NO

"Aw, fuck!" He muttered in disappointment as he injected one more strategically placed anesthesia shot into the flesh around the wound. "That woulda been such a great conversation piece. Slap it right there on th' kitchen table an' tell people it's yer new security system."

The nerve pain was probably incredible, but if he'd poked the places it would likely be lowered down to a muffled screaming in the next 30 seconds or so. Meanwhile he peered close into the socket, seeing that it at least looked cleaner than he'd expected.

"You know I was worried that you'd still have a knife stuck in yer face when I got here. Instead it looks a lot better than I ever woulda thought. Usually there's some uh..." How could he put this delicately. "Squishy stuff left? Cuz someone's jus' dug their thumbs in there. Or slash marks from a knife. Whoever did this... really knew what they were doin'. Get in a fight with a damn surgeon?"

He didn't really expect an answer but he was getting more curious by the moment. It wasn't the first time he'd seen an eye popped out, but it was the cleanest enucleation he'd ever treated.

"But that's good! It'll make it easier to fit th' implant in there. That's what I'm gonna do, an' maybe stitch th' eyelid closed so you won't have to worry 'bout painful blinking all day. But uhhh..."

Roka's entire experience was null for a few seconds as Worth said more and more words. Thinking about anything he was doing with her eye socket and how much it did or didn't hurt was premium.

"No. I don't think I can do that." Spoke abruptly as she stood up from the bench entirely. He'd done a lot! She could not do that!

He was used to them coming and going from the bed, so the weight didn't register, didn't wake him at first.

It was the smell that drew his senses at first, and the lingering scent of blood and medicine that clung to her. Those weren't Viktor smells, and his heart started hammering as he slowly roused. He didn't move much at first, eyes quickly adjusting to the pre-morning gloom, picking out the shape huddled across the bed from him.

The tears started again, involuntary. She'd come back? He strained his hearing-- couldn't detect Viktor in the house. Had something happened? Was he elsewhere? Did he know she was here?

He decided then that she could throw him off, yell at him, beat him to death, hate him, whatever she wanted, but he was going to hastily move to wrap himself around her, tucking his face against her shoulder, heedless of the ugly sobs that tore themselves from his chest.

Sneaking around Viktor wasn't very difficult. His hearing, smell, touch, and most of his senses were human-average at best and dull at worst. All she had to do was avoid his line of sight. He was uncanny with his vision. Still, even those, were still human-average if dialed up a couple notches and given graphic photo memory.

That said, he was in the house. Just unaware while preparing to go out at sunrise in the living room. Roka didn't know he'd go looking soon.

Roka did know she noticed Rene's vitals going wonky before the crying started. Hurt to hear. Hurt to see when he'd gotten hold of her and had face in her shoulder. She did all this. Top to bottom.

Was about when she exhaustedly lifted her head to be propped up against his that she remembered she was supposed to hit him really, really, really hard the next time she felt like bolting so she wouldn't run away. Some faint recollection of a conversation between them after the first time.

Her own sobs bubbled up out of her and didn't stop. She hadn't done anything right.

Eye taken out? Christ.

[txt] hate when those buggers just roll out like that

[txt] so rude

That did help him to figure out what to actually bring with him though. It wouldn't be the first time he had treated something like that, and while he wasn't a walking hospital he at least had some experience. And some extra local anesthetic.

He actually knew where that park was! He'd contracted at least one communicable disease there (and had a great time doing it) so he was able to pinpoint where Röka might be sitting without much trouble.

"Well, well, well!" The sound of him coming up the path towards that bench. "Couldn't see eye to eye with th' guy?"

He had no idea what had happened but hardly even thought to ask for details. He just assumed she'd gotten in some kind of fight with some rando, and they'd gone for the very thing so many other pissed off people do when melee fighting. Other than the balls, which of course took first place for cheap potshots.

If her hand was still over that eye he'd gently coax it away once he was on the bench with her, wanting to see the damage first and if it was--

"Oooh yeah..." Low and sympathetic. "That is gonzo."

But okay, he could deal with this. He had pressure bandages and even a spare little implant to stick in there while it was healing. He did get busy cleaning up the outside of the socket first, clearing off a good spot to give her some numbing.

So her only strong reaction before he got close enough to speak and ask questions was her shoulders unspooling from around her ears. He'd come into scent and aura sensing range.

"Somthin' like that." She didn't want to tell anyone what happened. Her mouth felt like the itchiness from a budding cold sore all over her lips. And, of course, the nerve pain from the severed retina was--smothering even that out for the most part. The numbing, in particular, was most appreciated of everything he started to do with her.

