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Are you okay? I... I don't want to bother you.

Can I come in?

My door is always open for you, Luna. I'm not doing anything. Just drawing something for Stahma.

Luna made his way into her room, gently knocking before opening the door. She'd been in there a while now, to the point that he was getting worried. His head tilted to the side as he closed the door behind them.

"Layla?"

He looked worried.

Layla's seated on the middle of her bed. It's covered in crumbled up papers and all of her art supplies. Pencils and various chalks and pastels. Her hands are covered in streaks of color, a sign that she's been working for a while. Myo trots over to Luna, jumping up and putting her front paws on his leg. Her tail wags some. She's concerned about Layla, too.

Layla doesn't say anything, just glances up at Luna with a half-smile before she goes back to work on the picture of Kenya. She moves one of her sketchpads out of the way, giving Luna a space to sit if he wants it.

Nodding his head, Luna moved over to the bed, picking up Myo as he went. He made sure to keep the fiery furball on his lap, not wanting her to get covered in colour or damage any of her papers. One hand pets the dog as he watches Layla.

"What are we drawing?" He leans forward, checking out her picture. His eyebrows raise and he smiles a little wider. "That's nice. Someone special?"

"Kenya Rosewater," Layla says softly and fondly. And a bit sadly. She drops the dark pencil she'd been using in the box, fishing around for a handful of blues. She's inspecting each one, finally settling on three different shades and a green before she starts working on Kenya's eyes.

"She was a friend of mine in Defiance. And very important to Stahma. During that...alternate us event, Kenya was still alive and Stahma was happy." A pause and Layla's smile vanishes. "But it's not true. Kenya's gone and Stahma misses her."

Silence and then a shrug, as if what Layla was doing was really no big deal. It is. It's a huge deal. It's a present for Stahma. But Layla's trying to act like Tony's departure isn't affecting her. She has so few people in her life, so losing one hits hard. Even if he didn't die, it still sucks.

"I'm sorry. For you and for Stahma." He sighs, holding Myo close as he scoots closer. Peeking over her shoulder, he pulls one arm away from the dog to gently squeeze her shoulder. "It looks very lifelike. I...I didn't know her enough to be able to properly judge."

Then again, he always loved her work.

"Layla, do you want to talk?"

She looks a bit surprised by his actions. Not that she thinks he's incapable of caring. She knows him too well for that. He's incapable of being hideous and mean. But this is new. When her mother died, she bottled everything and never talked about it without some serious prodding.

Tony leaving wasn't all that bad. It was just a shock.

She switches pencils, using the pad of her thumb to blend the colors a bit before shrugging some.

"I don't have many people in my life. When they leave, it sucks more than it should. Ridiculous, right? I hardly knew Tony. But he's gone. And I'm kinda angry about it."

"I... I don't blame you." Sliding forward, he holds up Myo so that the dog can kiss Layla's cheek. He knows he might get in trouble for interrupting her, but he thinks that the dog could be a good distraction.

Of course, Myo knew something was wrong and wanted to comfort Layla. "You worry others will leave too. And you liked him." He sighed, leaning down to kiss the back of her shoulder. "You have to think that he went back home. To his friends. Family. Something good."

Layla sets her work down on the bedside table, wrapping her arms around Myo and hugging her close. The dogs attention makes her smile some. She turns to look at Luna, just as his lips touch her shoulder. She kisses the top of her head, letting her forehead rest against his.

"I did. He was pretty cool." Myo squirms to be let go and Layla obliges, watching the dog jump off the bed and go after the stuffed bear Layla bought for her the other day. It's dragged to Myo's corner and flopped on tiredly.

Shaking his head at the dog, Luna moved over and hesitantly hugged Layla from behind. He was gentle as he pulled her back to rest against him. "He was. When he wasn't trying to get up your leg." He chuckled, letting his eyes close as he cuddled her. "I'm really sorry he's gone."

Layla chuckles some, looking up at Luna. He's close and it feels right, but it still sets her heart racing. She can smile through it, though. Being in his arms is the happiest place in the world for her.

She kisses him on the cheek, just a faint brush of her lips on his skin.

"I kept telling him I'd get him blueprints when I went home, but that didn't get him to stop." She didn't care at all. It amused her. She sighs, settling against him more and resting her head against his shoulder.

She was comfortable and content, feeling a little bit better.

Dinner. Movie. Saloon.

Tomorrow.

Okay?

Look at you taking charge, Luna.

[ That's a little bit sexy. ]

I'll be there. I'm looking forward to it.

[Which is why he is texting her and not doing it in person. So he can't see her blush or hear the stammer.]

Good. We can walk there. I... I don't even remember what's playing.

We'll be pleasantly surprised.

This means I may have to go shopping for something nice to wear. I'm not going on a date with you in paintball stained attire. I want to look nice.

We could, in theory, look it up?

By dress, you do mean an actual dress, not a scrap of clothing that might cover you.

I will dress nicely and appropriately. Probably just jeans and some nice shirt. But not an actual dress. I don't know how to wear those without feeling incredibly awkward and uncomfortable. And I look ridiculous in them.

Luna? I'm glad we're doing this.

I've been meaning to ask you, could you do up a sign for me for this rental business I'm opening? Something simple. The name of the place and a compass and an anchor or something.

I sure can. Do you have any sample anchors and compasses you want me to base it off of?

I have a compass that came with me. You can use that. I don't have an anchor with me though.

I can find pictures. I'll be at the arena all day today, so stop by.

I'll be by in a couple of hours.

See you then.

[ Layla's in the office at the arena. Her maned wolf is with her, sleeping on her back on the futon in the office. The dog has gotten big enough to take over most of it.

Layla's seated on the floor near her desk, sorting through what looks like a combination paperwork and drawings for the bathhouse. She's multitasking, albeit a bit slowly. She'll have texted Killian where to find her. ]

[He knocks on the door to the office, then stands in the doorway waiting to be invited in. He's got the compass held loosely in his spare hand.]

[ Myo snorts once in her sleep, paws flailing for a second or two but she keeps on sleeping. Layla looks up with a grin and motions Killian in, standing with her usual amount of difficulty. She's good. It's just her usual issue with her leg. She's awesome.

...this is going to be the biggest pain in the ass in a few months, isn't it? ]

How's it going? You want anything to drink? I have beers and soda in the mini-fridge.

No, I'm fine, thanks. I came prepared. [Some things may have changed, but he still carries his flask with him everywhere. Though he should probably stop that. Out of sympathy for Emma.]

You don't have to do it right away. I don't need it just yet.

Okay. Is that the compass? [ She points at the thing in his hand as she gets herself a soda, holding it for a moment. ]

It is. [He sets it on the desk for her to examine.] It doesn't have to be exact. I'm not looking for detail, just for it to be apparent that that's what it is.

[ Layla picks it up carefully, examining it. She's already thinking of several designs and is wondering if she can combine the anchor and the compass somehow. ]

What's the name of your shop?

Jolly Roger Rentals. [Which to people familiar with certain stories would give a lot away, but at this point he doesn't really care anymore if people know those things about him.]

[ That was one of Layla's favorite stories to play out as a kid. She was always a Pirate. She kind of smiles, chuckling a bit in amusement as she writes that down. ]

I like it. What's my timeframe? When are you opening?

It's appropriate. It will probably be a couple of weeks yet. I'm waiting for a few things to be done still, and there's a lot going on right now.

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