Betsy & Topaz, late night/early morning

[xp_sylocke]

The pyjamas had been a gift from Brian, and in normal circumstances Betsy would never have left her suite while wearing them. One of her hands was trailing the wall, as if having memorised a route by touch, and her eyes were darting from side to side in the dim light. Her bare feet made little sound on the plush carpet of the corridor.

There was never enough, Topaz thought with a sigh as she finished off the last of her Rock Star - she had traded alcohol, and pretty much everything but tea, for energy drinks. No she wasn't avoiding sleep. No matter what her therapist said. She came up onto the landing of the third floor, catching sight of Betsy walking. "Nice PJs," she said dryly. "Going for a midnight stroll?"

Taking no note of the disruption, Betsy continued meandering down her chosen path. While her movements seemed aimless, they had more grace to them than she usually demonstrated, and she swiftly turned a corner that took her out of Topaz’s line of sight.

"What the...?" Topaz jumped the last stair, following Betsy. "Oi, Betsy. You there?"

What did people say about sleepwalkers? Don't touch them or try to wake them up. That probably went double for a telepath. Topaz followed behind to make sure Betsy didn't hurt herself, frowning.

Although she wasn’t running, the telepath was moving far more quickly than her lack of obvious direction indicated. She still paid little notice to her surroundings, apparently oblivious to her follower.

Nighttime adventure, then. Topaz eyed her empty can again, sighing, and hooked her bag up higher on her shoulder, gently probing the very surface of Betsy's mind just to make sure she wasn't having a nightmare or chasing ghosts or something that might require getting someone more adequate for handling situations.

It was blank and muted, with a sense of something like anger or indignation simmering under the surface. There didn’t seem to be any clear goal guiding her, no matter how decisive her steps seemed to be, but her general direction was taking her towards the shared areas of the mansion.

Topaz tilted her head, eyes furrowing slightly, magic beginning to spin in the air around her. Worse came to worse, she could always box Betsy off and have her walk into invisible walls until she woke up. She didn't seem entirely threatening, but there was something there that unsettled her slightly, and she backed off mentally. This would have looked so weird and creepy to anyone else, she thought dryly.

After reaching the shared areas, Betsy took a sharp turn towards the kitchen. Considering the odd hours many residents tended to keep, it was sheer luck that no-one else happened to be occupying that particular room at the time. The telepath’s gaze was still unfocused, but she managed to pull open the fridge, grab a container of soup, and deposit it in the microwave, her actions mirroring those she’d taken when she’d first arrived. While that appliance was buzzing, she started restlessly opening and closing the drawers and cabinets.

This was... impressive. Topaz had read stories about people doing weird, intricate things while sleepwalking, but actually witnessing it was another thing entirely. She leaned against the counter, watching with a sense of deja vu. Maybe she was just hungry?

The microwave pinged it’s readiness, but Betsy ignored it. She was staring at the contents of a particular drawer, seemingly entranced. Slowly she started lifting the contents of the drawer on to the kitchen counter, one by one, testing each of them for balance and sharpness. Knives.

It immediately stopped being funny. Topaz straightened up, expression hard, magic sparking between her fingers once more. "Betsy...?" She ventured carefully, looking around the kitchen for something soft she could hit the telepath with. Just in case.

Betsy had been weighing one of the knives in her hand, a small paring knife with a metal handle, but grew still at the sound of Topaz’s voice. While she made no move to turn around, her focus seemed to have shifted wholly to the other woman.

Topaz felt the shift; the air around her shimmered slightly as a shield started to form. "So hey, why don't you just... put the knife down? This can just be a funny story you tell someone later on. No reason for it to get messy."

For several moments Betsy stayed still. Then, she gently put the knife down on the counter with the others, and started meandering back out of the kitchen. There was no outward sign to suggest she was aware of Topaz, but her route seemed to keep her a far away from the empath as was possible in the confines of the room.

Bloody hell. Topaz waved away the magic in the air, shifting to keep the distance, but also to keep an eye on Betsy and running through her options. Try and wake her up? Bind her? Let her wander until she woke up or hurt herself? She had a feeling "let this play out and go to bed" wasn't an option.

The telepath was retracing her steps. Her movements were now much slower than her earlier haste. She stood in front of the silent microwave for a few seconds, then turned around and walked out of the kitchen.

Topaz cocked her head, watching for a moment, before shrugging and following once more. Off to the next adventure. Or, hopefully, bed.

Betsy was moving more slowly now, and almost stumbled a few times on her way back towards the senior students’ wing. Once she reached the suite she had been staying in, she again stood still for a few seconds before reaching for the handle and letting herself in, closing the door softly behind herself.

At this point, Topaz just had to see the whole thing through. She followed Betsy back to her room, watching as the door shut behind the telepath, and raised her empty energy drink can in a toast. "Cheers, Betsy. Sleep well."