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xp_logsTopaz texts Kyle and heads to the gym after her conversation with Amanda. Backdated to September 9.
Topaz couldn't really focus once Amanda was gone, and the bookshelf instructions were exactly as understandable as they had been before the conversation. So she filled her water bottle, changed into gym clothes, texted Kyle, and made her way down to the gym. She finally allowed herself a moment to think as she pulled on her boxing gloves.
Adam bloody Destine. She really was never going to escape.
Kyle had to remind himself to throw a set of gloves over his shoulder - he could handle a couple broken knuckles, but as various people (Terry, Marius, Clarice, Doug) kept reminding him, it was super hella rude to make someone make you bleed your own blood. Maybe not in so many words, the Dodgeball quote had only been Doug, but it was true.
It was also why despite being closer to the gym, he was later than Topaz, and came in after she'd gloved up and started metronomically hitting a bag. "So. I have no idea what's going on, except angry Topaz?"
"Yeah," Topaz said shortly, hitting the bag again. "Angry Topaz."
And worried. And confused. And maybe a little scared. And maybe just the tiniest bit betrayed. But it all led back to anger in the end.
"You know that thing where people love to come back from the dead?"
"Uh." Kyle looked down at himself. "I... yes? Yeah? Like, I guess I count for that, but I'm guessing I'm not the undead guy you're upset with?"
"No, I'm upset with the one who tried to kill me multiple times." She hit the bag one more time, then ripped off her glove to shake her hand out. "Adam Destine. Remember him? Cursed half the mansion, tried to murder Amanda in London, blackmailed me into surrendering to him and-" She stopped her rant abruptly, blowing out a long breath and turning away from Kyle. "Him."
"We got a briefing on him, the English guy, right? Same family that cursefucked Doug's blood?" Kyle steadied the heavy bag. "How the fuck is he back?"
"Magic." She said the word the way one might spit out a curse. "I don't know the entire explanation because Amanda doesn't know the entire explanation, but basically magic. Apparently it needed to happen. I dunno, and I'm never going to meet the person who does know, so I guess I'm just going to have to be happy with what I know."
"Or." Kyle said. "Or you could just go meet the person who does know and ask. Like, you're an adult, nothing is stopping you, worst case they tell you to fuck off and you're like, no worse off than you were." He tilted his head, considering Topaz's expression. "The guy had it out for your entire ass, I think whoever brought him back can spend ten minutes giving you a fucking explanation."
"She's a voodoo witch living in a swamp." Topaz's shoulders slumped, leaving her mostly looking tired. "I don't know if anyone has ever gotten a straight answer from her. And Adam's staying with her. I'm not going anywhere near there."
"So write her a letter, or call. Look, she brought a dead dude back for reasons, it's giving you massive, I dunno, anxiety, anger, ptsd, whatever, it's not like..' Kyle tapped the bag with one taped up fist. "It's not like you would go down and scream at her, you'd be polite, because you're you and if you get any more British you'll explode. Like, otherwise it's gonna eat at you. Get whatever answers you can."
Topaz was quiet for a moment as she pulled her glove back on. "I'm not going to like the answers."
"There we are." Kyle pushed the bag towards Topaz. "Didn't even have to hit me to get the answer out of you, nice. Look, maybe you won't, and that's a good reason not to ask, but if you don't know, can you really say it won't eat at you?"
She took a swing at the bag, far less manic than she had been when Kyle had walked in. "No," she admitted. Because she knew that it would eat her alive to never have answers, even if it was none of her business (and that was debatable). She needed to know.
Kyle caught the bag on the swing back, and held it steady. "One, eyes on the target. Two, you know you're allowed to be pissed off, right? Like. Anger is ... " He looked over the top of the bag at Topaz. "Anger's not wrong, it's what you do with it. Wild ass swings, you get a bag on the nose. Using anger to land a good hit, that's progress."
"I know it's okay to be angry." She took another swing. "There's a reason I'm here and not still fighting with an Ikea shelf."
Kyle blinked and even with his reflexes, missed the back on the bag swing and it swing wildly for a moment. "Why... why are you fighting Ikea shelves in the first place?"
"I had a five-minute bout of madness where I thought redecorating my suite was a good idea and I bought a couple of new bookshelves. I regret it now."
Kyle pushed the bag back. "Okay, here's what we're gonna do. You're gonna beat the crap out of the bag for another three minutes, then you're gonna try to get two solid punches on me while I makeup code names for you, and then we're gonna go fix your bookshelves." He paused. "I have Doug's rejected code names list for you, we'll start with Chai Tea Latte."
