Wishin' and Hopin'

Location: Poe family house
Date: 16th of April
Time: After dinner
Outfit: Link
Topic for: @Maeve - portraying Maeve's parents.
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As always Cecilia found herself jumping from house to house, place to place with the world on her shoulders, just in hopes of making someone's life a little less chaotic. She had spent so many days at the Nelson house since Eden had died, helping the kids since their father was nowhere to be found. The waves of grief never set to settle on her, but at least helping them seemed to take her mind from what went on in her own family. As Lucas like to remind her, she didn't have to carry the weight on the world on her shoulders, and yet it was so easy to do. Cecilia had tried to visit her aunt and uncle as often as she could, giving them a friendly face to look at that understood what they were going through. She saw her aunt at work, but it was also a work relationship when it came to that and they were both good at that - switching off from what went on in your own life was a skill you mastered in that line of work. Cecilia took a right turn towards the Poe' house. It was a different neighborhood than Cecilia's where the houses were so close to each other, so tall and slim, very English if you asked Cecilia. She liked it, but she would never be able to live like that herself.

Cecilia parked in the driveway and took a deeper breath in, before stepping out of the car. She knew the boys were at her parent's house, giving Cecilia's aunt and uncle moments to actually just be able to cry or scream if they had to. They all needed to cry and scream once in a while, with all the worry and fear being spread around as months past with nothing to look forward at. The only thing Cecilia could do was hope, and follow the gut feeling that told her that it would be alright one day, at least some version of alright. Cecilia walked up to the door and knocked a few times, she had texted few hours ago that she would swing by. So, she lightly opened the door after her knocks, so they knew it was her. The room house felt empty, and sad like all the life had been dragged out of it. It was just like in the Nelson house, the dread hanging in the room could almost knock you out. She took a deeper breath in and took her shoes off before walking into the living room. "Hey," she greeted her aunt first giving her a hug, followed by giving her uncle the same greeting. "Good to see you, sorry it has been a while," she apologized with a warmer smile, yet the sadness spoke in her eyes. Delilah knew the hospital had lost Eden, who was a part of Cecilia's doctor team.

Other than Cecilia's father being in the police and Evelina had been working the case as well. She didn't get the same updates as her aunt and uncle did. Even through Cecilia had seen more than they had in some ways, which was the scary part, she knew more about this world than they did, and she couldn't tell them. Yet, all she wanted to do was telling them about it, making some sense into this madness, but also knew it would cause even more worry. What was it two months since Cecilia's accident by now, two months since she had been the one with her life hanging by a tread and it seemed like years ago? All the chaos this year, and it only seemed to be getting worse day by day. At least she had Lucas to keep her grounded, and her friends. Facing her family was another thing, it was like looking at the Nelson kids that were so much closer to the damage than she was, so much pain and tragedy. Cecilia allowed herself to sit down in the couch and breathe out for a second. It had been quite a long day already.

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Delilah Poe had paced the combined living room and kitchen for the past time awaiting the arrival of her dearest niece, an arm crossed over her torso, supporting the elbow of her other arm which unconsciously was stroking its fingers over the bare skin of her throat. It seemed that she couldn’t do much of anything besides that, so when the knock finally sounded from the cramped entrance and hallway, she was quick to look up, similarly to what the slim black cat by the couch did.
Firstly she looked towards the door and then to her husband, who had stood up from one of the chairs around the dinner table, meeting her eyes before hearing the sound of the door opening, both giving her a sense of relief that it wasn’t anyone waiting for the family to open the door and be greeted with bad news but also a vague feeling of setback that it wasn’t the police bringing good news either. She then walked to meet Cecilia in the doorway as she stepped inside. “Cecilia. It’s good to see you too, dear,” she greeted her after giving the young woman a tighter squeeze before pulling back and while holding her in arms-length by the shoulder, she took her in with a warm, yet somewhat half-hearted smile. “Such a beautiful woman you’ve grown into. Even more for every time I see you. Let me get you something to drink.” With that she gave a reassuring nod, but if it was for Cecilia or more for herself was a bit blurry, as the smile faded already the moment she let go of her niece and looked away to walk to the kitchen.
Luckily, Cecilia would be met with the more mellow and soft man in glasses giving her yet another comforting hug and smile. “How have you been?” he asked, having seen even less to her than his wife had at the hospital. For the past few month, Benjamin Poe hadn’t been commuting all the way to England for his job. Instead he had worked from one, doing his lectures online, which meant he to some extent had been stuck inside the family home and not really getting much out. Especially his beard was a sign of this, not getting too long but it had become a bit more scruffy. And his woolen loafers were now the most worn pairs of shoes.

Benjamin followed Cecilia to the couch and sat down in the old, matching armchair by the wall next to the couch. “We should apologize for having you come all the way here. We can’t risk holding up the house line in case… in case the station calls with news. I’m sure you understand. We really appreciate the visit, though. The boys miss you too. They actually asked if you’d be at your parents too when we told them they’d be staying there for the night,” he explained as he leaned forward in the chair, resting his elbows on his knees and knitting his hands and looked at her. Compared to his wife, Benjamin was a lot less hectic. Spoke with a calmer tone - one that might have the ability to have some students of his fall asleep when holding dry and heavy lectures. Benjamin Poe was anything but an intimidating man.
Beside Cecilia, on the broad armrest of the couch, the large black cat was still laying all comfortable on its side. Its head held up and eyes looking at her as well while its long tail whipping casually back and forth. From the kitchen there were sound of a kettle beginning to bowl as well as scrambling with porcelain mugs and metal spoons and crumbling of good quality bags of loose tea.

It was perhaps the greatest family trait, to be able to give someone else a warm smile and be kind, even when you were hurting so badly as everyone in this household were. Nothingness, Cecilia couldn't help but smile by the compliment and nodded a bit as her aunt excused herself to the kitchen. Strangers had often assumed Cecilia and Maeve to be sisters, not just cousin because of their big dark doe eyes - and Cecilia could imagine it being slightly hard looking into Cecilia's eyes in times like this. It was tough and she didn't judge them for having lost at least a little bit of hope. Cecilia knew if she first set her mind to the hopelessness, not even Lucas would be able to dig her up from that pit, so she didn't even dare visit that part of her mind. How have you been? She took a slightly deeper breath in and cleared her throat a bit before replying. "Have been better, but I manage," she confirmed on the next exhale just before she had headed to the couch.

