Group Session (Nox's Building)

[Marta]

Marta smiled that the girls had spoken up. Inside she felt proud of herself. She had helped, and that meant something to her. Hopefully that would help them deal with their nightmares. She had to admit fire wasn’t what she had thought their nightmares had been about. She had heard about the fire at the Blackthorn mansion though, and Hayden’s words indicated that a Nox had been the cause of that. And the way these kids talked about Nox - well - it was how she felt about Ricky.

Nox and Ricky - similar - but so different. Nox was still out there, doing things. Ricky - he had given up everything. His home, his bar, his personal life. He had given it all up. For her. Sterling had mentioned Hayden and Nox sleeping together. Ricky never brought anyone home anymore. For awhile in Mexico there had been Mercedes, but since they had left - no one. He didn’t hunt anymore - at least not that she knew of. Ricky worried about her constantly, and it made Marta feel sad even as she felt grateful. She owed Ricky a debt she could never repay, and even if she tried, he would refuse it.

Marta wanted to tell him that it was okay. He could do things with other people. She had Elyse and now Sterling and the Blackthorn kids to spend time with and watch over her. Her support structure was stronger than ever. She’d be okay, but she wasn’t sure how to say it. He could have a life where he protected her, but also got to be himself.

Marta sat quietly, allowing the others to answer Hayden’s question about their feeling safe. She didn’t mind the exclusion at all, but despite her inner questions about Ricky, she smiled, still glad she was here, and still glad she had helped. She rested her head on Sterling’s shoulder and whispered, ”Nox has helped a lot of people, hasn’t he?”

[Sterling]

Sterling nodded. "He tries." Sterling didn't mention all the things he was trying to make up for. Not that she knew any of it, only that he had a lot of guilt. Hayden would know better. "Do you feel safe here? Hayden was asking you too."

She looked over at Hayden who was sitting on the floor with Arabella in his lap. "I feel safe with Nox. I feel safe here. I know Nox won't let anything bad happen to me. Or any of us. He'll die trying, it's who he is."

Liam nodded in agreement "I trust him. He saved us. He didn't have to. He saved Max and the boys too, but they went back in. Is that what you see Ara? Your dad going back into the fire?"

Tears started falling from Arabella's eyes and she turned hurriedly and wrapped herself around Hayden's chest. Hayden wrapped his arms around her and held her tight while she cried.

Hayden mouthed wow. Sterling was pretty sure he didn't know what to do with that. How do you unpack watching your parent walk into a fire.

[Marta]

Marta listened and just nodded in agreement about feeling safe. She did feel safe here, at Kallisti, and with Ricky. Arabella, the girl in Hayden’s lap began to cry as Liam mentioned her father going back into the fire. Marta’s eyes became distant as the suppressed memories worked themselves to the foreground of her mind. The two loud bangs and two thumps on the floor. The smell of gunpowder and blood. The heat of tears on her cheeks. Uncle Roberto grabbing her as she screamed.

Marta never thought about it - until now. She could feel her breathing begin to quicken and the tears began to fall. Her hand, gripping Sterling’s squeezed tighter. Panic began to rise. Splash moved, his teeth gripping the sleeve of her long sleeved shirt and pulling, calling in images for her to remember who, what, and where she was. Marta shook herself out of it - barely keeping herself from panic at the memory. She took deep breaths, but allowed the tears to fall.

Marta let go of Sterling’s hand and looked at her - her gaze one of apology if she had hurt her hand. It was then she realized she fit in more with the Blackthorns than she realized. Trauma was trauma. She hurt and they hurt. They had all been forced to do bad things for someone else. Marta stood, her mind made up as she walked to wear Hayden held the crying girl, her own tears still streaming down her face and her breathing hitching from crying. She knelt down and placed a gentle hand on the girl’s back. Marta knew what it was like to watch your parents die. It was a pain she knew all too well.

[Hayden]

Hayden held out an arm for Marta to join Ara in his lap. "Losing family is difficult." Not that he had any real experience in it. His family life was good considering that his grandparents raised him and his brother was his father and he now has a half brother. It wasn't a bad life. And he didn't really have anything to offer.

