Of Cages and Misery

[Catbert]

The apartment of Remy Moreau on Boulogne

Aurora Moreau wasn't doing much at the moment. The message that had been sent to her, and her snappy reply to it had given her alot to think about, so she had retreated into her, albeit unusually empty, but still cozy bedroom. Feeling unusually cold, despite the temperature being the same as it always was on the station, she had wrapped herself in a blanket and was staring at the ceiling, deep in thought.

At that moment her solitude was interrupted by a sound she had barely ever actually heard: the doorbell. Pulled from her dark thoughts, and even somewhat happy about the distraction, she threw the blanket off herself and got up. She wasn't really prepared to receive anyone, wearing a pink pajama, but at that moment she didn't really give it any thought.

She rushed out of the bedroom, through the corridor, into the living room. There, she stopped in front of the apartment door. At least she had showered earlier, so she was in a somewhat presentable state, despite her clothes. Trying to get as much out of this distraction as possible, she put a happy smile onto her face, although it could not hide the bags under her eyes that bespoke of a distinct lack of sleep. She grabbed the door handle and pulled the door inwards, presenting herself like this to whoever might be in front of the door.

The guest Aurora received was probably the one she least expected: the very same man whom she and her husband had met a week or two ago on Monte Carlo. Back then he had been drunk, an now he seemed even worse: his face was slightly pale, the clean shave was long gone, and his hair were unkempt. He looked (and smelled) as if he hadn't showered ever since Aurora had last seen him. The man also wore the very same clothes: a black leather jacket, an orange T-shirt, dark jeans, black boots. The clothes seemed to have gone through just as much as Aurora's uninvited guest himself.

What's worse, Kyle (and that was him, naturally) stepped in with one foot, moving at least half of his torso into the doorway. After the last message he had received from Kiara he expected her to just shut the door in front of him, so he decided to at least try and get his point across before she'd have that chance. Still, Kyle didn't want to be too obtrusive either, so he raised his right hand in a gesture that'd say "I'm not going to do you any harm, but please, listen to me!" He stood as is, not going any further, trying to speak as calmly as he could, so as not to frighten Kiara any more.

As soon as the door was open the smile disappeared as quickly from Aurora's face as it had appeared there. She indeed she tried to quickly slam the door shut again. This sadly failed, as he had obviously anticipated her move. Now actually afraid, she let go of the door as soon as she was sure she had no chance of closing it against his will, and stumbled backwards, fear clearly on her face.

The intruder was the one to start talking: "I know you didn't want to meet me, but please, listen to me for once. I'm stuck on this station, and I only have a day or so left, if you don't help me." He looked at Aurora with a mixture of apology, sadness, and a slight bit of hope in his expression.

"Not again!" she yelled at him and stumbled backwards, her eyes locked on every move he did. She retreated from the door into the large, open living room. To her right, from his perspective, she passed by a kitchen counter. Her hand was clearly looking for something, going over the various equipment on the counter, but didn't find anything she wanted. She didn't dare take her eyes off him, and just kept retreating, too scared to even listen to what he was saying.

Soon she had reached the end of the counter, so she quickly walked around it, so it was between her and the man forcing his way into the apartment. "What do you want?!" she asked, certainly more afraid than the situation justified: "I won't go with you again! Not this time! Leave me alone!"

Although Kyle was prepared for a surprised Kiara, he didn't expect to find her that scared. He lowered his head for a couple of moments, hoping that it'd be enough for the young woman to calm down a little, before raising his head again, a faint friendly smile on his lips. "I need your help, Ki... Aurora," he sighed as he had to call her by that name, but it seemed the best idea at the moment. "Sorry for this performance, but I was afraid you'd shut the door in front of me and wouldn't let me say a word." He still remained standing in the doorway, not going further. "Please, may I at least come in, or should I stay that way?"