Cecilia took a deeper breath in and turned her doe eyes to her uncle as he once again spoke to her and she listened. "I understand," she replied with a warmer smile. She herself had spent the first month looking at her phone every other second in case she had someone call her or anything like that about news - good or bad. Due latest events, she just hadn't had run out of hours to worry in, and the last thing she wished to happen was losing herself in the chaos. "Yeah, I talked to my mum earlier today she mentioned them coming over. I miss them as well, perhaps I can take them to the park one of the upcoming days," she suggested and ran her hand through her hair. "I was in the area anyways, I've been looking out for Eden Nelson's children since she passed away - ," she sighed a bit thinking about the loss of her dear friend. Still feeling guilty she hadn't been fast enough to get Remiel to the crime scene before the kill had happened. What good did powers like Cecilia's do when she couldn't help anyone either way? "How are you holding up? I mean.. considering everything," she asked while taking a deeper breath in, she knew nothing was good. Nothing was alright or going to be fine till they got Maeve home again - she knew that, and knowing Cecilia, all she wanted was to know if they got enough sleep, did they remember to eat and simply just breathe. Of course she wanted to ask if there was any news, but she also knew they would get around to that if they had learned anything new.

Benjamin smiled again at the suggestion to bring the young of the Poe family to the park one day, vague tilting his head up and down in somewhat of an pre-verbal agreement. “You’re more than welcome. They don’t get to go play as much since Delilah and I don’t have as much time on our hands. But they’re strong boys. They know how to entertain themselves for the most parts. Sawyer is even attempting to build a dog house in the garden for a school project.” There was no doubt that there was a very heavy atmosphere and a horrible feel of constant worry and stress hanging over the home and no one would deny that the situation was gnarring at every single family member. But it was important to not let it outweigh everything else. It was in these times it was best to not forget the rest of the world around them. He found a sense of happiness in how his other children weren’t completely affected by the missing of another. He found happiness in seeing them not worrying like he and his wife did every hour, every minute, every second did. And so did Delilah, although she had a harder time staying calm and not let terrible thoughts plague her mind. That was where the couple’s strength together was most apparent.

“Ah. I heard about that. Delilah told me. I’m very sorry to hear about that,” he said with genuine empathy. He remember the day. How it had spiraled his wife into a hysteria of ’What if our daughter is dead too?’ and ultimately brought him with. It was hard. And you truly couldn’t be prepared for something like it. Death was one thing, but kidnapping was possibly worse for the relatives of the victim; not knowing what was happening to them, if they were still alive or what was done to them. The Poe’s were such an ordinary family too. Neither so poor for someone to think no one would take a missing family member serious, nor rich and capable of paying hefty ransoms.
Just as he was about to bring her in on just how he had been doing, his mouth already open, Delilah joined them in the couch and TV corner, steaming mug in hand, and he automatically turned his head to look up at her, making sure to check up on his better half before looking back to Cecilia and answering. “It’s been tough. I still can’t wrap my head around why someone would do such a thing to Maeve. But I have hope - we both have -..” He glanced to his wife once again, meeting her eyes for a moment. “.. that she’ll come home and be safe soon.” As he spoke, Delilah handed over the mug of brewed tea to her niece, though she chose to stay standing rather than sitting down immediately. She wrapped her thin cardigan tighter around herself, crossing her arms and pushing her hands in under them. Her shoulders were visibly tense. Actually her whole body was tense. Even her jaw was slightly clenched. A lot like Maeve, her sadness came by nature across a little aggressive in her face. Frustration pushing the fright back.

“Tell her about the news,” Delilah spoke up gesturing between her husband and her niece and despite having given the responsibility to convey it over to her husband she continued: “They think they’ve found another lead of sorts.”

Cecilia was glad that they had managed to shield the boys a little from the chaos, they were too young to carry this heavy burden of loss. It was the last thing she wanted them to deal with, but they were strong, resilient just like the rest of the family. Hanging on despite it all. She smiled by the mentioning of Sawyer building a doghouse, keeping themselves busy when it was hard, another family trait. And she would love to take the boys outside, perhaps she could even call Irina, there was no doubt that Mila wouldn't love to play with Collin. "I'll have to come by soon again, so he can show me," she chuckled a bit keeping her smile lightly on her lips. Usually, she knew Ethan would have been all over it helping with designing the construction so it could be perfect. Shortly Cecilia eyed the black cat and took a deeper breath in letting it sniff her hand, she reckoned that the scent of Lucas was affecting the cat, making it a little curious. The doe eyes returned to her uncle again, to the mentioning of Eden. "Yeah, me too," she breathed out. Cecilia had countless times theorized about how Maeve was, if she was dead or alive, what to expect and every time she went out on that spiral she was always blessed with nightmares the following night. The not knowing had been and still was dreadful, and just sitting still feeling anxious every time the phone rang. She had already tried everything in her power to help but had come up with nothing. They needed closure; they all deserved a little bit of closure. Cecilia didn't care much for herself in that matter, dealing with her own trauma seemed to be push down on the list of things she should worry and care for. Hopefully one day she would be able to pick it up from the box and have the time to deal with it.

She turned her eyes to her aunt as she entered the room again, giving her a comforting smile. Cecilia made sure to move a little to the side if her aunt wanted to join them in the couch and breathed out listening to her uncle's reply. Yeah, Cecilia had a hard time wrapping her head around that as well, just another thing she still was processing. But I have hope - we both have, she nodded a bit and breathed out. "There is always hope, I haven't lost it either," she replied in an almost whisper, lifting her lips in a small smile. Mostly she had been spending time with the archangel of Hope, she knew he had promised to hold an eye out for something. "She will," she said while taking a deeper breath in, "she will come home." Cecilia believed her own words, and she had to believe them after the horrors she had seen. All she wanted was for Maeve to come home and be safe. Cecilia took the mug of tea and sighed a bit, as she took a deeper breath in. She watched as her aunt wrapped herself in the cardigan as a sign of needing some sort of comfort. It was like watching Maeve, making Cecilia's emotions raise a little on the surface, but she tugged them back, at least for now.

Tell her about the news, Cecilia frowned a bit and her eyes moved to look at her uncle once again, what news? However, her dearest aunt quickly spilled the news before her uncle had the chance. Another lead? "What sort of lead?" She asked, curiously and lifted the mug up blowing softly at the mug and felt the steam on her face. Cecilia was sceptic about all new leads, mostly because she didn't know them, and the unknown wasn't a place she liked. Cecilia also didn't want to ask to many questions knowing it could be overwhelming to try answering them all. So, she made the choice to just let them speak.

