【"Tonight, I can't find the off switch.】
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【The Secret Time Out Room】
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【#CD5c5c】
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Bezzie went to freshen up, hoping it would stop some of the pitying looks. Vivian followed soon after, apparently not realizing Bezzie's intentions until it became obvious Bez was getting ready to change. Bez discovered she had little that was still wearable. Everything was stained from various activities during the gala, especially since most of Bezzie's activities had involved too much drink. Even worse, whomever had put her clothes in her bag stuffed them in like so much garbage. It was all horribly compressed and wrinkled. Viv recommended borrowing a shirt from one of the taller guys, but it was a while before Bez followed her suggestion. Even with the limited privacy, Bez couldn't resist taking advantage of being alone with Viv.
After some time, Bez pulled herself away before more happened, not wanting to make Viv too uncomfortable, and called out to Cyr, "Hey, Cyr? Can I borrow one of your shirts?" She winked at Viv, then went to grab the offered shirt, picking a black one with nice buttons and thanking him.
By the time she returned to her room, Viv had wandered off. Bez striped, tossing the ruined gown into a corner, then cleaned up as well as she could from the small sink, shivering at the cold water. Feeling a bit more refreshed, she changed into the black shirt, belting it with a long, thin brown belt. Some of the more obvious bruises got a bit of concealer, and she lightly freshened up her makeup using her small pocket mirror, but stayed light with her attempts. The harder she tried, the more obvious it would look.
Bezabelle took her time before going back to the main room. Perhaps it would be better to hang her clothes up? Hopefully some of the worst wrinkles would straighten out on their own. When she returned to the main room, Cyr was reading and Ino was snooping here and there, checking doors, windows, objects. Bez watched him, engaged in small talk if someone else started it, but mostly just waited in her own thoughts. Then Eris popped up, disappearing into her room. The banging noises started up not long after, and Bez figured she should go check out whatever Eris was constructing. It was sure to be interesting.
Val joined, and they heard Eris's plan for a makeshift door cover, then chatted a while. Bez popped out to grab some pins to assist Eris with attaching the blanket, then stayed for a while longer.
She spent a bit of time in the main room, sitting near the fireplace. Ino and Cyr were talking at the table. Both were acting so in character she had to roll her eyes. The flirting was obvious, but she wasn't sure about how serious either party was. Still, it gave a pleasant background as she wandered to the window trying to figure out where in the castle they might be.
Once she gave up, the conversation between the two winding down after some bragging by Cyr and some flattery from Ino, Bez found herself wandering to Myut's room. She had not seen Myut in some time. She'd been busy, of course, flitting from room to room, conversation to conversation, but she still made note. And with how ill at ease Myut had been when they had all gathered for their first brief chat as a group, there was no way she wouldn't check in. When she came to his room, he was already in the middle of exercising. Bez watched for some time. She was enjoying the exhibition, and felt no need to make her presence known just yet, content to simply lean against the wall.
It took him a few reps to notice her, he started, and she encouraged him to continue, selfishly of course. Bezzie couldn't help but enjoy watching how his muscles moved. They talked for some time, catching up on what had happened since they met at the gala, checking on each other's well-being. Bez ended up sprawled across the other's bed as he continued with his exercise. Then, a small exchange. Information she had guessed at based on observation and prior knowledge in exchange for a kiss that definitely left the taller demon hungering for more. With that contingency set up, Bez departed.
The rest of the evening, Bez ended up doing little more than moving from one somewhat comfortable spot to another. She chatted, mostly with Viv, about topics that were as benign as possible. She watched the other demons discreetly. Bez could not help but ruminate over what she would do with each, if only their resources weren't so sparse. She began to wonder how she had managed to end up in a room with so many demons who prefered to sit and read. So much better than attending the last night of the gala.
Of course, she also avoided thinking about why circumstances were what they were. No, this was fine. Surely they wouldn't just be here indefinitely. To avoid going stir crazy, Bez departed for her room. She wiped the back of her neck with cold water. It was only minutes before she returned to the main room. Solitude was only going to grate on her nerves.
When Myut's tea situation began, Bez had just emerged. She watched with interest, trying to figure out what the greed demon was doing and why he looked so disgruntled. Before she could decide, Cyr set down his reading and approached Meu. It took Bez only a moment to reach her conclusions about the situation. Her eyes narrowed momentarily. Just as I thought. Still, she sighed, shrugged, and resumed a pleasant expression, perching on one of the arm chairs and watching the two interact. She giggled at the interaction with Eris and Cyr, tried to look as though she wasn't watching Meu's eager delight, and got up as Meu disappeared back into his room with his new acquisitions. Maybe Cyr would get that book back. Maybe.
Slowly, everything started winding down. Each of them began settling into their rooms for the night. Bez did the same, pleased when Viv asked to stay with her. She inwardly cursed the lack of a door. Having no privacy would very likely keep things gratingly chaste between them, which, on contemplation, was probably why Viv felt comfortable enough to ask Bez about staying. Bezzie wasn't going to let her off completely, of course, but the situation was what it was.
