stupetballs | penance } { ic inbox

[She emerges from solitary and school is already in session. She finds herself walking past people in uniforms and strange classroom setups and she ignores it for the time being, wanting to check on the status of her friends and pretend the last however many days didn't actually happen.

(She can't pretend. She still feels the lashes on her skin, even though they've healed. Part of her thinks that it might be a trap, designed to make her think she's free, only to drag her back in again.

Lucifer did that once or twice on the island. It wasn't fun.)

Waverly makes it to her room, and prepares to wash it all away. She touches base with Sara, but before she turns to head for the shower, she sends off a text to the group:]

I'm out. Where are you guys?

Edited 2021-02-21 00:22 (UTC)

(wynonna hasn't completely fallen into her role as a rebel yet and even if she had, if anything was going to snap her out of it, it was a text from waverly.)

i'm out walking elvis, but i was heading towards hella shorty's. should we all meet up there?

We'll be there.

[ jon is no longer the texting novice that he once was, but it's still not his preferred method of communication. and seeing as he's in their suite with her, she answers for the both of them. they're not really waiting for a response before they head on out. ]

[ relief hits him to know waverly has returned, even if there's worry at thinking of what she may have been through. punishments delivered by barbas are brutal, harsh for the smallest of offenses (let alone for one so large). they were not able to save waverly from this like they couldn't save her from the island, like they couldn't save josie from the hospital. it weighs on him.

they waste no time in heading to hella shorty's together, stepping inside. ]

Should we close the bar for the night? [ if waverly's coming here, she might not want to see many people after what she's been through, and none of them will want to run the bar at a time like this, deal with making drinks or the rest. ]

(wynonna makes her way in after them, with elvis in store, when they enter she closes the door behind her and let's elvis off the leash so he can run around a little and say hi to everyone.)

That was the plan.

(she'll need to text doc and let him know but beyond that people will have to deal with not having a bar for the night.)

[Waverly emerges from the shower and checks her phone before getting dressed to head back out again:]

omw

[See you all in about ten.]

[ elena sees waverly's text and sets her phone back down on the bar counter.

with only a light wince, she crouches down to pet elvis gently in greeting. them being a little worse for wear after their brawl with the demons doesn't make elvis any less deserving of scritches. ]

[ jon moves stiffly from his own bruises after fighting the demons, noticing elena's wince as she crouches down. his jaw locks at the reminder of their fight with the demons, at how hurt she was (how hurt they all would have been if elena hadn't healed them), at how little he could do, at how waverly still suffered despite it all.

there are a few people there at the bar, and he goes to each once, telling them the bar's closed. he gives no further details, but he makes sure they leave, leading them to the door if he has to with a gruffness to his movements and his voice with what little he says. it takes little time to clear them out. when waverly arrives, he'll lock the door behind her so no one comes in. ]

(while jon is clearing out the place and elena is giving elvis the scritches he deserves wynonna is making her way behind the bar to grab a few bottles of whiskey and four glasses because she has a feeling they will all need some alcohol. it's been A Time.

when waverly comes in however she sets that all down on a table and makes her way to her sister, wincing a little as she does so before wrapping her arms around her in a vice like grip that doubles as a hug*)*

I was so worried, baby girl.

[Waverly leans into the hug just as tightly. She looks exhausted and otherwise worn down, her usual chipper attitude is flagging under the pressure of the last few days.

She'll bounce back. She usually did. Right now, she doesn't really want to.]

Sorry. I would have called but that would have defeated the point of isolation.

[ her breath snags at the sight of waverly, even as she steps back to allow the sisters their moment. the texts alone weren't going to be enough, not until she got to see waverly in the flesh for herself. she looks at jon, that tightness still in her throat, before she turns back to them. ]

You have nothing to apologize for.

[ nothing. they're just so glad to see her, no matter the state she's in. ]

[ jon releases the breath trapped in his chest in relief at seeing here here. isolation. he swallows thick, staying near the door after he has locked it. he turns around, wanting to give the sister's their space to reunite (grateful they are able to reunite, and she wasn't trapped any longer).

he meets elena's gaze. something lodges in his chest, and he finds he doesn't have the words. it's hard to see someone he cares about, someone who has always been so bright have that light taken from her so cruelly. to know she has suffered at the hands of someone so brutal in his violence. ]

You didn't do anything wrong. And I will make him pay, I promise you.