“That’s good. Hold on to that.” Benjamin moved a bit farther out on the edges of the chair and reach out to put a comforting hand upon his knee. There was so little concrete they could do for one another. This would never be easy no matter what was done. His smile grew yet again as she repeated what they all hope and somewhere deep down knew and needed. “Maeve is a strong girl as I’m sure you’d know best. If we don’t find her quickly enough she’ll just do it herself. She always did so when the two of you and your brother was playing hide-and-seek when you were all but little kids.”
Cecilia reminded the couple of their daughter. They looked so much alike and even had been difficult to differentiate between the two when they were small, both with their dark hair and wondrous eyes. Hadn’t Maeve always been smaller or hadn’t Cecilia had more colour to her skin or hadn’t the two’s personalities been distinct already back then, they wouldn’t have had any chances of picking out who was who. Yet it didn’t make it hard to have her around. If anything it was a sort of amenity.

Benjamin removed his hand from her knee and pulled back again in the chair, but he stayed positioned angled towards her in the couch. He cleared his throat with a half-intended closed-mouth cough. Of course, it wasn’t a matter of if they really should be telling Cecilia. It was a given to let her know whatever they knew. But... “This man who took Maeve, the police called in the other day about how someone has left an anonymous tip revolving him that points strongly towards that he’s keeping her within the country,” he started revealing after a short period of contemplating silence. However he fell into another pause before continuing. “Which also means that any search parties outside of Gaia has been laid off the case and isn’t helping the police force here anymore.” A tough pill to shallow, that was what it was! It felt like any good news now a days had to also bring with it some bad news to balance it out. “All because of some faceless witness claims they saw him wandering the streets of Southside last week. It’s possible this tip comes from the man himself, trying to throw off the investigating further!” Delilah shot into the conversation and not really supressing her dismay about it, which quickly had her husband turn to her and hold a calm hand up. “We.. don’t know that. The police says it’s legitimate and they the tip matches with what they already know about the man. He was a resident of Southside after all.” He kept mainly addressing the things to Cecilia as he also looked right back at her after having halted his wife in making matters potentially worse. They shouldn’t be creating conspiracies like that after all. It helped no one. And Delilah knew this too.

“We didn’t keep this from you on purpose. It’s not a big lead, and we didn’t think to tell you about it earlier since you were already working out what had happened to your colleague,” he contined to explain.

His words sent her back to better days, back to these childish days where either of their families had been flying to the other, just so the children could play - of course also to see each other more. It had been so difficult to recall these happy memories lately, and she was happy that her uncle managed to remind her of them. Because he was right, Maeve was strong, stronger than she thought most of the times. She felt the hand on her knee, and it reminded her to breathe again. "Yeah, she will find a way," Cecilia added almost breathlessly. It was odd having them know information and having Cecilia know part to the story that they didn't. It was times like this were talking about her abilities would be fitting, if it hadn't been for having promised Maeve not to. Funny how it placed her right in the box where Mono, Evelina, Lucas, anyone actually had put her in when they chose not to tell her back then. Cecilia already felt bad for holding back the information she had, but there was no proof of what she had seen, and it would seem made up or just a typical way of her overthinking the worst of the situation. So, she stayed quite about it to her family.

He removed his hand from her knee again, as she waited what knew information they had. There was more at stake here, and everything that had happened since summer had only sharpened the ion in her. Cecilia knew there was a chance giving that whatever they knew was told news, or things had changed up to that. Cecilia took a deeper breath in, when he revealed that there was evidence that she was most likely still here in Gaia. Gaia was a huge country, but it felt so small when it came down to reasons why Maeve hadn't been found yet. The long pause indicated that something bad was on the surface, she knew the circle of bringing news too well, so she awaited the bad news while tugging her lower lip in with her front teeth shortly. They had cut down on resources, which didn't worry Cecilia as much as the parents. Mostly because Cecilia knew there was other forces that were out there helping them in finding Maeve - even if they didn't know it.

The streets of Southside last week. Cecilia took a deeper breath in and straightened herself a little up, as her mind began analyzing what she knew about Southside. Her aunt could be right, it could as well be a trick. If anything, Cecilia had been dealing with a master manipulator for months, you learned a few things about them by spending time in their heads. She took a small sip of the warm tea, almost burning her tongue but didn't really care. Cecilia understood her aunt's frustration, she really did, and it was good to see them being each other’s rock in this matter. "I can get my dad to call you to double check if it calms your nerves," Cecilia suggested even as her uncle had calmed the spiral a little bit. But also knew, that perhaps if her aunt's own brother checked, it would help ease her mind. At this point it was for better or worse to have friends and family in the police, it made it easier to become angry when they came back empty handed, to be mad at them for not being able to find a lead. One of the reasons Ethan perhaps got so angry at Cecilia for not being able to help in the situation giving her powers. It was most likely also the case that Cecilia's father was the main reason the Poe family knew how unstable Ethan was with this whole situation.

Cecilia threw herself back to the entire Southside thought train again, Lucas had spent a great deal of time in Southside. It reminded her yet again that he was friends with a werewolf alpha, and once again she started theorizing if there was anything that wolf could do, or perhaps if Irina could track Maeve? Her thoughts were alarming with ideas and thoughts about the entire thing, and it almost ached in her head to think all these scenarios through. We didn’t keep this from you on purpose, her lips lifted in a smile as she exhaled with a little nod. She almost forgot how humane it would look to them, not knowing about all the supernatural drama that roamed in the corners, they didn't know about the criminal mafia group that had her on gun point last month, or the redhaired witch that had saved her and Michael from being sacrificed a few full moons ago. And even Eden's death that was a murder committed by demons, was turned to her being at the wrong place at the wrong time. All the lies. She hated it, but even if it was the last wish she had from Maeve, to keep them out of this - she had to honor her choice in all of it. "It's alright, I understand," she replied with a confirmed not as she took a deeper breath in.

It was truly a heartwarming offer that she laid out, putting in a personal request for her father to look it over again, it really was. And yet Benjamin calmly shook his head at her, denying the offer. It was simple, actually. “Your father is already doing whatever he can on the matter. We fear that the Aston police force would’ve let the case go cold already if it hadn’t been for him. And for Ethan. You’re already doing so much, Cecilia, but what for the time being is best is to wait and trust in the trained to find her.” He looked more directly at his niece, tilting his head slightly as to look over his slim-framed glasses. Making sure that she understood the how serious he was as he continued: “It’s very clear how much you care about Maeve but don’t go out and pursue a search for her yourself.”
Seemingly out of nowhere, a huffing snort sounded from the black cat beside Cecilia after having completely ignored the testing hand, she had held out for it to sniff to. It was sudden and loud enough for even Benjamin to sit up and turn his eyes to it with a surprised expression. The cat, however, decided to play it off as if it had never happened as it just started licking one of its paws and rubbed it over its ear and face. There was something about the way the tail had taken up speed in its whipping back and forth, the human thought, as something had pissed it off although the rest of it remained as relaxed and unprovoked as ever. Just a lazy cat.