It was probably best to change the subject "How is school going? You almost done Liam?"

Liam shook his head "No. well closer than I was, Pre Calc is hard."

"I might be able to help but it's been a while you might have to remind me. How's classes going for you Marta? Too easy? Too hard?"

[Marta]

Marta got closer - enough to hug Arabella, but not to sit in Hayden’s lap. It wasn’t an attraction issue or a lack of trust - it was just she wasn’t sure about it being appropriate given her age, but she smiled nonetheless. She could be here for Arabella.

”School is hard - not the work - I just feel stupid sometimes because I’m two years behind where I should be. I know it’s not my fault - it’s just…rough. It’s easier now that I’m not in a classroom, and I make Sterling help me when I don’t get it.” she grinned at Sterling, and gave her a nod to come join the group.

[Hayden]

Hayden nodded as the rest of the kids joined the little pile on the floor, Emma and Sophia curled up with Liam by the wall. Noah and Jackson were near them but not part of that particular pile. They were too manly for such displays of affection. Sera and Gen had come to join Arabella in his lap, Gen taking up residence in Marta's lap. Sterling was close and they all seemed to talk about school.

Hayden spoke to Marta as they all talked about their lessons. "If it's too hard, you can go back a year. Learn the things you were supposed to then. That's the great thing about online school. We can put you whereever you need to be and you won't be behind. Liam is working on too many classes because he didn't get enough school and he's trying too hard to graduate on time." Hayden said loud enough for the boy to blush but he didn't add anything.

"Sterling is a grade ahead as is her friend Liam who isn't part of these group things. Though he could be if he wanted to."

"I can ask him if he wants to join. He's got work though so he probably can't join."

Hayden understood. Liam Marquis was an employee at Paragaon, his father's company though he tried hard to hide who he was. He reminded Hayden of Sage, except he wasn't strung out on data like Sage was, just a little hyperactive and unfocused.

"And Emma and Sophia are ahead in English but behind in math. And no one judges anyone. So if it's too hard, let us know, your dad, Nox, me, Elyse, one of us can adjust your class load to help you thrive. No one is left behind you work at your own pace."

Noah giggled from his place near the wall. "Can I quite school when I'm sixteen?"

Hayden shrugged. "That's between you and Nox. If that's a what you want a plan to what you wanna do would go a long way in talking Nox into letting you do that."

Sophia spoke softly "Like what kinda plan?" She was sixteen and she didn't much like school.

"Like what you plan to do with your life. What are you going to do for a living? How are you going to make money?"

Gen piped up with a giggle. "I wanna dance like the girls on stage."

Sophia smiled. "I figured we were all going to do that."

Liam growled. "That's not why we are here. Nox isn't grooming us to sell sex! He's giving us safety nothing more. You should think more. Soph you could be so much more than just a pretty face. You could be a doctor or an engineer. You could be an artist."

Hayden nodded. "So I think I'm going to recommend you all not hang out at the club so much. You're kids. You need to play like kids and not..."

All the Blackthron kids groaned and whined but it was Liam who spoke the clearest. "You can't take Kallisti away. I'll help them think outside the box. We like helping around the club. It feels good to help. We want to help."

Hayden sighed. "Okay but we all need to think about what we want to do that is not working at Kallisti when we grow up. All of us."

Gen giggled. "You don't work at Kallisti."

Hayden grinned. "I could. You don't think I'm pretty enough to work there." Hayden noticed that most of the older girls didn't say anything, but turned and looked a different direction. That was an answer he heard, and would heed going forward. He would have to be super careful when talking with the girls.

[Marta]

Marta smiled as Gen popped into her lap. They had worked on Kara’s together and Marta really felt like she had connected with the other girl - not as much as Sterling, but Gen seemed to like her. Marta wrapped her arms around the girl.