Topaz rolled her eyes. She hated that list. "Can we skip straight to punching you?"
Topaz couldn't really focus once Amanda was gone, and the bookshelf instructions were exactly as understandable as they had been before the conversation. So she filled her water bottle, changed into gym clothes, texted Kyle, and made her way down to the gym. She finally allowed herself a moment to think as she pulled on her boxing gloves.
Adam bloody Destine. She really was never going to escape.
Kyle had to remind himself to throw a set of gloves over his shoulder - he could handle a couple broken knuckles, but as various people (Terry, Marius, Clarice, Doug) kept reminding him, it was super hella rude to make someone make you bleed your own blood. Maybe not in so many words, the Dodgeball quote had only been Doug, but it was true.
It was also why despite being closer to the gym, he was later than Topaz, and came in after she'd gloved up and started metronomically hitting a bag. "So. I have no idea what's going on, except angry Topaz?"
"Yeah," Topaz said shortly, hitting the bag again. "Angry Topaz."
And worried. And confused. And maybe a little scared. And maybe just the tiniest bit betrayed. But it all led back to anger in the end.
"You know that thing where people love to come back from the dead?"
"Uh." Kyle looked down at himself. "I... yes? Yeah? Like, I guess I count for that, but I'm guessing I'm not the undead guy you're upset with?"
"No, I'm upset with the one who tried to kill me multiple times." She hit the bag one more time, then ripped off her glove to shake her hand out. "Adam Destine. Remember him? Cursed half the mansion, tried to murder Amanda in London, blackmailed me into surrendering to him and-" She stopped her rant abruptly, blowing out a long breath and turning away from Kyle. "Him."
"We got a briefing on him, the English guy, right? Same family that cursefucked Doug's blood?" Kyle steadied the heavy bag. "How the fuck is he back?"
"Magic." She said the word the way one might spit out a curse. "I don't know the entire explanation because Amanda doesn't know the entire explanation, but basically magic. Apparently it needed to happen. I dunno, and I'm never going to meet the person who does know, so I guess I'm just going to have to be happy with what I know."
"Or." Kyle said. "Or you could just go meet the person who does know and ask. Like, you're an adult, nothing is stopping you, worst case they tell you to fuck off and you're like, no worse off than you were." He tilted his head, considering Topaz's expression. "The guy had it out for your entire ass, I think whoever brought him back can spend ten minutes giving you a fucking explanation."
"She's a voodoo witch living in a swamp." Topaz's shoulders slumped, leaving her mostly looking tired. "I don't know if anyone has ever gotten a straight answer from her. And Adam's staying with her. I'm not going anywhere near there."
"So write her a letter, or call. Look, she brought a dead dude back for reasons, it's giving you massive, I dunno, anxiety, anger, ptsd, whatever, it's not like..' Kyle tapped the bag with one taped up fist. "It's not like you would go down and scream at her, you'd be polite, because you're you and if you get any more British you'll explode. Like, otherwise it's gonna eat at you. Get whatever answers you can."
Topaz was quiet for a moment as she pulled her glove back on. "I'm not going to like the answers."
"There we are." Kyle pushed the bag towards Topaz. "Didn't even have to hit me to get the answer out of you, nice. Look, maybe you won't, and that's a good reason not to ask, but if you don't know, can you really say it won't eat at you?"
She took a swing at the bag, far less manic than she had been when Kyle had walked in. "No," she admitted. Because she knew that it would eat her alive to never have answers, even if it was none of her business (and that was debatable). She needed to know.
Kyle caught the bag on the swing back, and held it steady. "One, eyes on the target. Two, you know you're allowed to be pissed off, right? Like. Anger is ... " He looked over the top of the bag at Topaz. "Anger's not wrong, it's what you do with it. Wild ass swings, you get a bag on the nose. Using anger to land a good hit, that's progress."
"I know it's okay to be angry." She took another swing. "There's a reason I'm here and not still fighting with an Ikea shelf."
Kyle blinked and even with his reflexes, missed the back on the bag swing and it swing wildly for a moment. "Why... why are you fighting Ikea shelves in the first place?"
"I had a five-minute bout of madness where I thought redecorating my suite was a good idea and I bought a couple of new bookshelves. I regret it now."
Kyle pushed the bag back. "Okay, here's what we're gonna do. You're gonna beat the crap out of the bag for another three minutes, then you're gonna try to get two solid punches on me while I makeup code names for you, and then we're gonna go fix your bookshelves." He paused. "I have Doug's rejected code names list for you, we'll start with Chai Tea Latte."
Topaz rolled her eyes. She hated that list. "Can we skip straight to punching you?"