“But maybe we really should be doing more?” This time Delilah was the one breaking through the strange silence that the cat’s unusual behavior had caused as she moved to the couch at last, sitting down beside Cecilia and unfolding her arms, eyes looking stiffly at her husband before automatically softening up as she turned to her niece. “It’s been two months and still the police hasn’t gotten much closer to find her. They have the name and the face of the man, they even found finger prints and DNA. But they claim they know almost nothing about him. The missing person posters we put up has almost all gotten removed or covered up.” The poor woman’s hand had begun shaking visibly and becoming clammy as the rested them in her lap. Joined close to that of praying. And anyone would be able to see how this desperation also affected her husband as his kind eyes became sad as he listened. He was on Delilah’s side, he so badly wanted to do something. His baby girl was out there, scared and crying, and he couldn’t do anything. It was heartbreaking. Deep down it was eating him up just as much as his wife showed. If not more. And in the end he collapsed. Bowing over in the chair, losing all strength in his neck and buried his hands in hair. A defeated man. “I know.” And then he fell quiet.

Meanwhile the black cat had gotten to its feet, stretched for a second before following a route behind Cecilia and her aunt, balancing on the couch’s back support before jumping down onto the seats and another jump from there down onto the floor before elegantly tiptoeing through the room and disappeared out into the hallway with and probably finding its way up the stairs. Benjamin tried collecting himself by removing his glasses and wiping the back of his hand under his nose, sniffle a deep breath.

And Ethan she managed to not let her face fall by that comment. She didn't trust Ethan in this matter, not around the case. Not after how he had acted out the whole month, Evelina had worked her ass off to get him back in the game - but with a sister kidnapped along with your best friend, it wasn't easy. Of course, Elenora's case wasn't known by the public like Maeve's, and it was a more supernatural event - she couldn't talk about it here. But don’t go out and pursue a search for her yourself. Cecilia took a deep breath in. Oh, she had tried already, tried to trigger all the visions she could, tried to get outside that room that Maeve was in, tried to see anything but the terror she was going through - just in pure hope that something would lead to anything useful, instead she had almost fried her brain and ended up exhausting herself to the fullest. It had taken her few weeks and a whole lot of convincing from Lucas, to make her stop ruining herself trying to get somewhere impossible. The cat made a snort, making her turn her head towards it, narrowing her eyes at the duke in disguise. It was difficult knowing something and not being able to express it. She had no idea how her friends and loved ones had managed to keep it away from her for so long. A small sigh left the human's lips as she looked back at her uncle. "I won't. Besides, my boyfriend is keeping me grounded - I've been very lucky to have his support in all that has happened lately," she then told on her next exhale. She couldn't help but look back at the cat shortly again, if the movement of its tail had caught her eye for a second.

But maybe we really should be doing more? Cecilia moved her doe eyes to her aunt, while taking another deep breath in. She followed Delilah's movement as she sat down and exhaled in a smaller sigh. Cecilia understood the frustration, the wait was long, and they couldn't do anything. Usually, for people like Cecilia and for her aunt, they were used to be at use. They had two good hands that were used to make people's lives better, to help others and here they were sitting not being able to do much more than breathe. Find a meaning in this situation and live without it as if it didn't affect them. But it did. The problem wasn't the police, the problem was Southside. She had never liked that place, not even before she knew about this world. Knowing about it now, it was filled with supernatural gangs and nothing good came from that place. At least from what she had heard. The times she had talked to Evelina or even Ethan about that place, they told the police most of the time didn't even dare to cross the borders to that town. No wander they hadn't reach more information. They needed someone who wasn't scared of searching even the darkest part of Southside. But where did you find someone who was willing to go there, it would be foolish to do it herself - and with her luck, she didn't even dare to think too long about it. Cecilia blinked a few threatening tears away, as she took a sharper breath in.

She took a deeper breath in and licked her lips shortly, and gently placed her hand on her aunt's knee. "We are doing what we can. Everyone is going their best, and I believe that it will be enough - it has to be enough," she spoke softly while looking at her aunt. It was tough yes, and Cecilia's words wouldn't change that, she also knew that. It was like taking a patient in for surgery without knowing if there would be complications or not, leaving the people in the waiting room waiting for news on how it went. This was different, they were in the waiting seats no idea how long it would take for them to get Maeve back.  She looked shortly at the car from the corner of her eyes, as it moved again. Cecilia took another sip of her tea while removing her hand from her aunt's knee again, letting her hand hold around the cup with her other hand.

Cecilia could be as disappointed or feel as betrayed by Ethan as she needed to get through the time of life but it didn’t change how Ethan’s friendship with Maeve as well as his position, however suspended or left off it currently was, was just a big a part of the focus Maeve’s case was given by the police. In a town like Aston, or simply a country like Gaia, these cases were so easily pushed aside and eventually forgotten. There was so much criminal activity which people really only began to think about when they themselves were forced into the jest of it. Delilah experienced it more than her husband. She was the one who was met with the injuries of the constant injustice. But in all; the Poe family had been, and partially still was, so sheltered from it all.
Still, hadn’t officer Dominic and Ethan not been there, the amount of time and resources spent on finding Maeve would’ve bene much, much less than it was. Even if Ethan was compromised at the moment. “That’s good. That’s really good to hear,” it came from Benjamin Poe in an absent mumble as soon as his niece reassured him, that she wouldn’t be going out there. That she would do as they did and as they had been told; wait. And hope. A horrible fate, really. But wasn’t there also a risk of making things worse on the captive’s end of things? Even if they had found out where Maeve was, they wouldn’t know how to proceed. How not to press the persecutor into and desperate escape. If they were too loud about knowing the location that he’d hear them and simply… move. Dragging the investigation back to the beginning. So it was, indeed, good.

