Let the storm rage on. {Open}

[chasingtwisters]

The bus is an old, weathered piece of shit, one that really shouldn't be functioning still. Moira winces at the creaking noise every sharp corner pulls from the vehicle and the way the driver barely seems able to stay on the road. She keeps fidgeting in her seat and playing with her newly darkened hair, fingers curling around the piece of paper she clutches close to her chest. The island did her good in many ways: it healed the shock of the cruise, helped ease the burden of all the stress in her life, and helped her come to terms with being pregnant, with the exception of the morning sickness that still rules over Moira.

Yet, just two mornings ago, a woman named Blair, one of the elders of the island, brought her to one of the hidden springs, deep in the heart of the island. They'd done their breathing exercises and a couple of renewal spells, as had become their normal routine during Moira's time on the island. But then Blair had offered to scry with her, just a brief glimpse to check in on Siren Cove. Moira hadn't realized how much she'd missed home until then; fueled by a desire to see James, her sisters, and her cousins, she'd readily agreed.

Scrying with water had always been a bitch.

She never thought she'd catch a glimpse of her ancestor, one Viviana Coombs; but catch a glimpse of her, she did, and now, she's on a bus home, clutching the sketch Blair drew for her in her hands and trying to remember the breathing exercises from the island. But she can't stop thinking about it. Viviana Coombs could be her twin. Viviana Coombs, the one rumored to have started the curse in the first place. Moira can't tell if the nausea she feels is from the morning sickness or the shock running through her veins. And she has to keep it under control, for the baby's sake. The baby who, as the witches on the island had confirmed, would inherit some of the Coombs' powers as half a witch.

The bus finally screeches to a stop at the bus station in the center of town. Moira has to keep from leaping over the heads of everyone to get out. She misses her loved ones dearly, indeed, she realizes she owes them all an explanation, at the very least, but she needs to get to the library. Even as she can hear Blair telling her that the vision they'd seen was very much real, Moira wants to find evidence to the contrary, that she does not resemble her ancestor who might have caused the curse.

She keeps fidgeting as she makes her way through the line, her hands smoothing down the front of her loose blouse, disguising the small yet distinguishable bump of her stomach. She hopes no one with a discerning eye catches sight of her today.

She pulls her hood up over her head before exiting the bus, determined to avoid the inevitable mess of press that might await her. As soon as her feet hit the ground, Moira sets off at a sprint, maneuvering between people as she tries not to shove them out of the way. She needs to get to the library, needs to find evidence to reassure herself that she isn't the living image of a woman who once cursed an entire town.

OOC: Moira's back! Find her anywhere in town as she tries to make her way to the library. She'll be in a hurry, but obviously will stop for anyone who calls out to her. She's freaked out, but not nearly as badly as on the island. She's trying to cope with the fact that she looks so much like Viviana Coombs, so any friends will be greatly appreciated! Oh, and those with a discerning eye will recognize the slight bump on her now.

Comments

[asharpertongue]

"Moira!" Lara shouted across the street before she could stop herself. She hadn't seen Moira in weeks...not since the cruise.

Waving, she crossed the road and wrapped Moira in a hug. "Where the hell have you been?"

[chasingtwisters]

Moira pauses at the sound of Lara's voice, turns and returns the hug right back. It has been too long since she's last seen her friends. When Lara asks how she's been, she pulls back with a pause. "Did you not get my note? I...had to get away, for a bit."

[asharpertongue]

"I did." Lara said, smiling at her friend sympathetically. "Did the break help? Cos you look exhausted."

[chasingtwisters]

"It both did and didn't," she says, sighing as she runs a hand through her hair. It strikes her that she should definitely inform Lara about her discovery on the island. "Hey, can we go somewhere? Somewhere private? I have something I need to tell you, and I really don't need the press overhearing it."

[asharpertongue]

"Of course." Lara said, taking her friends arm and leading her away from the main street. Watersong wasn't far from here and there's no way Lara's security would let anyone in without her express permission. They took the back streets in silence and only when they were safely locked inside Lara's office did Moira start to relax. "Okay. Tell me."

[chasingtwisters]

Moira lets out a sigh of relief when she catches sight of Watersong, knowing it to be one of the most secure buildings in the entire town. She follows Lara inside, clutching the piece of parchment in her hands and trying not to worry it overly much. "Well," she says, placing the paper down on the desk and nudging it towards Lara. "I had a vision, on the island. I saw into the past. And I found out what Viviana Coombs looks like."

