chrysopteron | (no subject)

Charles is working on his presentation notes when she enters and is almost knocked over by her emotion.

Bar disappears his work as he rushes out the door and starts searching the sky for Iris.

Edited 2012-06-02 21:58 (UTC)

The surest way for Charles to find Iris is most likely approaching wherever her myriad inchoate thoughts seem strongest, for she is flying as though Zephyr himself were under her wings.

Mostly it is all a mass of furious crimsons and stormy greys.

If she goes fast enough, she will escape the lunacy of it.

He closes his eyes and reaches out to her with his mind as he stands near the lakeside,

Iris, what happened?

She's moving so quickly that he has to focus to find her.

Still no directed response, but the images start coming forward - lady Hera and lady Artemis and a bear, railing in its grief --

The images are vivid and troubling so he raises his mental voice. Iris!

For a fearful split-second, Iris thinks back: Yes, my lady Hera?

But no.

That doesn't make sense.

That was not the reaction he expected and he takes a moment to rethink how to address her,

It's Charles. I felt you enter and wanted to help.

You can't.

Unwittingly, Iris starts to slow, somewhere over the far side of the lake.

Can I do anything?

There must be something he can do and his worry and concern go through the connection.

No.

When Iris circles back to the near side of the lake, closer to Charles then, she touches down windswept and cheeks reddened from flight.

"Kallisto. She's dead - do you know of her? Did you - was she remembered?"

The no hurts and he watches her fly back, not certain if he should approach or not,

"Yes, she is and the constellation connected to her."

"She has been killed by the lady Artemis when it was Zeus - she did not do anything! Why was it necessary to - " Iris is pacing now, all energy and restlessness and attitude and upset. " - kill her. One god lifts up, another god destroys, puts in the ground what should be protected."

Looking at Charles then for the first time, Iris' eyes are dark brown-black. "You cannot do anything. They would do the same to you. Lord Zeus can quietly mourn those he loves and loses but I cannot -- "

"I don't know. I wish I could tell you a reason why but I'm here now,"

He steps a touch closer to her, he knows there's nothing he can say that will truly help. The world of the gods is as unfair as the world of men.

Edited 2012-06-02 22:29 (UTC)

"I used to not care. Charles I turned away from this."

This is not the first time the lady Hera has acted so...so cruelly.

But now is different.

And Iris sees Charles coming towards her - so slowly, is he afraid of me? - and even in her anger he is still a balm to Iris' spirit.

There's no fear only concern, he doesn't want to hurt her, "But now you see it? What changed?"

"You!"

He stops before asking, "Should I leave?"

"...What?"

Helpfully enough, Iris' confusion at least gets her down from talking a mile a minute.

"If knowing you has changed you in a way you don't like then I'll leave, Iris,"

It's not something he wants to do but he'll go if she tells him to.

"You leave and I'll follow." It's sharp. Sharper than she intends, but the spike of panic behind the words supports that Iris is very much against the idea of Charles leaving her.

He reaches for her hand,

"Then know I'm here and talk to me, please. I can listen and hold you."

Iris keeps her hand in Charles' even when she wants to snap at him. Words? her mind asks desperately. "What words might I offer? They did not aid Kallisto as she begged lady Hera and I do not know what good they might offer now."

As she snaps, he stands and squeezes her hand, there's so little he can give,

"Your feelings are important. I don't know if anything can change but sometimes talking can help or not. I don't know what to do to help you, Iris."

He doesn't get it.

You misunderstand me.

in all of this --- the fact i can say anything here to you to myself fly about in anger

I am feeling here.

at home it would be locked away in my raindrops and grief and Yes, my lady Hera? is my only reply to her she who has killed someone who sinned against her but not against Zeus himself

I can react here, Charles. You cannot help me. But you are.

"Oh,"

That's more than he expected and it hurts to know she can't react properly in her world.