Delilah’s tense persona softened just a bit with the hand on her knee and she didn’t hesitate to gently place her own on top and gave the hand a comforting squeeze - both for Cecilia and for herself. The words given brought forth a saddened smile, a trying smile which she presented to her niece. “You are so right, Cecilia. Still, you might only get to understand it when you get children of your own, but you’ll feel that what you can do for them, when they are in a pinch, is never truly enough,” she carefully explained, also breathing in with a little sniff, not actually intending for it to sound in any way depressing. On the contrary she said it with love in her voice. To tell that this feeling of not doing enough was natural. She let go of the young doctor’s hand and left it with a parting clap on top. Just in time for her to remove her hand herself. Benjamin had successfully managed to not let any tears from his eyes, as he with a collecting deep breath, straightened himself up in his trusted armchair and while pulling a face to loosen up tension in his face, he placed his small-framed glasses back on the bridge of his nose and then shallowed the last bit of grieve from his stomach that had tried escaping to his throat.
“But a boyfriend, huh,” he broke his silence with and hopefully pushed aside the heavy conversation piece. It wasn’t anything someone like Cecilia should let eat her up. She still had a bustling life ahead of her. So did he and so did his wife, but it was different. Like Maeve, still was but a girl in his eyes, so was Cecilia. “I’m grateful to hear that you’ve found someone like that. Now don’t tell me that this fella is the same toxic man who Maeve told us you finally had ended things with.” If he remembered correctly it would’ve bene around the same time last year, where Maeve had been in that car accident. Late summer. “That’s right,” budded Delilah in, looking approving to her husband and then quickly to Cecilia with hinting concern. “You’re far too good for a man like him.”
At least that relationship hadn’t lasted long enough for him to have actually been introduced to them, but there had been enough stories shared. And relationships broken off in the honeymoon period had just a high a chance of ending in a rebound as in it ending in the pair never having anything to do with each other.

Cecilia took a deeper breath in, wanting to give her aching heart a chance of a smaller relief, even when it was likely only going to last a few seconds. Being here in the grey living room that used to be so light and warming, even though they tried, they really tried to hold on, it was still heartbreaking knowing that the front was put up. Cecilia knew about the front too well, and sometimes you just needed that front to protect yourself, and even just hope that you could forget what was going on in the world for a short while. However, she managed to smile as her dearest uncle moved the conversation to a less heavy one, one that actually made her smile by pure instinct just imagining Lucas in her mind’s eye. Cecilia took a deeper breath in, when they put a reminder of Jasper in, he was indeed not the best choice she had made. Far from. If they only knew. Just the thought made her loosen the grip on the mug with her left hand, and let it run over and around neck, only to place it in front of her chest for a short moment. Her last encounter with Jasper had been anything but pleasant, but she wasn't going to get into that. "No, it's not Jasper. I'm - I'm completely done with that, it was nothing serious," she replied on the next exhale while looking around the room for a second. "Actually, I ran into Lucas in the beginning of the year. And we managed to talk things through," she once again took a slightly deeper breath in.

Oh, everyone in her family knew Lucas. Back in Cecilia's young twenties when she had just started working and she had helped getting better, not that it was good getting close with a patient and if anything, she had just been kind. It was how they met again after. He had been at family dinners, with her home to Bulgaria doing Holidays, he had been a part of the family. Also, a reason why it had hurt so badly the day he had chosen to leave, and a reason why she knew her parents also were a bit on edge with the thought in the beginning. But seeing he had stayed after all these events that had happened lately. They had come around. "We have both grown so much since back then, and once we had talked things through, we gave it another shot. And I didn't know it could feel so natural to just get back with someone - makes you believe a little bit in fate," she chuckled a bit while shaking her head.

There was always plenty of reasons why people did something awful as leave, and most of the times it was just bad communication or people scared of something. Lucas' reasons weren’t anything she would go into, not just because it was supernatural wise, but also because it was his reasons and not hers - even if she would defend him, like she would defend anyone she loved. There was a fact to Cecilia was used to the men in her life leaving her behind in the end, funny enough it seemed to already two out of three had come back with a reason, that she could forgive. But she was also like that, she forgave people, it didn't mean she forgot what they had done. "I don't know, being with Lucas just makes me feel at home. Like a steady place where I can let down my defenses," she breathed out and cleared her throat, realizing she could just keep talking about how she felt about Lucas all night if they let her. Perhaps it was also good with some kind of good news. Just something good. "He is a teacher now at the Athena Academy, and he currently is taking a PhD in neuroscience," she pointed proudly out afterwards, flashing a big smile before taking another mouthful of the tea.

It was a big relief for the both of them to hear that it wasn’t Jasper however just as they then started to expect her to tell them about someone entirely new which they could look forward to hopefully meet one day, it was revealed to be another former love instead. Lucas. The couple locked eyes to exchange a simultaneous concerned glanced between them. They didn’t question the bubbling happiness that was emitting from their niece as she talked about him, as she simply thought about him. It was so nice seeing her genuinely smile like that, it really was. It was hard for everyone to smile at a time like this and then even if they managed a real smile, it was only really a matter of time before pressing thoughts strolled by to remind them of how shameful it is to do so.

So, it was with a heavy heart that they found it difficult to share that joy with her. “Oh, darling,” this was Delilah, having looked back at Cecilia and positioned herself better, turned slightly more towards the young woman. The worry was obvious in not only her voice but her demeanor in whole. She wasn’t Cecilia’s mother and Benjamin wasn’t her father, but the family was surprisingly close even when thinking back to how they had lived in separate countries for the first half of their children’s’ lives and that closeness blurred the lines. Just like Maeve and Cecilia had become more like sisters. “It’s so nice hearing that you’ve found someone that makes you feel like that. But now, are you sure this is a good idea?” Delilah finally asked while curling her brows slightly and tilted her head to better look at her niece. She was being careful to not start stomping on this safety she had found because right now it was understandable to need it. “I remember Lucas. He was a sweet boy and I recall you being together for longer than I dare to admit I expected. I just… I just don’t know if he’s a chapter you should re-visit. You’re almost thirty years old and you’ve a priming and solid career. You should look to something more stable. And…” For this Delilah looked over to her husband, who had mainly kept quiet, not usually being someone who was a good talk when it came to romance. It didn’t mean, that he didn’t have a similar opinion on the matter as his wife, though. His expression was much the same.
He’s a teacher… he currently is taking a PhD..
This information came as a bit of a surprise for couple who remembered Lucas as someone completely different. They remembered his awkward skittishness when he was invited to family gatherings. They remembered his either dismissive answers or very straightforward and nearly defensive replies when family members had asked him about his education or future plans. Questions which was so common and lighthearted in a family as this. He had been kind and he had always been polite, he hadn’t been a total misfit, but Delilah especially had noticed that he hadn’t felt all that comfortable. And while the most important part of a relationship was the love between the two in it, it was no secret that Cecilia treasured family and when a partner gave the sense of just wanting to run away every time he was brought to meet the family…

“If he’s currently taking his PhD, does he have time to spend with you? Neuroscience is a quite a project to take on. You’re so busy at the hospital too.” Delilah would know. They shared the work place. There was always a constant influx of patients coming in.

