Nous chassons ceux qui nous chassent

I’ll try my best. [She gave him a smile but knew that it was a weak imitation of her usual grin.] This town seems to make everyone “out of it”. [She wanted to flinch again at his words. She was about to do something else she thought was right, she wondered how much it was going to blow up in her face.] I’m tired of death. Something tells me the only way to solve what’s going on is more death as much as i know that it maybe the only way I’m tired of it. …. Go on vacation with me … when this is over I am totally paying for a vacation for everyone … you should come too.

Not quite there but it's better than nothing. [He gave her a genuine smile and gave her hand a squeeze] Yeah it does. Nothing like Beacon Hills to really mess you up. [Ric noticed something seemed off but didn't comment on it] I am too. It's never really been one of my favorite things. You really think so? You don't think they can be reasoned with or something? A vacation? I don't even remember the last time I was on one. It sounds like a pretty brilliant plan to me.

I hadn’t even realized that I was .. Well, I suppose I thank you for noticing. At least someone has, I guess, granted I haven’t really been around anyone else who pays that close attention. [Tori flinched lightly and ducked her head.] I feel like a horrible person. If it were me, if someone had killed Effy or Alexander I’d want to know right away as well. You’re a better person than me, Ric. I don’t think I’d be able to stand it if someone killed someone I loved and then walked around like nothing changed.

I'm sure you didn't. But it's alright as long as you bring that beautiful smile of yours back soon. I've been pretty out of it too so don't even worry about it. [He frowned and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze] You're not. You were only doing what you thought was right. No, I'm really not Tori. I just know that as much self satisfaction it would bring me to see his killer dead by my hands, I know how much doing it would hurt other people, people I care about. So I won't do it. There's a lot of deaths I should be avenging but I've realized that it would be a mistake to try to take vengeance. At least right now.

Oh? Like what? … I found out who killed Antoine and I didn’t tell her right away because I was afraid she’d do something rash. I should’ve known better of course because Jacqueline always thinks things through. [She smiled back at him, her thumb brushing against his hand lightly.]

Your smile hasn't quite been reaching your eyes. It's still a smile but more of a polite, I usually smile so I should smile, kind of thing. Normally it's bright and full of happiness. [Ric sighed but nodded his head.] I don't know her very well but I would have thought the same thing. When I found out who killed my brother I thought about that. But then I thought better and held myself back.

Damn, and I thought I was hiding it so well. Yeah, kind of … Jacqueline’s mad at me, not that I blame her. [She breathed out a laugh and caught his hand giving it a light squeeze.]

Maybe from other people. But I've noticed certain things about you that have just been a bit off lately. Oh? Jacq seems like she gets mad easily though. What'd you do? [He smiled at her and laced his fingers through hers]

I haven’t really been very me lately I’m afraid. Been kind of … out of it I suppose. [She rested her cheek on her fist and wrinkled her nose lightly at him playfully.]

I've noticed. I didn't say anything but yeah, I can tell. Is it about everything going on? [He reached out and tapped her nose with a grin]

Would you believe me if I said I actually don’t know? I told the bartender to surprise me. [She smiled faintly and signaled for another drink.]

I would. But I'd also say that sounds highly unlike you. [He waves for the bartender to bring him a drink as well]

Woah there. What do you have in the glass?

"It’s writen. It’s on paper." she would know. Nikita had read it over and over when she’d finally had the courage to on her flight back to Beacon hills. "He couldn’t take not having my mum. he couldn’t take thinking I’d run away because I hated him and in a way I did. If I had stayed at home, if I hadn’t of gone off on this stupid Artemis’ hunter crusade, then my dad would still be here." She hated that her eyes burned with unshed tears, hated the way she had to keep stopping because her throat felt so tight. "I went back and I said I would never do that. I got to hear about a woman in love with my dad, who hated my mother, wanted to be my own mother. I saw the one friend I ever had, and she thought  hatr. She told me I push peopel away, that I make people not like me because I’m always thinking the worst of them. My dad’s gone because he thouht I hated him. n town kept tellin me I had changed, that I wasn’t the same, they wondered what happeend to me. And they made it sound so bad."

Ric continued to hold her close to him trying to keep the girl who usually seemed so strong, so sure of herself, together. It wasn't something he thought he'd ever really see. At least not now, not this way. "Nikita, that's not the way to think. When someone writes down their last thoughts they aren't really in a sane frame of mind. Anything they write isn't written with their whole consciousness in it." He could feel pain for the young girl welling up in his chest. Her situation was a small bit like his and he wouldn't let her blame herself for things she couldn't know. For the inevitable what ifs that came along with the death of someone who meant so much to someone else. "You cannot focus on the what ifs. You live in the present, not the past. Nothing changes there. You don't know that he would be. Maybe if you didn't go then something else could have happened but you can't let that rule your life. The moment I got here, hell the whole fucking way here that was all I thought about. What if I didn't leave? What if I would have come home sooner? Would Chris still be alive? What if I never went into that forest by myself. But thinking like that is a poison. The past is the past for a reason. You can't change it even if you wanted to."

Ric was still for a few seconds. Letting her words sink in as she continued on.  That's why she had left. Of course she wasn't going to tell anyone that's why she was gone. Especially if he had... if he had gone like that. Ric carefully reached out and wrapped an arm around the young girls shoulders, pulling her into his side. He took a deep breath and pulled her as close as he could, putting a hand on the top of her head and smoothing her hair, trying to comfort her. "Shhh. Nikita. That is not your fault. You couldn't have known. There was no way. Don't go blaming yourself for something like that. Why would you even think for a second that something like that could be your fault? People make their own decisions whether they are good or bad, at the end of the day they are their own and no one else's." Ric bit his lip, his thoughts trailing to his sister-in-law for a few seconds before he pushed them away, bringing them back to the situation at hand.

