Sunlight streamed through the walls of a greenhouse packed full of alien vegetation, and a certain Yesodi was working on a bush with seven-petaled cyan flowers using a pair of shears, clipping away at the unruly branches. Performing the closest thing to humming that a sentient orange ooze controlling a small mech could do, he heard the glass door creak open.
Turning in his bright red pressure suit to greet the visitor, he waved at the brown-haired woman coming through and approaching him. She didn't look to be in the best of states.
"Hey, Hass! What's up?" Benny ran up to him and threw a hand in the air to wave herself, hair a mess and visibly frazzled. Panting to catch her breath at the long sprint, she let him talk first.
"Bernice- you're back early. Wasn't your time at the dig supposed to be five days long?" he asked.
She bit her lip at that. That wasn't going to be easy to explain. Awkward question time already, was it? "Uhh... got called off. Dangerous storm," she lied through her teeth. The fact she was trying to lie at all really was a sign that she didn't want to have to think about it too hard.
"A dangerous storm? Everyone was unharmed, I hope?" He raised his shears.
"Yeah. All fine," she breathed, biting a nail.
"There was one other question I wanted to ask. Why did Braxiatel go to the dig with you? It isn't a normal thing to happen. He's particularly busy this time of year," Hass remarked, trimming off another flower, its petals falling to the ground.
"Oh- just checking up on things. You know," she made a poor attempt at a fake grin. As if that was particularly useful when fibbing to a member of a species that didn't have actual faces. ...Or even a skeletal structure.
She could tell that he was looking closer at her though- the orange goo inside the suit was beginning to coalesce by the panel of glass. "...Were you aware that there's a bruise on your neck?"
Alright, she couldn't come up with anything for that one. It was particular and specific, so Bernice just gave it all up with a sigh, pinching the bridge of her nose in resigned frustration. "...Fine. Alright. Neither of those things were even remotely true. There was no dangerous storm, I got- well, kidnapped."
Hass didn't actually seem too put off by that. He had long been used to her antics, and it happened quite often. "That's typical enough of your adventures though, is it not?"
Her face fell. "Yeah, but it's not usually a friend of mine who does it. And, well- Brax wasn't just checking up on things, no," she added, shaking her head.
"Braxiatel was the one who kidnapped you?" The goop shifted in a pattern that suggested concern, but you never could be quite sure. His monotonous voice was rarely an indicator, and the glass of the suit was often foggy from the outside.
Benny's eyes widened and she gestured for him to slow down with the assumptions. "God, no! No! Nothing like that at all. Saved me from one, actually. Hass- Brax and I are... dating. That's where the... uh- bruise came from." She shuffled in place awkwardly, like a child who'd just gotten in trouble.
He nodded the rounded body of the suit. "There were rumours about that, you know. For a very long time. With how they were, it was safe to assume they were only rumours," he stated matter-of-factly.
The look she gave him was one of exhaustion, and she rubbed the back of her neck. Bernice tried to look up, but winced from the glare. "Well, they were- mostly. Until about... last week, I'd say."
"The fact you managed to hide it for this long is somewhat impressive." His voice nearly sounded vaguely commending.
She grumbled. "Hass! I can keep a secret, you know. I'm just not great at actually lying to people. And goddess knows how many Brax has, he's so damn good at it. Too good."
"Why does it need to be secret?" He seemed slightly curious.
Bernice put a hand up to her face, not able to look him in the glass. "You were here fifteen years ago, Hass. You know what happened. The others still around from back then aren't all particularly fond of me, or what they found out about what Brax and I did," she explained.
He seemed almost disinterested. Or maybe that was just him being him. "It was my understanding that your shared actions regarding the timeline of the Braxiatel Collection were for the best that could be done for the universe."
She wiggled in a so-so gesture, agreeing. "Well, yes. You generally have a different angle of understanding than most people though."
"It seemed that Braxiatel was particularly lonely after your absence. He is good at hiding emotion, but it was over such a long period that many began to notice it. Your return and sexual situation is probably for the best," he stated. Again, his monotone really wasn't helping much.
"Sexual situation?! I am in... love-" The protests fell harshly on her tongue, just spilling out. Saying it to Brax was one thing- saying it to somebody else in the Collection? She didn't want to admit that part yet. Also, Hass technically wasn't wrong- at least as of about an hour or two ago.
"I apologize- it's difficult for me to understand such matters between humans and... Braxiatel's species." His voice faltered. Very few around here were actually sure what race Brax was. He seemed ageless, and could time travel, but to those who didn't know about them, he managed to keep things under tighter wraps than expected.
Her voice was bitter. "Well, it's difficult for anyone. Doesn't typically happen at all."
"Relations between humans and other species are common enough. Your son was born of one, was he not?" he absentmindedly got back to his trimming.