It wasn't like she expected anything else but worry. There hadn't been a single person who hadn't asked her that question, if it was a good idea. Mono, Evelina - everyone had reminded her of the train wreck she had been back when he had left. Cecilia hadn't forgotten that either. How could she forget feeling the way her heart had shattered into million little pieces on the floor almost impossible to put back together, but she had. They had gone on their travels by the end of the year, and she had slowly and yet steady moved forward. Cecilia had always been resilient like that, moving forward and find a meaning with life. After Richard and the car-crash back in her teenage years, she had learned that and while fighting for her knee to heal so she could follow her dreams. So, like always she had been fighting through every heart break that had come her way, not that it ever got easier. It was almost soul destroying, but she wasn't going to let anyone have the power of crushing her. People did stupid things. Cowardly and stupid things, she had done them as well, and even though she understood their concern - they didn't know the entire story. Cecilia tightened her grip around the mug for a small second and took a deeper breath in.

Cecilia chuckled a bit silently to herself as she breathed out. Time. It was always the thing about time. She narrowed her eyes a little bit as she asked if they even had time together. It had been weird finding hours, they were both busy people who had a lot of things on their plates. Cecilia had talked with Ash to make her hours fit more into Lucas' routine; it was all about the communication of it all. And she wanted to make sure they actually had time together that wasn't spend on the terror of the world, but also just for themselves. "He has been staying with me for most of the time, especially since the accident. Ash has been kind enough to move my working hours around, making them fit into everything, we have time," she pointed out and licked her lips a little bit. All the secrets of events that had happened that her aunt and uncle didn't know about. All the things that otherwise perhaps could confirm to them how things had changed, she couldn't say. Cecilia felt like a liar for keeping away so much from them, and yet, perhaps this part of the world would destroy them. Just like it had kept trying to destroy Cecilia since Michael had told her everything. But when it came to planning and time, Cecilia was a natural planner, and she would do about just anything to make sure that they had time together. "I know you are worried about me," she took a sharper breath in and sighed a bit before clearing her throat. "I love him. And all I'm asking is that you trust me.. and that you will give him the benefit of the doubt." It was the same thing she had said to her brother. Her parents and her friends. Her voice was clear, it wasn't overly emotional because she wanted them to know that she was serious about it. If everyone were judged by their past mistakes the world wouldn't work and everything would stop.

"Irina is in town as well," she changed the subject. Cecilia knew she could become aggressive when it came to defending the people that she loved, and with the lack of sleep and stress she was under these days - she knew she would snap and overreact if it got further than this. "You know my mum's sister's oldest," she added on her next exhale. Cecilia and Maeve's families were close, just like Cecilia's were close to Irina's. They had the country in common there, even though Irina had moved to Russia in her teen years, only to come back years later with child. "She is planning to move here with her daughter, Mila - I reckon Mila is around Collin's age actually." It was also here she realized she shouldn't get into detail with where Irina was now, she didn't need to include Nigel in this already. Even though they perhaps could understand parts of Nigel's reasons for suddenly disappearing better, but that tale would have to wait for another day.

Delilah knew Ash. But Benjamin didn’t and it became apparent how he looked up at his beloved wife with a raised brow. Nothing major, only a discreet grimace, which Delilah expertly met with a telling expression that quickly put a lid back on her husband’s confusion. One that told him that it wasn’t important for him to know right now. That he should just pretend to actually remember this person, who he probably had heard about a few times before but without the connection like the two woman had, it hadn’t really stuck. And so I did. Removed himself from the initial confusion as he looked back to his worrisome niece.
He loved him. That much was there no doubt about. It was obvious from the way she beamed by the thought of him. And still she slowly but surely - even if it didn’t break through then and there - became defensive about him. Something the couple could only feel slightly more concerned with. It could very likely entail that she was aware of the reasoning of her loved one’s worry. Aware enough to choose to suppress it in the name of love. Forgive in the name of forgetting? A strained smile pressed forward and onto the lips of Delilah, again much like her daughter did, and nodded vaguely. “Alright. If you’re sure,” she said softly. It wasn’t even that she was worried that this man would end up leaving her again like he did the last time. What worried Delilah more was if this man was ready for the commitment or if they would eventually drift away. But then again; love was strange and no love was like the others. Her own love story hadn’t been expected or looked positively on until very later in their life.

“Ah yes, I remember her. Such an ambitious girl,” Benjamin finally bid in with, seamlessly letting her wife have a little moment, so she didn’t end up going down that conversation path, which Cecilia wasn’t up for having. Benjamin had an easier time pushing it aside than Delilah, that was for sure. While they both were somewhat open-minded people, the professor was more. To some extent. “We haven’t heard much from that side of the family. What’s she doing now? Last I hear she was married in Russia.”
An invisible stab poked Delilah when Collin was brought up. Not something that was noticeable and it was stupid. Collin was fine. More than fine. That boy was absolutely thriving. But more than the other boys in the house hold, he got her thinking of Maeve.. If they didn’t find her, then Collin was what they would have left of her. She kept quite though, not letting her emotion take over her again.  “Really? They haven’t had the chance of meeting each other yet, have they? Mila and Collin. You must tell Irina that if she needs help keeping an eye on her while in the middle of the moving chaos, that we’ll happily do so. Right, love?” Delilah looked to her husband who met her shortly in a brainless ‘ huh’ before understanding and then nodded in agreement and said back to Cecilia: “That’s right.”

Ring..!
Eyes were on the ringing landline phone instantaneously and not long after that, Delilah rose from the couch to walk over to the little table-tall shelve right next to the doorway to the entrance in the other side of the room, where she with composure grabbed the wireless phone, pressed the green icon and moved it to her ear with a: “This is Poe residence, Delilah speaking.”

But then as his wife was talking the call, Benjamin turned back to Cecilia and leaned back forwards to make his lowered voice easier for her to hear. He was on his tiptoes like everyone else about what the call was about but this was also an opportunity for him and if it was something revolving Maeve, then they quickly learn about it. Best to let Delilah deal with that. “Your boyfriend, if he’s having any trouble with taking his Ph. D. tell him to give me a call. I have a few contact that might be of help to him even if it’s only to prepare for the defense,” he said while sending her a kindhearted smile. And a little glimmer of ‘don’t tell your aunt’ hidden in his eyes.

