The Pain of Seeing (Rabastan)

He smiled again and leaned back against his chair. "Well, I don't really know how to help you in this. I never really had a problem with those things. I grew up around Gaunts after all, so I sort of had to learn this very young," he replied honestly.

---------------------------------

"You have to dream," her voice was dark and husky as usually, but full of amusement. As usually, Morana managed to make whole pub go silent and her bare presence made many people leave. Including three man Rabastan talked about. "It's not in eyes, it is your mind that matters. Close it. Make it empty, make it ice cage for everyone who wants to enter. Set a trap, I would say," she explained herself casualy as she took a bottle of firewhiskey from hands of clearly terrified waitress and joined Morgan and Rabastan.

----------------------------------

"What are you doing here and what did you do this time?" he asked her as if he wasn't friend, but more older brother concerned about his little sister, who don't know how to behave. Without warning he took the bottle from her and poured himself another drink, still waiting for her response.

Morgan sighed with a small smile when Rabastan commented that he didn't really know how to answer her question. This was a skill he just picked up while being around the Gaunt twins. You have to dream... Morgan's eyes widened as the familiar voice drifted to her ears. Looking up she spotted her: Morana. Setting her teeth at seeing her move and sit with them. Close her mind. How can Morgan close her mind when it's so full of everything? As Rabastan took the bottle of liquor from Morana and poured himself another glass, Morgan slid her glass to him for him to fill also. She bit her bottom lip lightly as she tried to think of what to say to the one who was her friend...once...

"Nothing, I was good little girl," she replied dreamily, twisted smirk on her lips, which disappeared, when Rabastan gave her look telling her he knows her too much to fall for that. She made face of upset child. "Fine, I may had a little accident here two days ago. With the waitress. But how was I supposed to know everybody knows everybody here?" she muttered and when he continued to stare she sighed. "I didn't kill anyone, unlike you, my slate is clean for more than a week!" she said and took her bottle back and looked briefly at Morgan. "I meant it, the advice. Believe me or not, I always meant what I did or say in a good way towards you and Remus," she said, her voice distant and cold.

-------------------------------------

He sighed. Morana was obviously in mood to play today, and that meant nothing good. Well, he would most likely find it funny, if Morgan wasn't around. "Maybe that's why you are acting this way. I swear to Salazar, you and Barty more than four days without blood, it always means trouble," he said to her and looked at Morgan with apology in his eyes which he hoped she will accept.

She saw the apology in Rabastan's eyes, and with a small smile, she accepted it. Morgan's darkened eyes looked at Morana at her words that whatever she's said or done for her or Remus, she meant it in a good way. Before she could stop herself, her words snapped out cold and hard in a way that was rare, very rare for someone like her. "Always in a good way? Always? Was it good when you allowed Remus, my husband, to be pushed to kill that man? I don't care what he did. I don't care that it was for vengeance's sake! How can you look me in the face and say that it was for the best?" Morgan hissed to her, her eyes burning bright.

Morana quickly glanced at Rabs. She knew he will do exactly what she needed him to do. Just as he most likely alredy knew what she was going to do. Making whole place go quiet again, she stood and her cold hand grabbed Morgan around her throat, not enough to cause any harm but enough to hold her on place and force her to look Morana in the eyes. "I can look in your face and do much worse things than you can even imagine," she hissed first. "I don't need your understanding, nor your approval. Specialy after you enter where you shouldn't be, hear the half of the conversation you shouldn't hear and snap at me with your sad big eyes. So, don't ever think I will have problem to face you. Because I won't. And there is nothing, not a single thing in this pathetic world that could change that," her voice was poisoned like hiss of snakes she so much loved to speak to, her eyes icy cold, nothing in her face could give away how broken and sad she truly felt for doing this, nor that she did this mainly to save Morgan being so torn between light and darkness as she was now.

-------------------------------------

Rabastan could hardly guess why Morana did this, because he knew she still cared for Morgan. It was hard to push Morana away once she cared. She had strange determination to hold onto people she loved. Maybe because there weren't so many of them. The quick glance she gave him before this made him even more sure of his thoughts. But That couldn't change what she did and also that he was in a way not only her friend, but as well her servant. He hated when she was making up this complicated situations. So he remained darkly calm. "Calm down and leave her be or leave," he said to Morana, his voice threating, dark as his eyes when she turned to him and he could see she smirked with amsement before she sat back at her chair.