People really started to talk and the conversation moved. Knowing she wasn’t the only one who felt behind in school. Elyse has been right. This was doing her a lot of good, showing her that she wasn’t alone once again. The conversation seemed to flow naturally, moving from school goals to life goals. Hayden mentioned himself dancing and Marta took it for the joke she it was meant to be, grinning until she noticed that Sterling was looking away. The other older girls were too. Marta had not. Marta closed her eyes, sniffing at the air. Embarrassment mostly - it clicked that they all thought Hayden attractive. Marta felt different again. Why didn’t she feel the same.

Marta decided to come to Hayden’s rescue by speaking of her aspirations. The thought of dancing at Kallisti never entered her mind. She’d had enough of selling sex. ”I want to write and draw comic books when I’m older.” she let go of Gen enough to pull her backpack off and and pulled out her drawing tablet and handed it to Hayden. The first two were 2D drawings of the 3D drawings that she had done of Sterling when they first met. The others included drawings of other super heroes - Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Scarlet Witch, ect. - but she had a few originals. One being a girl with a wolf motif that she had based off of herself. ”The first two need to go to Sterling. They’re a gift.”

[Hayden]

Marta took the lead and Hayden smiled happily that she was putting herself out there. He took the tablet and flipped through the images and was impressed. "These are very good."

He looked around at all the rest of the kids. "I want to give you all some homework for when we meet next week." They all groaned. "It's not hard and you have a week to do it. I want you to do something you have always wanted to do, but never thought you could do it. And it can't be anything related to what brought you to Nox's place. So for most of you that's it can't be dancing, or seducing or selling yourself. This is personal and for you only. I just want you to do it and I'll trust you if you say you did it but you don't want to talk about it. I have two requests. One is for Liam and the other is for Marta, since you two have an idea of what you want to do."

He smiled at them and started with Liam first. "Liam I'd like you to spend one day doing absolutely no school work. I want you to find something fun and relaxing to do."

Liam groaned by nodded. "A whole day? Can it wait till...."

Liam didn't finish his sentence but Hayden understood he wanted to wait until Nox was back in town. The boy was infatuated with him, but Nox also had a lot of coping mechanisms he could work with. Following Nox around might not be bad. Hayden nodded. "Yeah, he shouldn't be gone too much longer."

Hayden looked to Marta. "Marta, I want you to create an original character, nothing you've done so far and make me a 3 or 4 panel comic of them doing something. It could be petting a dog or cat for all it matters, but this will give you the opportunity to draw a character from different positions. Tell me a little story. If you need ideas I'm sure we can all brain storm something that you'd like."

Hayden looked to the rest of them "The rest of you one thing that you've always wanted to do, but never had. And if you need resources just ask and I'll get Nox's card to get what you need, with in reason of course. He's not some mega millionaire." At leat he wasn't to Hayden's knowledge. But who knew, he had alot more money that Hayden expected for a kid who lived out of two bags.

[Marta]

Marta grinned at the groups reaction to homework. It wasn’t that bad of an assignment, and they got to be vague. She had to do actual work - although it was what she loved to do. That should be fun for her. She was glad for the instruction to come up with an original character.

”Okay,” she said, opening her sketchbook to the back cover to write ideas. ”Taking ideas for any type of character - anyone got any ideas? Whatcha think, friends?” Marta’s smiled wavered. She’d never called them that before. What if she was wrong? She didn’t think she was wrong, but she knew she needed to hear them say it. ”You guys are my friends, right?”

[Sterling]

Everyone confirmed they were friends, even Noah and Jackson chimed in.  Sterling was hugged Marta "Of course we are friends.  All of us." 

Gen turned around and wrapped her arms around Marta's neck. "We can be best friends."  Gen was 6 but it was cute.

Everyone made suggestions on what Marta could draw except Liam he was again nose again in his book. It at least was a fun book -- looked like a book that had been well loved by someone.  She'd see Nox reading the same title before. Maybe Liam had found it in his room.  Poor kid.  Sterling added her own suggestions to the original character. "Nox as a superhero rescuing a cat in a tree would be humorous.  Specially if he had to climb the tree and not use magic or fly or something.  He'd do anything to save anyone even if he was normal."