Serene, Tranquil. Violent, Hurtful.

Yetta's leg shook, as she waited for Jolyon to come back with the drinks he'd promised. Her fingers tapped on the table, and anxiety crawled its way up her spine. "My mom and my aunt were looking for you, for years," he said as he entered the room, placing a cup of water in front of her. "Everybody was. We didn't believe them when they said you were probably dead. In hindsight, we should have." 

"I'm…sorry?" Yetta tried to be sympathetic. She really was trying. "I don't-."

"You don't remember anything, I know." He sat across from her. "Crow, is he- y'know? Is he doing alright? I haven't- I haven't seen him since Uldren-."

"Figured. Yeah. He's fine. We, uhm, we actually live together." She sighed. "So, how exactly do you know me? Or- who I was or-?"

"I was your cousin, blood related." He took a sip of his water. "We kind of grew up together. Well, not kind of. We lived together. Looking at you now- man." He shook his head in wonder. "You're so different from what she was."

That got her attention. "How so?"

"Well, for starters, you hid, a lot." He chuckled. "We never saw you leave your room much. You were shy, and always hid when Mara and Uldren were over. We knew them when we were all kids. You *hated* Uldren back then. He would tease you, so much. Looking back, it made sense to hide."

"I used to *hide*? Me?" Yetta laughed. Not meanly, just laughed. Jolyon looked at her, sadness evident in his posture.

"From what Mara tells me, you're very loose tongued, and very open."

Yetta shrugged. "Somebody's gotta be open around here. I'm not good at hiding things, so that doesn't help my case, any."

"You almost insulted Queen Mara last time you saw each other," he reminded her. "You're lucky she's understanding. She passed it off as you being a new light."

"I was." Yetta shrugged. "So uh, what about you? What's your deal?"

. . .

She waited by the gardens, unsure if she wanted to go home or not. A thick knot settled in her throat, and she swallowed heavy. A stick of gum sat unchewed in her hand, her fingers moving to squish it around. Music trickled into her head from her headphones, only one side nestled in her ear while the other one hung around her neck. 

An arm slid around her waist, and she looked over to Crow. Yetta fished her data pad out of her pocket, turning off the song. "I take it that the conversation with Jolyon didn't go that well?" he asked, moving his hand up to her shoulder.

"It…went, I guess." She shrugged. "There's a lot."

"It's going to be. He, um. He came and found me when you two were done. We talked. He wants to keep in contact." Yetta eyed Crow as he spoke, her brows furrowed together. "Only with you and me, and only if you're okay with it. This is," he paused. "This a rabbit hole. None of us get a say in how far down you choose to go. Only you." His thumb rubbed circles, small, comforting circles into her skin.

"Does Carman know? About this?"

"I didn't even know. I just told her Mara wanted a meeting with you, because that was all the information I had. If I had known-." He sighed. "If I had known she was going to spring this on you, I would have pushed my way in there. You wouldn't have been told all of that alone. You *shouldn't* have been told any of that, period."

Yetta sighed through her nose, leaning into him. "What…what do I do? With any of this information?"

"Whatever you want." Then, he added, "you've never been curious, about who you were. Were you?"

"Nope. Heard going looking was taboo, figured there was a reason we didn't get to know." Her mouth twisted. "Crow?"

"Yeah?" he answered, after a beat.

"Don't be my boyfriend right now. Be my vanguard. Give me some kind of order about this, because I don't know what to do." She looked at the flowers, her eyes downcast. 

"Will you listen if I tell you what to do?" She nodded to his question. "Fine then. I want you to think about how badly you need more information, then I need you to decide how much more you need. After that, act accordingly. Do you want Jolyon's number?"

"…yea." Crow slipped a piece of paper into her hand. Yetta looked at the number written down, securing it to her memory. "So. You and him used to date, hm?" Yetta teased, looking at Crow coyly.

"For a little bit, yeah. It used to be serious, then the Black Garden happened and we just sorta…fell apart."

"Cause you got corrupted," she finished for him. "Damn. Sucks for you, but talk about keeping it in the family."

"I don't think you actually know what that phrase means, do you?"

. . .

Nobody knew this cave was up here. Nobody, that is, except maybe Carman, but she rarely came down to the Dreaming City with Yetta. At first, the huntress had thought it was an unmarked Lost Sector, but with the dead end and the small space…yeah. She had her hiding place here, to think undisturbed. Nobody knew Yetta was here, and she let her legs dangle down, kicking back and forth. She saw Crow appear on her tracker, and pulled her legs in, hiding out of sight.

Her feet ached from climbing on the rocks. She would be mostly undisturbed. Crow climbed up, clambering in. "Tight fit," he commented, his knees touching her thighs as he took a spot beside her.

The words came out before she could even stop them. "Bet I'm tighter." Yetta clapped her hand over her mouth in embarrassment. Crow looked at her, perplexed, before softly laughing. 

"Good one," he praised, leaning on her. "How're you holding up? You ok?"

"...yeah." She put her head in her arms, scooting her legs up to rest it. "Just tired. And processing. I don't think Mara likes me that much."

"She does that with everybody. I wouldn't worry too much." He kissed the side of her head, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. "You're stressed," he observed. "Do you want to stay here for a bit?"

"Yes please." She looked around at the walls. "You know, other guardians don't know this cave exists. I come here when I need to be undisturbed sometimes."

"Your own little hole." Crow pulled her into him, and Yetta went willingly. She hummed softly, breathing him in.

"How'd you find me, anyways?"

"Well, for one I saw you on the tracker. Two, I used to live here. I know a lot about the landscape," he gently pointed out. "That conversation still weighing you down?"

"I can't remember anything, and it's bothering me," she admitted. The, sighing, she climbed into his lap, laying her head on his shoulder. "Don't judge," she sternly said.

Crow wrapped his arms around her, humming in agreement. "No, ma'am. However, I will say you are sitting on a certain-."

"I'm sitting on your dick, aren't I?"

"Directly on it." He heard Yetta sigh softly, and then laugh. She didn't budge. Wouldn't budge. "Babe, please you're squishing it."

"Too bad. Comfy."