Awww, all that for me? You shouldn’t have, sandy.

Well I'm not going to eat it all so I'm more than willing to share but I can't say I even have a clue of who you are. Care to tell me?

"She’s my friend." Her tone was a warning. The topic was still sensitive and, like most problems, Nikita chose to ignore it all together hoping to have it disappear eventually. "Don’t give me that look. That’st he look that says you want to ask me something but you wont because you don’t think I can handle it." Rather than acknowledge his last words, she scoffed and curled farther in on herself. An uncomfortable, pregnant silence settled before she finally couldn’t take it and let out a biting laugh. "Yeah, I’m just so fucking lucky. so lucky, Ric. You cou’dn’t even imagine how lucky I am. My whole life is a lie and I’m ecstatic because I am so lucky."

Ric held up his hands and sighed. "Noted. I won't bring it up again." He mentally cursed at himself. Looks like there was yet another reason he couldn't kill the blonde bitch. He hadn't exactly meant to give her a look but he guessed it probably happened subconsciously. A sigh left him and he ran his fingers through his hair. "I just want to give you time is all. Not that I don't think you can handle it. Just that I want you to want to talk. That's all. I told you I'd never push you about this." He noticed the silence that settled over them and it was a bit uncomfortable. These kinds of silences almost never happened between the two and it made him uneasy. Before he could say anything she already had. "Woah, woah. Hold up there. You might need to explain a little. I was only saying that I care about you Niks, a lot."

"For once," echoed her voice, hollow and thoughtful all at once. "Celina? Of course she would. She’s the type. I guess I can’t even be mad because she got you a girlfriend and I mean she did help me get ready for prom while I was freaking out in a very embarrassing manner." One corner of her lips rose in an unconvincing half smile and she leant slightly into his touch, trying to show that she was okay even if she wasn’t. It as a process. If she just told herself that she was okay, then eventually she would be. "And nothing. I don’t know where I was going with that. No you’d be great. You’d be perfect. Those kids would be lucky to have you as their dad. Anyone would be lucky to have you care about them at all."

"Besides, it seems like you already had it mostly figured out. I didn't realize she said that when she called you." He shrugged. "Oh she's more than the type. She's..." He thought about saying exactly what he felt for the blonde wolf but he dialed it back a bit. "She's definitely something alright. Glad she helped you out though." He raised an eyebrow at the look on her face but let it slide for now. She needed to work out whatever she was working out at her own pace. He would just be there to give her a nudge every so often and not let her fall into a dark place. "Uh huh. You expect me to believe that one. I don't know about great but I'd do my best. You're too kind Nikita. I guess that makes you a pretty lucky person then doesn't it?"

"Yeah, okay, and I’m destined to be the next Virgin Mary." She rolled her eyes playfully but a sad feeling settled over her making the smile that turned the corners of her lips up ever so slightly fall faster than it had ever appeared. "I told you that you needed to get a girlfriend and you got one. Oh, Artemis, you better not get married. Because then you’d do the whole family thing and have kids and               " and you’d love them like my dad maybe loved me, but never showed and you’d replace me with them and I’d be alone. Again.

He shook his head and smiled at her. "Hey! I'm telling the truth for once." He went to continue but noticed the smile he'd brought to her face vanish and he felt his heart ache a little. "I guess that's sort of what I did yeah. But you can thank Celina for that one. If she hadn't dared Tori to kiss me we'd still be awkwardly running into each other and not much else." He gave her a small smile and rested his hand on her shoulder. "If we do that would be so far away Niks. We've got to worry about things here first." He gave her shoulder a soft squeeze. "And? It wouldn't be that bad. But I don't really know the first think about kids. I held Allison once and I thought I was going to break her. I like my kids tougher than that."

Her eyebrow rose of its own accord. “I leave for a week and you get a girlfriend? And I’m the one that got yelled at? I should definitely be telling you to be safe and make wise decisions and don’t rush. I’m too young to be an aunt.”

He can't help the laugh that comes out of him. "No, trust me. It's been much longer than a week. We just haven't been openly showing it to everyone. Who knows what people will think? And Tori's not my girlfriend. At least not yet. I don't know if she even wants to label us or whatever we have. " He shook his head and took a seat next to Nikita ruffling her hair a bit.

Dark eyes narrowed sceptically at his comment but she readily ignored delving deeper into the situation. “I don’t know. What is this world coming to when I get calls from very pretty of age Royal werewolves that tell me to make sure I don’t worry you. Very pretty of age Royal werewolves that I was not aware that you had any sort of relationship with. Ahem.”

Ric raised an eyebrow but couldn't help the sheepish grim that took over his face. "I dunno. Seems like that sounds like a perfectly logical thing to be worried about." He scratched the back of his neck nervously. "I mean can't someone be worried about someone else without it having to be a thing? Plus I don't even know if we are a thing. "

Watching Ric from teh couch, Nikita drew her knees up to her chest, pushing her body farther beneath the blanket that covered her. Her eyes had long ago left the TV screen. “So,” she started awkwardly, Allison’s words ringing in her mind, “what’s up?”

He turned to look at the girl sitting on the couch with a small smile. But it meant a lot more than it showed. He was just glad to have her back here in one piece. He wasn't going to push her though. Not after having to go back there. "Does anything have to be up? I can't just miss you and share a pizza with you? What's this world coming to?"