It was always fun how life went on despite not knowing what other people were up to. Cecilia was involved with two of her cousins more closely, where she was closer with Maeve, she was still close to Irina as well. But it was true they didn't have much to do with that part of Cecilia's family. "Well, she moved back to Bulgaria seven years ago after divorcing her husband, raised Mila on her own. I reckon she is a management consultant -" she took a slightly deeper breath in. A lot happened in a person's life in seven years, even just in one.  
Cecilia took a slightly sharper breath in, realizing her words had perhaps mattered more than she had wanted it to. But as hard it was being reminded of what was going on, then people trying to go around the bush and refuse to mention the people involved was even worse. Cecilia didn't wish to remind her aunt of the pain. "I will tell her, I think Mila would absolutely love that," she smiled softly.

Cecilia blinked a little as the landline phone started to ring and her aunt excused herself. Her doe eyes looking after the figure that went for the phone, only to be ripped out of her suddenly worried thoughts as her uncle spoke again. Cecilia turned her eyes to her uncle and her smile returned to her lips, as she hadn't even realized it had been gone for a few seconds. "Thank you," she nodded, "I will tell him," she added in a slightly lower voice, not hiding the sparkle in her eyes that shortly showed up. The offer meant a lot to her, and she squeezed her nose a little bit, moving a little over in her seat to give her uncle a short yet warm embrace. Then she sat down again. "I hope we get better weather soon,  I'm looking forward to get in the garden," she chuckled a bit. It was very common that Cecilia liked spending time in the garden, and having bought the house that had not just one but two gardens - she had gotten the house of her dreams. And it was always lovely spending time destressing a few hours with your hands in the dirt.

Like the father Benjamin Poe was he had more or less seen the hug coming. He had spent many years learning to read those small signs, and while he for the most parts had gotten boys he had become a bit of an expert in girls with the help of his own daughter. So, as Cecilia found her lovely smile again and even rubbed her nose as if to cover up for a silent sniffle, he was ready to meet her in the embrace that followed. He didn’t rise from his chair, though, but as he wrapped his arms around his strong niece he made sure to not let go of her before she gave indications that she was finished herself. “Don’t thank me. I’m happy to help,” he commented warmly just before she pulled away and sat back down. “Delilah is also happy for the two of you. I don’t doubt that. So don’t worry about him. I do however expect to be re-introduced to him at one point. Maybe once Maeve is back home, we can have you both over for a nice dinner.” While it pained him to talk about his daughter at the time his smile and over so kind eyes never faltered. And never was any of it faked or forced. He didn’t really suppress the fear either, not like his wife. Looking closely, it was still there in his brown eyes. Melancholic might be a good word to describe the feeling around him. “Nothing big. We wouldn’t want to scared him off so soon.”

In the meantime, the middle-aged nurse fidgeted with her cardigan. Phone held up to her ear by one hand at the same time, as the other one pulled the stretchy sleeve down over it to cover just past the knuckles before pulling the furthest side in and over her torso and then grabbed the closest to drag it all the way across and with the hand in under the other arm. “Yes. Thank you. I appreciate that very much. But it really won’t be necessary, Mrs. Callaghan,” she spoke into the speaker while she distractively looked around on the things on the tabletop; a bowl now filled with different bundles of keys, a framed picture an older couple; her parents and Maeve and her brothers’ grandparents, a small house plant, hair ties and a misplaced toy she had picked up from the ground only minutes before Cecilia had arrived.
“No, it’s quite alright. The boys are currently at their aunt and uncle’s place. They are doing so well. Yes. I’ll be sure to do that. Bye now, Mrs. Callaghan. Make sure Mr. Callaghan remembers to take his supplements. Every day, Mrs. Callaghan. Yes. Take care.” A beep fromt pressing the red button to hang up and a heavy sigh immediately escaped her lips as she placed the phone back in its charger before lifting a hand to pinch on either side of her nose bridge. To collect herself. This time wasn’t only depressing and scary but it was also stressful. She could slowly feel a head ache coming..
“Lilah, love?” The sound of her husband voice quickly brought her back and she automatically twisted around to look back at him and her niece in the cosy coach corner

She pushed forward a smile as she turned fully and took a few calm steps back to them. “It was just Mrs. Callaghan down from number twenty senven,” she started explaning, hiding away the mix of disappointment and relief which had arrived by the phone call. It hadn’t been about Maeve.. “She has made us a big casserole and wanted to hear of she should come over with it tonight. I guess she’s worried that we can’t bear Maeve’s disappearance enough to make our own dinners now. Either that, or…” A scorn suddenly appeared in her voice. “Or she think we’re in actual mourning. The nerve on that woman.” To think that she could ever accept that her daughter was dead. It was outright offensive!

The embrace was nice and needed after all the turbulence she had been through lately. She rarely stopped and breathed, only when Lucas reminded her to, other than that she was always on the run, always forgetting to take a step back and just be. Cecilia smiled, she liked the thought of a dinner when Maeve returned, she liked the mindset, once Maeve is back home, that was how Cecilia saw it as well. "That would be nice, yeah," she acknowledged. Usually, Cecilia had a smaller gathering on her birthday weekend every year, she liked inviting the family over. But she also knew she couldn't enjoy that with everything going on, and even though it was a month away, she didn't want to make any plans about it, it didn't feel right. Cecilia laughed a little by not making it too big thing of it.

Cecilia paid little attention to the conversation Delilah had, mostly because it wasn't her place to listen in, but she did however pick up on the name Mrs. Callaghan. First when her uncle called for her aunt, Cecilia looked towards Delilah again. She took a deeper breath in and sat a bit further back into the couch before the left leg went over the right, as she listened to who had called. You didn't need to see the future to know that her aunt wasn't pleased with having wasted a phone call from a neighbour when they wanted to keep the line open. Then again, it hadn't been any bad news from the police. Bringing food over, a typical thing neighbours did when someone had lost a family member or a loved one. If she weren’t one of the people who would have done so as well, she had after all almost lived in the Nelson house to make sure Tien and Seraphina ate something. It didn't surprise Cecilia that someone would have lost hope or think they should give up hope, she had met a few people like that as well. People who thought it was a hopeless case. "Yeah, they think they understand, but they don't," she mumbled a bit, mirroring the annoyance her aunt found in the neighbour. Even if people wanted to be there and came with the best intentions, it didn't change the fact on how it felt for the people involved.

"I'm not going to stay for long, I just wanted to drop by and see how you were doing," she reminded them with a warm smile. If she was even going to get a slight chance of a few hours of sleep before being on call the next day, she needed to find her way home soon. Cecilia didn't like leaving them here, it didn't matter they were adults and knew how to handle things - they were still human, they were still hurting, and age didn't define hurt. "But, I will come by another day as well, I promise," she assured looking first at her aunt then at her uncle."Just call me if you need anything, right? Even if it's just taking the boys to the park or something."

