-- Circe --
Circe approaches the raven with a look of awe and fascination. "I've heard of white ravens before, but never seen one! One of my majors for a while was zoology; I wanted to study the brains of highly intelligent animals that weren't mammals--like Octopoda, Bees, and Corvids. The fact that they were so smart but developed intelligence in a totally different way than we did is super cool! But the coursework was too hard and I wanted time to do my art, so... Now I like to draw ravens, at least.". She stands next to the cage and makes eye contact with the bird. She says, "Well, ravens, like all corvids, are omnivores, but I think they tend to eat bugs, nuts and seeds, and small lizards and mice in the wild. And, of course, human food garbage, too. But in captivity? They could be trained to eat almost anything." She's no scientist, but she does spend some time examining the raven, its cage, and its behavior.
Eventually, she turns back to Benji and apologizes, saying, "Oh! I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to, like, ignore you. But you have a Raven! That is so cool. Anyway, uh... So.". She walks over to the sofa and sits down, awkwardly shifting her weight. She says, "So, is this where I can sleep?"
-- Persephone --
Persephone looks at Viv and smiles, though it doesn't quite reach her eyes. Still, that weird twinge in her stomach seems to be gone, so maybe that was the right thing? Viv does seem more at ease now, at least. Perhaps more honesty will continue this trend.
She says, "So, I should tell you about my work. They are a very secretive corporate entity that uses unconventional methods, to put it lightly. For example, when I needed something to help with my anxiety and, um, PTSD, they gave me... this."
She turns, allowing Viv to see the strange tattoo on her back. She says, "You know how you can get a birth control device implanted for long term, constant protection? This is like that, but for anxiety. So this thing is likely to be there for a while, having this effect. I am looking into ways of removing it, however." She looks up at Viv again and shrugs, as if this sort of thing was entirely normal. She adds, "They are not morally good people, the ones I work for. They definitely operate outside of the normal legal and moral limits. I guess this is an example of that. I'm sorry."
She stands and hugs Viv, because that seems to be something a movie character would do after divulging personal information. She notices their naked bodies touching, but still feels no arousal. A hint of sadness accompanies this realization, but she ignores it. Then she says, "How about we get dressed and watch some movies? I believe they call it Netflix and Chill."
That way, she thinks to herself, we can spend time together without having to talk.