"Technically, different kind of relation, though." She tried putting it into words, voice her real concerns. "But ...relations- between Braxiatel's species- and literally anything else is practically unheard of. A few cases, none ending well. And he's Brax, and I'm me. I know he understands love, just not the same way, but that part of my life has been a disaster since the start. Not even counting the other reason it's complicated. Before... that. A lot of people died because we were friends, Hass." Bernice sighed in defeat. Her confidence in all of this had been building, slowly. Though there were still cracks in the foundation. Flaws that wouldn't ever be quite repairable.
He shifted himself in the suit, vaguely in the way a humanoid might shake their head. "I still struggle to understand the situation of the timeline you came from, Bernice. Other than that it was a danger to the universe, but its complete erasure would be deadly as well."
"It's... very complicated. While it is an important part of my life- I don't want to go back to it. So much bad happened. It was hard coming back here at all. He was the worst by far, but we all turned into monsters," she stared down at the rows of flowers.
"While I can't know whether I should be grateful, I prefer not being a monster. You did your best," he tried to assure.
"Thanks? But that's... not really important right now. Can you just not tell too many people? Some outside of the Collection already know, but it's just- different circumstances," Bernice explained.
"I understand." As she was turning around, he gently placed an arm on her shoulder to get her attention back. "Before you leave, are you working on your lesson plans, considering your position?" Hass reminded.
"Haven't had much time to, but I will," she promised.
That was something to think about. It was in the middle of the term where she'd last been teaching- Bernice would have to start all over and prepare for a new year to start in just six short weeks. There were probably some materials she could carry over, but not a whole lot. Different galaxy, different standards, different century. It'd be like putting together a quilt with several pieces that were burnt.
She said her goodbyes, hiked back up to her room, and fell into digging through her messages. There were a lot of them, and chatting with Braxiatel over the date had bookmarked in her mind what could be quite an important call later.
The student roster this year was low- they'd been having guest professors for those last fifteen years, without a consistent teacher around it wasn't surprising the turnout was low. However, this did mean she'd get more personal picks this time. And Bernice took getting to choose who she wanted to pretty seriously.
The application list was low too- provided they all met the criteria, everyone on it would be getting a seat without issue. Time had long been up for ones not directed from her, so nobody would get to react to Benny's return, either.
Bernice sighed. It was going to be a long rest of the day. "Should've gone back for another round, huh?" she muttered under her breath. It was tempting, certainly. But there was more to be done, and going back to that so soon seemed shallow.
Already feeling fatigued from being back, she looked at the channel. She'd realized that with a datapad it seemed a lot more advanced, and she was able to look up things she couldn't with a holowatch.
Scrolling through mentions of her name, she hit the kid from the dig again. Nikhedonia?
'Hello! Everyone doing okay?'
'I'm alright- how about you?' a woman asked.
'Good! Been a busy morning. I was reading about something I was talking to Professor Summerfield about!'
'Oh, yeah? What about?' she asked again.
'About the Braxiatel Collection!' they answered.
'Don't really know what that is...'
'It's an archive on an asteroid! And it has EVERYTHING. Or, it's gonna.' The enthusiasm was infectious.
'That sounds impressive.'
'Yeah! Mr Braxiatel owns it. Do you know they just got a new painting? It isn't on display yet though. The planet it's from is gone... but he saved bits of it, so it won't be forgotten-' Nix added.
'What planet would that be? And what painting?'
'Bulme...gantu? Bulmegantu. It blew up I think. But someone helped a few refugees escape! From what I read. It's a huge landscape painting.' They were really fawning over it, and Benny thought that quite charming. Curious now, she searched up the painting in the database, just for a quick look. Not too bad.
'Really? Sounds familiar. -Not the planet, but the circumstances.'
"Oh, if that isn't the truth..." Bernice snarked- but not quite loudly enough to get picked up on.
'It's on the website under "upcoming acquisitions". He works with a famous archaeologist! So I bet that's how he knows about things.' Bernice did have a fan here. Adorable. The kid really should come to the Collection for a look at things.
'Which archaeologist?'
'Bernice Summerfield!'
'Who?'
'She was in here yesterday-'
"Hello. My ears were burning. Thought I'd have a quick check up on things. I'm Professor Bernice Summerfield. Benny for short," she introduced herself.
'Hi!'
'Ah, that Professor Summerfield. Well, I'm charmed.'
"Thank you very much. Nice to meet you. -And yes, Nix. By the time you could get approval to have a visit, that painting should be on display." She took out the file on this- it'd only been around for a few days, but its acquirement was already making waves in the art community. Apparently very well-liked and rather envied. Wanting to hold out the olive branch, Bernice sent the theorized date- about three weeks from now.
'That is so cool. I'll have to ask Ko-uh, da- my guardian.'
Benny smiled fondly. "Well, that's good then. Being responsible with family involved is rather important."
'Well, he's not family... I mean he kinda is? I guess he adopted me. Without... signing any papers or anything. It's complicated.'
That got her thinking of another thing. An important one. "I had a certain... thing like that happen to my son, Brax was essentially his adoptive guardian for a while when I was stuck halfway across the galaxy. It's complicated, but not something others won't be able to understand."