She unfolds the paper as she speaks, revealing the portrait of the woman who could very well be her twin.

[asharpertongue]

Lara takes the picture and moves around the desk to sit with Moira. Unfolding it she blinks at the portrait. "Wow." It was the spitting image of Moira. Not just a hint of it here and there. Everything. From the arch of her brows to the curve of her ear. "That's.that's pretty damn spooky."

[jiyunnies]

She's running errands around town, making note to pick up lunch for Val who has been working tirelessly at the flower shop, when Riley thinks she glimpses a familiar figure but...no?

Riley looks again, following the hooded person a bit before she's sure. And then she lowers her voice, very much aware of the press and police's presence since the cruise.

"Moira? Moira, are you okay?"

[chasingtwisters]

Moira tenses when she hears someone following her, but instantly relaxes when she recognizes Riley. She turns around and instantly hugs her best friend, having dearly missed her on the island. For the moment, her newest dilemma is forgotten.

"Yeah, it's me," she nods. "Listen, it was shitty of me to take off like that. I'm sorry I put you and everyone on the spot like that."

[jiyunnies]

Riley hugs Moira tightly, breathing a sigh of relief that she's really returned. "Oh thank God you're okay. I mean, I know you can take care of yourself and probably need a break, but I still wrory."

She pulls away and smiles softly, reaching up to touch the ends of Moira's hair. "I like the change."

[chasingtwisters]

Moira hugs Riley just as tightly back, relieved to see her best friend again. "Yeah the island, of the non-hell variety, really did help," she admits, even as her stomach twists as images of the vision she'd had flash before her eyes.

"Thank you," she manages a smile, pleased that she noticed. "Who says blondes have more fun, right?"

[jiyunnies]

"All the Jung women are proof of that," she laughs.

"Where are you headed? It's a media storm in town..." Riley takes Moira's hand and tugs her into a less open area as a few reporters make their way through the streets. "It's been crazy."

[chasingtwisters]

"Damn right," she says. "I learned from the best."

Riley's next words cause Moira to tense. Of course. The fucking media. A circus amplified by flashing lights and assholes. And if they so much as catch wind of what Moira's recently discovered about herself, she's certain there'll be no end to it.

"It looks it," she says, wincing. "So, while I was in Scotland, I...I kind of learned something."

[ameliecoombs]

Moira had left with nothing but a note in the middle of a family crisis. To say she had been a little ticked off was an understatement, though she feels bad feeling that kind of anger towards her sister. Still, Aoife had been in hospital, Thomas has been left in the dark with hardly a clue, and Clint Harken and the newspapers have been following Amelie around like flies. She's sick and tired, and she's pissed off.

Still, when she unexpectedly sees Moira rushing through the streets, her first thought is relief. Moira is back, she's okay, and even if she did abandon them in the middle of this mess, at least she came back. She's always worried that one day Moira won't come back.

"You're here," she says dumbly when she runs into her sister. "I can't believe you left like that." She doesn't mean to say it, she means to ask how she is, how the baby is, if she's back properly, but what comes out is the opposite, and she can't hide the hurt in her voice. She's never been as good at this as Alodia.

[chasingtwisters]

Moira winces when she comes across her first family member; one of her sisters, at that. She owes them all so much, and she doesn't know how to begin to explain the feelings that drove her to leave in the first place.

"I know," she says, not at all surprised by Amelie's reaction. She's expecting worse, if she's honest with herself. "I know and I know an apology isn't going to cover it. Let me buy you a drink and at least attempt to explain."

[ameliecoombs]

She shrugs and follows Moira down the street. She doesn't know what to say. "Normally I'm the flake," she says eventually, trying for a joke. It falls flat and doesn't feel right, but at least it's something.

[chasingtwisters]

"You're not as flaky as you think, trust me," she tells her sister, offering a brief flicker of a smile at the attempt of the joke. "How about here?" She gestures to a nondescript pub-like building.

[ameliecoombs]

She nods and follows her sister inside. It doesn't escape her that she's picked a public place - they all know that no Coombs will cause a ruckus in public and she won't be able to say to Moira what she really wants to say. She goes without a word however, and figures that she'll at least let her sister say her piece before she tells her how stupid she's been.

