Reasonable Reasons

Disclaimer: I don't own iZombie or any of its characters or other property. I do not make profit off this work and do not intend to. This works purpose is entertainment.

Warnings: depression, child abuse, childhood trauma, implied child abuse, nightmares, PTSD.

Pairings: Liv/Ravi friendship, Liv/Blaine friendship development.

AN: Set after Blaine admits to remembering.

START

The next day an unwelcome guest arrived at the morgue.

There stood Blaine, in all his glory. Ravi glared and considered "accidentally" stabbing the former zombie. But Liv was there too and she looked at him knowingly.

"What are you here for?" Liv asked, an edge in her voice. "You hurt Peyton. You cost me months of possible human life." she accused softly.

Blaine looked suitably cold and simply asked "Can we use your office?".

Ravi nodded.

Once they were in the office, Blaine found himself wanting to be back outside it. It was clear Liv was upset. Angry. Hurt. Mourning her chance at being human. It would not be unreasonable for her to kill him in this state. "I wanted to explain myself. There is a reason I hid the truth." he said carefully.

"Yeah I know. Like going under Mr Boss's radar. Like maintaining your little "business". Like saving your own neck!" She accused angrily.

"Yes, those and another one. My dead father is back in town...well undead. Anyway...he and I have a history" he explained uneasily.

She considered him. Considered if she should throw his lying ass out. "I am willing to listen." she decided.

He looked relieved. "Where to start..." he muttered, running his hands through his hair nervously. "His a god awful bastard...a man who thrives on the suffering of others and throws parties when his rivals go out of business." he spat angrily.

"Your afraid of him" she spoke startling him.

"Yeah. Yeah I'm scared. I wasn't exactly son of the year but he was far from father of the year." he admitted.

"What did he do to you?" Liv asked softly.

"He ignored when the nanny was...unprofessional. He ignored my pleas for help and my attempts at bonding. I didn't always hate him." he said distractedly, anger clear in his eyes.

"Can you explain what the nanny did?" she asked, actually sounding concerned.

He replied as if he didn't even realise where he was. "She had a temper. I tested her. Once I was playing and I came in all muddy. She went off at me. Yelling and screaming. Frightened the hell outta me. Then she hit me so hard I fell back onto the tiles. Blood everywhere. I was too dizzy to stand. She called for a maid. Thats all I heard before everything went black. From then on she would find any reason. I told my father. He said I was a liar. It only stopped when she almost killed me. Never saw her after that. I woke in a hospital with my father faking concern and talking about how he didn't know what the nanny had been up to. The solution was to fire her." he said, voice shaking in parts of his story. "And then someone had to take over the job...make Blaine a real man!" he continued bitterly. "And my poor mother...sweet woman...he hurt her too. I couldn't help her" he finished.

Liv realised this was the truth. "Okay, I understand. I am not sure I can forgive." she amended.

"I just want to be more than his shadow. I just want one person to see me as more than...more than what I am. To see what I can be." he confessed.

She nodded her understanding.

"So who hurt you?" he asked almost whispering. "I noticed when I saw you. Was your daddy a bastard too?".

She froze. "How?" she said in a hushed whisper.

"Your drive. Your ability to bounce back. Your fearlessness. What else?" he explained.

"Alright" she conceded. "Not here."

"Ravi doesn't know. Huh, imagine that!" Blaine said amazed.

"What doesn't Ravi know?" Said a voice that made both of them spin around. There Ravi stood. "Liv, did you really think I'd let him around you alone? I heard it all. I think Blaine should leave. We have work to do." he said deadly calm. He didn't know what to do with this information. Blaine's confession had taken him off guard...was it enough to justify the monster? Did it offer a chance at redemption?

And Liv? Well that wasn't what he wanted to think about.

Blaine stood up and left, not looking back at the pair. He had done what he had set out to do. If either of them was what he expected, they would understand.