She washed up, changed into an outfit that was definitely more lingerie than sleepwear, laughed at Viv’s joke about wanting to run around the human world pretending to be a ghost, then offered Viv the pick of which side of the bed she wanted. It wasn't long before they settled in snugly.
Then Bez woke, tensed, breathless, and confused. It took her several moments to remember where they were, who was with her, and why they were there. She still felt the scream that had escaped her lips as she woke from the nightmare. From the way Viv was sleeping soundly, Bez assumed she hadn't actually made a noise. It was all just a dream. Just a dream. Right. She contemplated getting up, but didn't want to wake Viv. She couldn't handle questions right now. She simply stayed still as was possible, trying to get her breathing to slow, her heart to stop racing. It was a long time before her lungs stopped heaving and screaming for more air so she could flee.
By the time she felt back to normal again, she was wide awake. Bezabelle spent what felt like ages trying to get her brain to settle, to close her eyes and drift off. Eventually, the urge to toss and turn was getting hard to ignore as anxious thoughts dominated her mind. Bez was going to wake poor Viv if she stayed. She got out of bed, pulling Cyr's black shirt back on but leaving the belt where it lay. The ivory buttons caught the moonlight as she fastened them. She repressed a sigh, moving out to sit on the couch and watch the fire. Hopefully the mindless activity would occupy at least some of her mental space, and keep the pure unease at bay. She was exhausted from the day, which only made the lack of sleep more frustrating.
Bez had been sitting in the main room for some time with no luck. Maybe if she stole a blanket from somewhere, she'd be cozy enough to fall asleep? It was unlikely. She didn't bother to stir, simply staring into the fire and willing her mind to go blank.
A voice, unexpected in the quiet room, called her name. Bez started, looking back to see Ino coming around the couch. She put on a cheerful face with effort, only managing to hide the pure exhaustion on her face by using her abilities to imitate a good mood with perfection. Still, Ino was close enough when he called, it's possible he would have seen something of her previous expression even with the flickering of the fire.
She covered by answering his question about how she was as he sat. Her voice was low as well, but still chipper, as she made up an excuse. They joked a while, then the conversation turned serious. Ino opened up a bit more about what had happened while he was gone. He was definitely hurt, grieving, and there was not much Bez could do for him. Eventually, he got up to return to bed.
Bez was alone again, her thoughts swirling in a new direction but no more restful. And the fire still flickered. And Bez still avoided looking up at the massive portrait, at the figure staring down at her.
Bez was not sure how long it had been since Ino went back to bed. She had tried closing her eyes, but her brain wouldn't turn off even enough for a doze. She was miserably tired. This time, she heard someone else coming. She was able to slip back into a cheery persona before Cyr came around to join her. He had found a new, obnoxious pet name for her and she made her displeasure known.
"Bez-bug? What am I? A five-year old? I'm fine booger-butt, how are you?"
They chatted about Viv, thoughts about the situation, Cyr's interest in Myut. All more light and teasing than the previous conversation though more serious things still hovered below the surface. When he asked for insights on Mew, Bez found herself sidestepping, insisting he sink or swim on his own. Sometimes, he frustrated her, though she couldn't pinpoint why. She hid it, mostly, and the conversation shifted back to her, to his willingness to help. It was sweet, and she answered appreciatively, and Cyr too headed back to bed.
Now she had more to contemplate, but exhaustion truly was taking hold. Her thoughts weren't coherent. Bezabelle felt as though she had only just closed her eyes, though she couldn't recall any dreams this time. Something was bothering her, and it took a moment to understand what it was. Someone was moving around in the room, slowly and quietly. Bez opened her eyes to see that the front room was brighter. It was past daybreak. She popped her head up to peek over the back of the couch, until she could identify the snooping figure. Oh.
"Val?"
He seemed to be the only one stirring at this point. Bez rubbed at her eyes as he approached, trying to decide if she'd actually fallen asleep. Judging by how easily she had stirred when she heard Val moving, probably nothing more than a light doze. He asked about why she was out on the couch.
"Woke up a bit ago," she lied. "Couldn't really get back to sleep, so I came out here." She didn't bother trying to hide the exhaustion on her face now, as she had been all night, and all evening before that. She'd already been caught for one. For two, she was too exhausted even to try. It must have been evident. Soon, he had slid behind her so she could lean comfortably against him. This time, his aura was welcome, soothing after Bez's restless night. They talked for some time before both drifted off.
Once again, Bez woke with a start not long after, but this time everything felt so muted, muffled by Val's aura. He still seemed perfectly comfortable, but Bez was getting a crick in her neck from how she'd fallen asleep. Besides, her bed wasn't empty either, and that held at least some possibility as well. She stumbled back to her room, the sleepiness thankfully sticking with her. After shedding the shirt and clumsily hanging it back up, she slid back under the sheets, taking full advantage of Viv's warmth. This time, nightmares didn't interrupt Bez's sleep.