She didn't want to tell anyone about it. Same as with Morgan. Whenever a bit of pain managed to spike into her frontal lobe awareness, she pressed her molars hard into each other.

She didn't want to answer his question. Some professional liar code developed some long time ago and had since been retooled into these awful moments came up with, nearly without a beat missed,

[txt] gonna need at least 2000 dollars i was watching maury

[txt] what kinda help are we talking about

He tapped this out while putting some basic necessities into his backpack (and maybe a little more than basic, depending on whatever details she could give him) and wasting no time heading out the door. It was also a little worrying, the fact that she asked him to come to her. How badly was she incapacitated? Fuck.

[txt] gimme some landmarks

[txt] my eye is gone and needs some kind of idk stuff done to it

Roka didn't feel this was an unreasonable price for the situation and labor. To the question about where she was she hesitated some. Looking around with her good eye. She was still short- near-sighted with that one. There was a sign nearby for the little suburban park, but she couldn't read it too well from the bench.

But a real, non-imitation eye for their collection was pretty nice, too.

Envy licked their lips, staring hard at that eye. The big downside was that this was truly a commitment to stirring up shit. They couldn't ask Röka to claim Envy wasn't the one that took it; everyone would see right through that. Who else could it be?

Röka wasn't asking for anything in return. She wasn't taking the steps to formalize a proper deal. A proper deal could be some insurance; done deal, no need to go after Envy, because Röka exchanged an eye for guaranteed safety! Everyone would hate that, but possibly let it go for now.

Envy COULD offer her some kind of proper handshake, get this shit signed. Keep the heat low.

But they just....didn't...fucking care.

Envy's smile vanished, completely stonefaced as they held Röka's eyelids open with one hand, and tore that eye out with another, with swift, surgical precision. It happened too fast to register the shapeshifting involved, and Röka likely wouldn't appreciate how kind and generous they were to carefully detach the eye and leave all the muscles behind intact. Well, intact enough, but Envy wasn't about to stitch up the wounds. Bleed for all they cared.

Their smile returned as they sat up and admired their prize, before shoving it into their own head, popping it into a newly-shifted socket, and reattaching the optic nerve to their own system. Turned it to face Röka. "I've always wanted a natural purple, thanks sweetie~"

On an impulse, they took Röka's chin in a vice-grip, and leaned down to kiss her. Just to try it. Just for a little taste. They were feeling powerful, they were feeling in-charge. God, they missed this. They could just keep her, no one would know.

Eye pain and nose tip pain are the sort that make one reflexively cry from eyes watering. Not a lot of getting around it. At least for her. She'd been knocked out when the glass landed. The flavor of ouch was new.

Smelling and feeling her own blood wasn't new.

The kiss was worse. No sense of control to that. She didn't agree to that. Wanted to bite. Bite hard. Didn't. The impulse dying under the crushing pressure of her trauma telling her 'don't, it'll be worse'. Biting him had always made it all worse.

Hated herself for not by the time Envy got off her.

Roka pressed hands into her eye socket while popping upright into sitting, turned away. Hunched. Teeth grinding and feeling fucking small. Envy seemed done. They'd leave.

All she had left to do was get up and walk. Was the only concept she managed to get out of the mental high pitched tinnitus like ringing. Needed medical attention. She didn't know any field dressing for this.

Envy traced a clawed finger on Röka's face along that facial scar, leaving a very fine pink line. If she was wearing the eyepatch, they'd snag it and drag it off. Very delicately, they placed their claws around the pale eye. Better not fidget about too much! "I could take this, since you have no better ideas."

Envy was trying to take away that choice. She wasn't big on that.

Couldn't help trying to hard kick her heel into the ground while the claw was there near her eye. She couldn't see a ton with that eye. Mostly shapes and light and colors. Not very defined. Gave her a bit of a headache to leave it uncovered sometimes. Only reason the eye ever made it to this point in her life was the medical robot's efforts to repair it and the brain damage when the technology and magic got advanced enough to revive her out of the fucked up magi-medical coma.

It's a lost cat life situation. Should have lost her life and should have lost the eye. Should at least be pretty close to a vegetable. Was for a few years of rehabilitation.

Did still when the claws prickled the skin around the eye. "Take it, then." She hissed out. Did she want them to take it? No. But if it'd get them to stop and get bored and leave then fucking take it. She could live without it. Take it.