(the promise feels empty compared to most, especially after how their recent brawl with some of the demons went, but she still feels it in her bones. no one breaks her sister's spirit like this and gets away with it.

but she finally releases waverly and takes a step back, though she's still hovering close and likely would be for a while)

[Wynonna steps away, but Waverly holds her gaze when she talks about making Barbas pay. One hand reaches out to catch her wrist, keeping her in place.]

I'm okay, Wynonna.

[Not one hundred percent the truth, but she will be. Then again, she doesn't know about the nightmares yet. All the same, she doesn't want Wynonna running off to do something reckless. Not on her behalf.]

We knew what we were getting into.

[ while wynonna and waverly finished embracing, elena stepped back to retrieve a glass of water. it's such a small and useless thing, in the grand scheme of it all, but just in case waverly might need it, it's there.

she returns with the water, and though she doesn't want to crowd wavverly, she does lightly rub at her arm while she offers her the glass. ]

That doesn't make it right.

[ that doesn't mean she deserved this. ]

[ jon finally speaks up from where he stands still by the door like he's keeping guard despite the awareness he can't do anything at all. he can't stop anything at all. if demons were to come get them again, waverly would be dragged back, wynonna would be dragged away, and elena would too- dragged away and hurt and tortured, because they didn't fall in 'line'. because of the sins already laid out on their lists.

his voice is harsh, low, rough with an edge on it. he's angry. the anger didn't go away for all that he pushed every last inch of it into the fight with the demons. ]

It isn't right. Barbas speaks of order, but what he means is oppression and cruelty. His sentences for punishment far outweigh the crimes that were committed. We all knew the risk, but risks must be taken in times such as these to do what is right.

You shouldn't have had to suffer. [ he swallows then in the aftermath of his words before his voice comes out more quietly again. ] I'm glad you're back now.

You shouldn't have had to take those risks in the first place. Lucifer, Barbas, they all want us to jump when they say when and not ask any questions or suffer in consequence and that shit isn't okay.

And we're not going to let him win.

(she's as angry as jon is, as determined as he is. as elena is. maybe their brawl didn't do anything, but it reminded her how much better it feels to fight then just toe the line.

sorry waverly, she may have went a little wynonna on things in your absence. )

[Waverly looks between her and Jon when they speak because she knows they're right. She knows that she made a choice and she would make the same choice again.

She just wishes she was feeling the confidence she needed.]

Have you heard from anyone else? I've only seen Sara so far.

[ elena shakes her head with a grave expression on her face. ]

I called Aiden and it went straight to voicemail. I'm hoping he gets back to me soon.

[ jon grows quiet again. how many people were ultimately involved in the rebellion? how many suffered consequences for it as severe as what waverly went through? barbas really believes he can torture them all into submission. and sometimes it can work for a time as the ramsays proved by their banner, by their actions. there will always be those willing to fight against it at any cost.

still. there will be much more suffering ahead.

he steps over to the bar to pour the glasses wynonna got out full. ]

Not yet but Fitz will be hearing from me soon.

(even if it's just a pointless angry voicemail because fitz is in isolation....wynonna is going to wynonna when it comes to her little sister.)

I'll have to ask Dean if he's heard from Cas yet.

[She nods because yeah, they probably won't be hearing from Fitz for a while. Her eyes go to the drinks on the bar and she makes her way closer, taking one of the full ones and knocking back as much as she can.]

The ones who were trying to free Lucifer will probably have it worse.

[Lilith, in Barbas' eyes, was the less valuable player on the chessboard.]

[ elena thinks this is a solid choice, especially as they have more bad news to break to waverly.

the thought of what they might be doing to fitz makes her blood go cold. ]

Probably, but ... it's getting worse at the hotel too, Waves. Barbas has grown more militant and turned it into a school. Anyone that steps out of line, or shows compassion to the 'wrong' person and tries to help, faces severe punishment. [ cuts, lashes. ]

[ jon fills waverly's drink once more after she's downed a good portion of it and then he sets the bottle back down. he picks up his glass to have a drink from it. his expression grim as elena describes how much worse it has become in a short period of time.

he nods as his shoulders tense. ]

If you try to stop the punishment, you get the same.

(wynonna grabs her own glass and downs a heathy amount -- there's a few reasons why she grabbed multiple bottles. they're going to need them.)

And he's making people who got tricked into marriage move in together -- with threats of chastity belts for not keeping faithful.

(not that that's going to keep her from fooling around with homelander's husband but w/e details.)

during be good children | look me in my eyes, tell me everything's not fine

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