Morgan jumped and put her hands to the ice cold hand that was clamped around her throat. Looking deeply into Morana's eyes, Morgan struggled to draw a suitable breath. As angry tears welled in her eyes and spilled down her cheeks, Morgan all but growled quietly, "I counted you among my friends.... I don't care if you don't want my approval.....because I'm not giving it.... I'm done trying.....trying to understand you.... I will not, nor cannot understand the darkness.....that consumes you...." Hearing Rabastan to calm down, Morgan gasped quietly as she finally drew a full breath and rubbed her neck where Morana's hand had been.

"See, and that's exactly the problem. What did I say about ice cage?" Morana said to Morgan as she sat back at her chair as if nothing happened and she continued to give Morgan advices. "Your tears won't win the war to anyone, you know?" she added with smirk which quickly disappeared when she heard Rabs muttering under his breath. He wanted her to leave imidiately. Again, Morana found herself amused by how far could Morgan get him. "Don't worry, I've got what I wanted," she hissed, showing bottle of whiskey, "Maybe I should tell your wife how overprotective you are when is comes to goodie ex-girlfriends," she continued lazily before she gave him cold stare. "Don't forget where your place is. And always have been. I am the queen. You are just a soldier," she said to him before she vanished in the shadows just as she appeared.

------------------------------------

Rabastan gave Morana look full of determination, but that was all he dared to do. She was right. He was maybe a little bit more given the fact he was hers and Marvolo's childhood friend, but that was hardly thing to bet on, when Morana was in such mood. "Are you okay?" he asked Morgan. "I wonder who pissed her off today," he added comment about Morana.

Morgan angrily wiped away her tears as she watched Morana leave. "I'm sorry for causing you trouble with her," she said turning her attention back to Rabastan. She didn't want Rabastan to get into trouble with his new wife. Nodding to his question, she lowered her hand and folded them on the table. "I'm fine.... I'm fine...." she said looking after where Morana had gone.

"Nah, it's just words. Even if in her case words are maybe more dangerous than a wand," he chuckled. "You know Katrina is fine. And she likes you. Besides, Morana is furious and extremely dangerous today. She will most likely kill someone, than bother herself by something like this," he added. "This was Morana I warned you about."

Turning her attention back to Rabastan she wondered how much of what he was saying was true. Morgan was just in the wrong place at the wrong time to face Morana. Regardless, what she said to her was how Morgan felt. She was pushing Morana away as he said she could. Morana wasn't going to care. what Morgan saw that day changed how she viewed Morana from then on. "Speaking of Katrina, how is she? You both are newly weds now..." she said changing the topic to, hopefully, a much brighter topic.

"Busy, we both are. But so far it's fun. She is perfect match for me," he smiled as he remembered his wife. "You can always come for a visit. Lestrange manor is now full of people," he added, but he himself knew that Morgan most likely won't ever come to visit him in his family mansion. It was risky. For so many reasons.

Morgan's heart sang for the first time since the happening with the boys and the mess she witnessed between Remus and the man responsible for his parents' deaths at hearing that Rabastan and Katrina were happy. Perfect as he said. She was glad that he had found someone that would fit with him better than she ever could. "That makes me happy to hear that, Rabastan, it really does. Please, give her a hug for me," she said brightly, sounding like her old self again. At his invite to come and visit, her smiled faded slightly. "I guess we will see what comes to pass," she said before biting her bottom lip lightly. This war put them all in danger, but as Morgan was beginning to see, if anyone was in danger among all those she knew, she was in the most. Protected from all sides, watched from all sides, hunted from all sides...

"Yeah, I suppose we will," he said almost absently. "Do you feel better now?" he asked afterwards. He wished he could help more, but there was not much to do or say to help Morgan. She simply had to find her own way out of this.

With a nod, Morgan managed a smile that was similar, but not quite the same, at the one she commonly wore. "I think, as better as I can be, Rabastan. Thank you. I miss our talks, even if this one was more on the somber side of things," she answered him. "Your words always seem to help," she added, looking away.