were hers. That all was still too much.

[Existentially Odd]

Jeanne digested that bit of information with a hint of bitterness sticking in her chest. Yes, insane as it was, missing the thing that tormented was a familiar feeling for her also. For a moment, she dared to think his name; Taylor. The emotions set a-swirl within her caused her to flinch. Best to put that aside and focus on Dreki, for now. She still wasn't ready; how could he be, poor child?

"I apologise for that. I wish I could say it gets easier but, short of wiping your mind and taking the memories completely, this pain will be with you for a long while to come." She reached over and laid her hand on his knee, liking his warmth. "You are not alone, though." She hoped her smile could be heard in her voice.

[Maxpphire]

He smiled somberly as he listened to her spoke, feeling some comfort in her words. When he felt her hand upon his knee, he had moved to put his hand on top of hers.

"No need to apologize, that's not your fault. He couldn't have been kept around to continue to do what he did and as hard as my memories are to think about, I'd rather have them than not. I've had enough of them being kept from me as it is." He spoke lightheartedly with that last sentence and didn't want Jeanne to put the blame on herself, particularly for how much she had helped him.

"It helps to know I'm not alone, but, I don't know," he sighed looking towards her, "I can't help but feel like this is all my fault. I just wanted a better life, and I wanted a better life, for," he couldn't finish his sentence, his hands and his voice had started to shake and he took a deep breath. His eyes becoming glossy with forming tears, he moved his other hand up to his face, putting his thumb and pointer finger on either side of the bridge of his nose as he closed his eyes. He was trying to calm himself down, knowing that if he became a blubbering mess it would not only be useless but also embarrassing.

[Existentially Odd]

Sensing his distress and aware that sympathy very often caused it to increase, rather than decline, Jeanne turned her hand over on Dreki's knee and clasped his hand instead. She squeezed it but made no other move to pander to him.

"No," she shook her head firmly. "You were a victim. This began when you were a child. It is preposterous to attempt to take the blame for the cabaletta in a five act opera when you were only on stage for two acts. No," she said again, rebutting any notion that the outcome of his manipulation was his fault with a shake of her head.

"Your focus must be forward, not backward," she insisted quietly, knowing such steps were the most difficult he'd ever take and she was unable to prescribe an easy solution.

[Maxpphire]

"Finding which way is forwards has been difficult, but I'm sure you already know that." He removed his hand from his face, looked at her and gave a small smile, "I came here to say thank you, not burden you with my troubles, I appreciate you listening, but, I don't want to chase you off with it all. I've done that once before, and friends are few and far between. I'd like to keep you as one." He honestly felt bad that the conversation took this turn.

"Anyway, I assume you know music? Can't say I've heard anyone else use the term cabaletta in casual conversation. What is your favorite opera?" He asked trying to shift the conversation a bit. He didn't want to chase her off, like had with Sam. Although to be fair, Sam hadn't helped try to get him free and he wasn't free at the time, so he knew that had something to do with it, but figured the hard sad emotions also didn't help.

[Existentially Odd]

Jeanne allowed Dreki his apology and appreciated him moving the conversation along. He was right; there was no reason to focus on the maudlin. She had empathy for his inability to decide which way was forwards and now both of them knew that. It wouldn't fix anything more quickly to discuss it.

She laughed with delight when he recognised her opera reference, pulling her hand away from his to hover in front of her mouth as she tittered at him, relaxing back into the couch and turning slightly so that her back was against the arm, her left leg tucked beneath her. "Oh, you would not know it. It perished more than a thousand years ago and I find all the more modern works too bombastic to rate. Mostly, I love music because I play it and dance to it. Dance is my first love," she confessed.

"I ran a studio in the city for a while but then the demands of the club became too great and I had to release it into other hands. Now, I mostly dance here, in private. You play instruments too, if I recall my observation of your life correctly. Perhaps we should collaborate sometime? What do you prefer to play? My primary instrument is the violin."

[Maxpphire]

He smiled at her reaction, as he leaned back on the couch and turned to face her, his leg mostly on the couch, bent in front of him and the other off the couch. He placed both of his hand on the shin of his leg on the couch as he listened to her speak. He wasn't surprised to hear the opera had long since been gone, in fact he had expected her favorite to not be something that was played any longer.

"Just because I have no way of seeing it now doesn't mean I wouldn't want to hear about it," he mentioned in a jovial tone with a large smile. Music was something he could talk about or listen to someone talk about for hours. "And honesty, the Piano is the most accessible for me. While I'm decent at the other ones I play, I've been playing the piano the longest, can usually find public spots where I can play, and it keeps my mouth open for singing if I so choose. I'd be more than happy to collaborate sometime, whether you decided to play an instrument, or dance." He had left the option open to her on how she wanted to collaborate.