Delilah let out a heavy sigh. “They really don’t.” Not most of the time. She had found that especially the elderly had more tendencies to accept death like that since they at that point in life probably had come to terms with the inevitable part of life. No. Until a body was found and it was confirmed to be Maeve, then she wouldn’t - couldn’t - accept that her child was anything but alive. Now she only needed her to be well too which the human nurse worried the most about. What little they knew of the Russian was enough to keep her up all night, imagining horrible things. Oh god, please keep her safe..

Both the parents looked towards Cecilia as soon as she stated her departure. Both seemed to feel as though it was so soon - she hadn’t even finished her tea. Such a strong woman she had grown into, was thoughts that passed both their minds as they through the many years together had somehow interlocked on some deeper level. The Poe house wasn’t as bright as it used to be anyway so it was also fully understandable that one would feel weighted down ever so slightly of being there. Delilah did. Benjamin did. And even if the young boys didn’t say anything or act much differently, there wasn’t much doubt that they felt it too. Who’d know how the house would feel if Maeve wasn’t found?
Delilah’s face finally softened again, leaving behind whatever bitterness the phone call had left her with behind. She knew as well as her husband that Cecilia leaving had very little to do with the pressing atmosphere; She was too companionate to act on something like that. “We appreciate it, love. And you know you’re welcome any time.” - “Did you drive over yourself?” Benjamin asked her. “It’s still getting dark out quite quickly and I’d rather we get you a cabbie then for you to walk the way alone.” God knows what could be lurking in the dark corners of the night. It wasn’t long after the concern had been spoken, when the larger black cat returned in the living room. Well, instead of actually entering the room it had simply sat itself down in the door-less doorway between the living room and the narrow entrance, back straight and having an overall regal posture which most all cats seemed to carry themselves with. It had given sound -  a attention demanding meow although it hadn’t been loud enough to startle the house’s residences. Just enough for them to glance in its direction and hopefully knowing what it tried to communicate. Noir had gotten pretty good at using the feline communication system.

Benjamin turned slightly towards the cat. He had thought it before and he’d probably keep thinking it but that was a strange cat, his daughter had dragged into the family. Attitude of any old cat he’d come across but loyal like a dog. Especially around Collin. “Looks like you’ll have some company on your way out at least,” he pointed out with a slip of amusement in his voice as he pushed off of his chairs armrests and got up from its cushiony seat. The least he could do was follow his beloved niece out the door. No need to be lazy.
“It might be time to install a cat door,” Delilah suggested with a light sigh also looking shortly at the cat but then back towards Cecilia where her smile grew forth. “You take care, okay?”

Cecilia truly wished she had more time to stay, but she was exhausted, so if she was going to get at least a few hours of sleep before her next shift, she needed to get going. It was a shame really, not being able to be everywhere at once. "Oh, my car is parked just down the road - so it's no big deal," she gave them both a warm smile, appreciating the concern. Cecilia noticed Noir coming back to the room, and she took a deeper breath in, how he meowed made Cecilia lick her lips a little. Perhaps he knew something, not that she could just ask him in here, not when her uncle and auntie had no idea about all of this. She hated keeping them in the dark like this, but was it really her job to spill the beans on it, no it wasn't. Not when she couldn't even tell her own brother, her own parents. Cecilia was just lucky that Irina had stepped into her life here in Aston, having another cousin who knew - then at least she didn't feel like the entire family was kept in the dark.

"Yeah I guess, wouldn't mind," she chuckled a bit before licking her lips slightly. Cecilia emptied her cup of tea, and placed it on the counter as she got up to walk closer to the entrance. Cecilia smiled warmly by the comment about a cat door, "might be a great idea," she took a deeper breath in before walking over to give her aunt and uncle a warm hug before walking towards the door again and placed her door on the handle to open it. "I will, same goes for both of you," she responded letting Noir out then herself. She took the steps down the  driveway and turned around to wave at her uncle and aunt in case they were outside. Then she turned the corner to get to her car, but she stopped when the house was out of sight, then she sat squatted down and looked at Noir. "Hey you, what's going on?" Cecilia asked with a small smile as breathed out.

Goodbyes had never been awkward with the family. They were simply too close. And perhaps this one wasn’t actually awkward either, although it had some similarities, perhaps it was just bittersweet. The air was especially heavy and thick, hard to properly breath. But that was, and had always been, the nature of unnerving unknowingness. All anyone could do was smile melancholic and softly so to not worry each other too much. And so the see-off went. Delilah and Benjamin Poe standing there waving their beloved and unstoppably caring niece goodbye. Benjamin walking over to close the door, but not before Cecilia had moved down the few steps and down the small walkway and taken her turn down the pavement.

Noir had been the first to strode through the door, though. As soon as it had been opened for him. He had jumped and disappeared somewhere in the front gardens and had followed along through a couple of the neighbours before jumping up to walk alongside Cecilia on the different kinds of fences as soon as it he had heard the door close a bit behind them, making perfect use of his feline flexibility and balance. Much like he, he didn’t say or do anything in the human’s presence. Not at first. Hell, he barely seemed to take note of her. Ignoring her to the best of a cat’s abilities. 300 years of experience had nearly made him more cat than human. And he only agreed to ‘nearly’ because he was too stubborn to admit anything else. But as soon as she stopped in her tracks, he turned his head and elegantly jumped down from a support pillar and unto the pavement in front of her just as she squatted down to his level.
He sat majestically. The forty three long thin tail curling around his black furred body and yellow eyes look up at her with a too human look in them despite the distinct slit pupil. “You look like shit, you know that?” the cat suddenly spoke. Shamelessly and with a very human - male - voice that shouldn’t come out of cat. It even carried a pretty noble accent.. Surely she’d not even flinch. As far as Noir knew, this woman was sleeping with another large cat in her bed on the regular. “When was the last time you slept? Ate some actual real food like vegetables? It’s starting to show.” The tip of his tail was calmly drumming the ground.

“What are you going to do now? Jump into your car and drive around town?” he asked her, tilting his head a slight degree. His words and his tone probably sounded very judgemental and it was rather clear that he didn’t believe her in the slightest, that she was going to sit around and do nothing. The two of them had never actually talked before due to… things, but through observations and what Maeve had told him about her cousin, he was sceptical. However, the cat was in reality not entirely on the same side as Maeve’s parents.