[chasingtwisters]

Maybe she's picked a public place because she's scared of what her sister is going to say to her. She knows she has every right to yell at her, and perhaps taking that opportunity away from her is another one of her many deliberations as an older sister. She leads them to a booth in the farthest corner, tucked in away from prying eyes. She waves the waiter over, orders herself a tea and lets Amelie place her own drink order before meeting her gaze straight on.

"I don't think there's any good way to explain what I did. I panicked, and stupidly so. I ran away from my problems, and I didn't give any one more than a note about it." She sighs, running a hand through her hair. "I've been so wrapped up in my own problems, I've completely ignored the rest of the family. I don't expect an apology to magically fix things, but please know that I'm really, really fucking sorry."

[summersong]

It takes her a minute to recognize Moira, with her hood up and her newly dark hair - which Alodia desperately hopes is just a temporary crazy pregnant lady decision, because wow, so not her color - and when she does, she wishes she hadn't. She does not want to talk to Moira now, because Moira sees through her acts better than most; all she wants to do is yell at her cousin, she knows she won't be able to fake genuine pleasure at her return well enough for Moira to believe it, and, if she's honest, she doesn't particularly want to. It's too late, though; they're in public, and with the press an ever-present concern, the last thing Alodia wants to do is let anyone see her ignoring the woman everyone knows is one of her dearest friends.

"You've come back," she says, stepping in front of Moira with a smile. She gives her a quick hug, keeping up the front of family unity, but her eyes and voice are devoid of any emotion. It's the best she can do, given the circumstances. "Good. I'm sure your siblings will be thrilled to know you didn't abandon them after all."

[chasingtwisters]

Moira returns the hug with only a half a wince, which is a feat in and of itself considering how crappy she feels about how much obvious hurt she can feel in her cousin's empty embrace.

"Look, I know you want to yell at me," she says, stepping back to look Alodia in the eyes. "And you have every right to. Let's not do it here, okay? Come back to my cottage with me and yell at me to your heart's content."

[summersong]

So she feels bad after all. Good.

"Oh, no, we're not doing this here," Alodia says, flashing a chilly smile for the benefit of anyone who might be watching and turning in the direction of Moira's cottage. "You know I don't yell in public. Let's go."

She doesn't say another word all the way back to Moira's place, hopes her perpetual smile will be enough of a facade of good temper to fool any passers-by. Once they're behind closed doors, though, the smile slides away as if it had never been, replaced by a furious glare as she whirls on her cousin.

"What the fuck, Moira? Leaving without a word, and now of all times - what the hell were you thinking? Or were you even thinking at all?"

[chasingtwisters]

"Of course I do," she returns the chilly smile with a brittle one of her own before turning to lead her cousin back to her place. She makes a mental note to make both of them tea; they're going to need it, once Alodia gets her anger out of her system.

Moira makes sure the door's locked before turning to face the wrath of her cousin.

"It was damn stupid of me, yes," she says, leaning against the door. "I was thinking, just...only of myself, and it was shitty of me to do so. I'm sorry."

[summersong]

It's kind of hard to stay mad at Moira when she's so obviously sorry, but Alodia's been angry since she left and she's not letting her off that easily.

"You know what the worst part is?" she snaps. "You couldn't even tell us in person. You didn't tell me, you didn't tell Amelie, I really doubt you told Thomas or Aoife or Fabrice... We're supposed to be your family, and you just left us all to worry, in addition to dealing with the paparazzi, and the cops, and all the shit the others went through on the island. Did you bother to tell your boyfriend?" She makes a vague gesture towards Moira's stomach, where a bump is just starting to show. "Did you bother to tell anyone, or did you just leave us all that note and think that was going to cut it?"

[chasingtwisters]

Moira braces herself, but she still isn't entirely prepared for the enormity of her cousin's wrath, which she rails with as though she were erecting a barricade against some monarch of some kind. Moira winces, knowing that Alodia has every right to be so angry with her.

"No, you're right," she says, her voice quiet. "It's a stunt my mother would have pulled, and I wish I could have done it differently; hell, I wish now I'd never left at all." She winces when Alodia gestures to her stomach and mentions James, knowing that what she's about to say is only going to make things worse. "I...I did tell James. In person. I should have granted the rest of you that same courtesy."