'Yeah! It's like that. Koschei found me and he's been looking after me.'
What she didn't expect was for him to pop in himself. 'Irving was great, yeah.'
She grinned ear-to-ear. "Hello, Peter. I love you so much."
'Muuuum! Not in public!'
Benny giggled a little. She was still embarrassing as ever, it seemed. "Aww... Come and see me sometime, my big strong wolf!"
'Seriously? ...Sorry. I've suddenly caught an allergy to this room. Uhhh... maybe later. Or never.'
"You know I have to talk to you later though. And your husband. About the baby," she added.
'Yes- but in private. Bye, mum.'
"Bye, Peter. Again, love you." Seeing as that was about it, she'd need to talk to him again later away from prying eyes. At that, Bernice turned the datapad off and went back to wading through papers. Benny groaned, already tired despite the extra sleep and it still being barely past noon.
Alone in his office, Braxiatel sifted through emails and emails. Rolling his eyes, it seemed like nothing could be done without him around for five minutes anymore. An auction for a bust he'd need to go bid on, supply for the various shops, new samples of flora and fauna to be ordered, last-minute university picks and recommendations, double-checking Joseph's cataloguing of the artefacts Roda had donated- it was preposterous the number of tasks that needed doing. And he'd just handed a decently sized job back.
Brax rubbed the bridge of his nose.
'Braxiatel...' a voice whispered his name. 'Braxiatel...'
That drew his attention. "...No. Not you. Not now- " His eyes rolled, practically on instinct about the topic at this point. That wasn't to say he was completely unafraid. Oh, he was very much afraid indeed.
It seemed that an old friend had come out to play again. He wasn't alone anymore.
'Do this... dance... so rarely...' the spirit taunted.
His tone was a casual seriousness, not something one might typically use when conversing with their parasite. "Creature. It's been a while. Not a pleasure, as always."
'New... friend... Roda-' it hissed.
His eyes widened slightly, then darted around the room. Resting his chin on folded hands, he gave his reply. "Ah. So you think me hiring one Time Lord on the short term is going to make me lose my head, hmm? A childish fantasy."
'I... was... fantasy...' it remarked.
"True, on a remote technicality. But you seem to have lost most of your faculties since our last conversation. Quite a limited vocabulary compared to before, hmm? I was getting so close to crushing you again, wasn't I?" he asked tauntingly.
'Not... this... time...'
He tutted at it, disappointed, but unsurprised. "Shame. It would've been for the better. You know that."
'Rodaaaa-'
He shrugged. "I doubt she's even anything more than a vaguely competent thief. Renegades are so rarely any good with telepathic connections though, are they? If you somehow managed, or I allowed you to jump over to her, I doubt you'd be able to do anything but consume yourself by running out of life to feed on. Even if you stay partially within me, you'll be spread too thin. I'd finally win. You're clutching at straws again, creature," he explained smugly.
'Then... let her... die...' it ordered.
Brax tapped his fingers on the desk. "Hmm. Well, if you want it- I don't think I will, probably not. Unfortunately. She might have even been useful for something. Though I suppose neither of us are getting our wish, then."
'You... have... a new... weakness-' the voice taunted.
He smiled thinly, scarily. "Oh. Yes. Very good. I might just have clapped if you were outside my head, there. This isn't new at all. It took you that long to figure that out, did it? Decades? Centuries? Millennia? Neither of us know for sure, but it's been a long time for both of us, creature. I'm not sure of it all but my apparent actions sometimes suggest that the tactic's already been done. Not that it'll work again." He knew his moves. This was the real dance.
'Benny...'
His eyes narrowed gravely, darting across the room again in mild paranoia. "Of course. Yes, I love her. That's true. And I'm now aware that she loves me, in some twisted and unfortunate way. But you don't understand love. I may be somewhat weak in that particular area so far myself, but you are far, far weaker. And again, creature. I will do whatever it takes to protect her. Except follow your advice again. My own plans simply won't concede to yours. We've put all the effort in, I'd hardly throw in the towel now." His hands drifted back down and rested on the desk as he sat up, the shadows darkening the room seeming to coalesce around him. Humming quietly, almost merrily, Braxiatel tugged back at it.
'Liar-' it shot back, faltering in its stance.
"Mmm... Good luck with that. Now-" he grunted with the mental effort. "Retreat. I don't know why you bothered to come and chat. This talk wasn't... worth my time." The shadows faded like they were never there, and all was well. Letting out a long, bated breath, Braxiatel felt complete silence again as the chains binding his prisoner tightened once more.
Unfortunately, the creature was right. Somewhat. He might have taken calculated risks on those things at one point. And he might yet still. But no matter what, Pandora wouldn't be winning. His ambition would remain in collecting, and protecting. And no matter how much he missed home, there was nothing that could be done, now.
Casually, as if absolutely nothing had just gone down at all, he poured himself a cup of tea. While something he normally enjoyed greatly- it seemed especially bitter today.
"Hmm... needs more sugar."
