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RESPITE PARK - LATE MORNING
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Nesseth sits on one of the benches near the park's edge, having gotten the day free from general duty while he waits for the clearance to search Xochi's house due to the current issue with Xochicoatl. What with the reason for the search being mired in dreams, magical rituals and similar oddities, it's been a little slow to move, even with Louma prioritizing the request. Thankfully, it seems like it'll be clearing through soon enough, and it's left Nesseth some time to just think about a lot. Anyone passing by that knows him can readily tell he's distracted and pensive about something.
Mia has been slowly getting a good bit sharper with her social skills. She always had a decent read on what people were thinking (abet skewed towards the paranoid readings), but now she was starting to be able to do something about it. She quietly settles behind Nesseth, and ever so slowly next to him on the seat, before settling in, placing her head on his lap. She doesn't say anything, she doesn't greet him at all, she just adds her presence to where he is. After all, if she doesn't say hello, he doesn't need to say anything back if he doesn't want to...
Nesseth starts to reflexively pet Mia as she settles her head on his lap, the movements almost an innate reaction at this point due to how snuggle-y he and his partners can get. It does eventually register after a good fifteen seconds or so that he has company, and said company is now curled up right beside/on him, and he blinks out of his reverie when the realization hits. He continues to let his fingers lightly stroke over Mia's head as he looks down, an expression of mild surprise on his face. "Oh! Uh... hi, Mia. How, er... how long were you here?"
Mia: "A little while. I've always been sneaky~" She smiles, and sticks her tongue out, it's fun being playful, and she's certainly leaning into it "You seemed you needed a distraction"
Nesseth chuckles and smiles softly, clearly appreciating the playful attitude. He nods after a moment. "Yeah, kind of. There's been a lot going on recently... again."
Mia: "I can appreciate that feeling. You can talk about it or" She settles more fully unto his lap "Or not. That's good too. I'm happy to be a mindless distraction"
Nesseth moves his hand a bit so Mia can readjust. Once she's settled comfortably, he gives her a warm hug. "Mmh... I appreciate both, Mia." He pauses for a few seconds, then decides to talk about things a bit, "Well... I'm not sure if you met Xochi before, a coatl from Orela? She's gotten herself embroiled in some severe magic troubles, and it's one of those situations you know you need to move fast, but also have to be careful to not mess up."
Mia: "Yeah. I get that a bit when I'm trying to fix a problem. Things are getting worse the longer I leave it, but I have to make sure the fix is the right one" She yawns with a long nyaaaaaaa "I just had to learn to decide on a plan and do it once I had something that probably works. You never get rid of all the risk of messing up, so..you just gotta do it" She also quietly directs his claws to the back of her shoulder blades, riiiight there. Yes. That's the spot....
Nesseth nods as he moves his claws to the spot Mia's nudging him towards, then lets his nails scritch juuuuust right while he muses. "Yeah... yeah, you're right. Louma and I were reluctant to just outright say something to... Xochi, earlier, and I think that probably made the situation worse."
Mia: "Well, you're clearly building up to telling me about it, so..why not go ahead and just say it?"
Nesseth chuckles and decides to just cut to the chase, since Mia's not the sort to call someone nuts for... most any reason at all. "Long story short, Xochi did some kind of ritual with a friend of hers that resulted in her getting trapped in some kind of other dimension. Her younger self is here in town now, and the longer she's here, the more likely Xochi can't come back. Louma and I were trying to play it safe by revealing things little by little to the younger version of her, but I think we wound up upsetting her more than anything."
Mia ponders it, and while the scratches are going on goes for the tact, and by tact..Mia..well, she still struggles with tact "So you're lying to her about a key fact of her life that she deserves to know about?" She flicks her tail "It would be like...well..it would be like if May's fears were correct, and I'm not actually Strix, and I'm in the way of this 'Strix' from coming back" She pauses a moment "She deserves to know the truth. If you're right, and it's some decision between Xochi and this younger version then...it's her choice to make. It sounds to me that you know that, and you're just spinning this out until you can get the Xochi you know back"
Nesseth makes an uncertain expression, both accepting the criticism and not denying what Mia said. "Well... you're not wrong, no. We did lie by omission, but that's because we knew the truth of the matter is just, by normal circumstances, utterly insane-sounding." He shakes his head a bit, though it's definitely more guilty than defiant, "I don't want to draw this out, though, because time isn't something the Xochi we know has much left of."
Mia: "Then tell her, and accept her decision. If she wants to stay then you can't force her. She has as much right to live as anyone else"
Nesseth nods again. "That's what I'm thinking of doing, if I find her, or if Erika lets me talk to her." He hums quietly, "I never intended to force her to make a choice, but to try to get her to see that if she stays, the Xochi we know dies for sure, and If she goes back to her place in time, they both live. It's her choice still, of course, and I'll accept whatever she decides."
Mia raises an eye "Do you know that?"
Nesseth tilts his head. "Which part? Xochi dying if her younger self stays here, or both living if the younger version of her goes back?"
Mia: "Well, both"
Nesseth hums and nods. "Then in that case, yes. This is part of the details that made me hold off telling the younger Xochi the whole thing. The Xochi we know is already being held in damnation in exchange for pulling her younger self out of the timeline. If the younger Xochi agrees to go back, she winds up back in the right time, and the older Xochi will..." He trails off, then sighs a bit as a minor realization hits, "...Damn it, she'll hopefully come back since balance will have been restored."
Mia: "Well, you should lay that out, and see what her decision is, since if you're right..you are asking her to switch place with Xochi to this 'damnation' place? That's a big ask, I think"
Nesseth shakes his head. "No, Xochi is only there as a balance. If the two switched places as is, that still leaves the gap in the younger Xochi's time open. If it's all about balance, then I figured that undoing this would send the younger Xochi back to her proper place in the timeline." He sighs, "Problem is... that's still only an educated guess, instead of a sure thing."
Mia: "Then all the more important you aren't the one to make this decision. Explain all this to her, and ask her what she wants to do" She shrugs "Like, if I was given a choice like that..honestly, I'd choose to stay, I think. I like my life now, and I want to keep it"
Nesseth nods again, his expression firming up a bit. "Yeah... I'll have to tell her all of this. It's the only way to make up for upsetting her." He pauses, then adds, "I know I have to tell her what she might have to go through if she goes back, too, in addition to what I saw her older self going through in the Dark Sea."
Mia leans her head on his lap, licking his fingers gently "You're doing the right thing, even if it feels bad. Sometimes doing the right thing sucks like that"
Nesseth tickles Mia's tongue a little in response to the licks. "That's true... I think I just needed someone to talk it through with. There are still a few other things to do, but talking to the younger Xochi definitely needs to happen... and no more beating around the bush on my part."
Mia: "Well..." Mia looks to a nearby bush in the park "..Maybe beating around inside the bush?"
Nesseth follows Mia's gaze towards the nearby bush, then shifts his eyes back to her with a slightly cheeky smirk. "...Only if it's with a certain cute techcat."
Mia: "That can be arranged" She smiles back "I can't help with all your problems..but I can take your mind off it a while!"
Nesseth smiles warmly as he teasingly ruffles Mia's hair. "For things like what we just talked about, just the talk was plenty of help, so... thanks for that, Mia." He chuckles, "Of course, the distractions are still very welcome."
Mia: "Well, let me do that~" She coils her tail around his wrist guiding him off for..distractions