Everything they didn't have, more or less! They're not THAT hard to please. They'd claim. But once you got them something, they'd probably complain endlessly about it, or simply keep asking for more and more and more.

"But what can Röka, specifically, do for me? That's the real question..." Plenty of things they would like to ask Röka for that she'd never agree to. Probably couldn't use her to get access to other people. Probably couldn't get her to do interpersonal sabotage unless they packaged it just right.

"First, I'd love a little eye contact."

They took Röka's face in their hands with that. Where you looking? There's nothing exciting over there.

She didn't want to look at them. That close, however, there's not a lot of avoiding. Eye corners were damp. She really hated this. She couldn't hardly move. They were too fucking close. Kept thinking about Cougar in flashbang flashes she couldn't stop.

But when something was served to them on a silver platter like this, it was so hard to resist. Why SHOULD they hold back? Nobody had to know.

And so what if they did know? Envy just had to be smarter and faster.

“Ohh, Röka! I’m talking to you. Don’t play with your knives while I’m trying to have an adult conversation.” They hardly felt it, just dripping paltry amounts of green-black tar. What a day to leave the house without a feather dagger. Poor thing. “What do you say? Are you ready to die? Or perhaps you’d like to propose a deal?”

When they had her pinned (easy once they brought out extra arms!), they loosened their grip on her hair, combing through it softly, almost like an apology for the rough handling. Couldn’t be ruining her poor scalp, they’d heard about these Devangs difficult relationships with their hair. Would be a shame to fuck with that more.

“I’m pretty generous, you know…I gave Lark a whole new body, and all I asked in return was a little time possessing him.”

In a manner of speaking. Don’t worry about it.

Not sitting still in the gripping hands at all. Decidedly not looking at them.

Punching doesn't ACTUALLY usually really super work on Envy. They're like...a cardinal sin? And sure, they often sacrificed strength for subterfuge; shapeshift too small and they leave a lot of their power stored away someplace else. They'd also sacrifice to be in-host, for the sake of being unseen.

They weren't in-host.

That was a weak punch.

The eye flinched shut, and they twisted their fingers deeper in her hair, yanked, and gave a hard kick at the back of one of her knees. Hard enough that it could break something, if she got real unlucky. They weren't necessarily going for that, but they weren't pulling their punches (kicks) either. "Cute haircut, by the way! I like how you left just enough to use as a leash."

She was just a supernatural person. With training to mostly get out of a situation she couldn't win. Or turn that power around and away from herself. Not a lot of opportunity to pull that off here. Not that she didn't try a few different ways.

The flinch was enough for her to pull a knife. It's small. One of those bay leaf like ones she kept in her sleeves with their small little wrapped handles. Hiltless. More for a quick slash or throw than anything hand-to-hand. First instinct was to use it to cut off her hair at the point of contact with his hand. (Then run.)

Didn't get that far. That's her knee! Envy had learned something about fighting 'devang' types. Interrupted herself with a harsh nasally grunt as the leg went out from under her. Didn't break, but it was certainly sprained enough to deeply hinder her ability to run even if she could.

This is real bad. She shoved everything down. Didn't stop her from breathing too fast and too hard, her pupils from blowing out huge, nor steady her hands. Did let her stab. And get in her licks with her fists. Try to grapple her way out of getting pinnned.

They were stretchy and Envy's body didn't work right. Too much give. Not enough. Center of gravity kept shifting around. Already exhausted from her stupid panicked dash to nowhere. She ended up pinned.

They'd try. Maybe fail, like last time.

Envy reached out and grabbed Röka's hair.

"Or, I could take you out. No breakup required."

They shifted to their own form; green and covered in a collection of other people's eyes. But most of them belonged to Envy, all different shades of green. They could never quite find the right hue.

"You were so kind as to take yourself out into the wilderness where nobody will find you! Real pretty, too. Nice place to die."

She was thinking about the situation at home. Not sure if she'd break up with them once she got there. Only that maybe she might have to if she couldn't work it out. Mostly, trying to put together her feelings and thoughts into words she could give them. Like how, more and more, she was finding it hard to trust. That maybe it might be best for her to separate into her own space. Where she didn't have to contend with more than one situation at a time--one person at a time. Could figure out where her own boundaries were. She wasn't used to having any. Span of her life was mostly having her boundaries mean nothing or get aggressively crossed.

Maybe she wasn't ready to be in relati--

People loved her though, and Envy hated that. People loved her, and she didn't fucking appreciate what she had.

Well, worked out for Envy. Röka wouldn't be competition.

"Then what? You try to move out, they put you on suicide watch?"