(Untitled)

[futures_of_ash]

Following an altercation outside, Rachel leads Veronica into the the cells.

The note left for other security officers simply read:

Veronica Mars, five days for assault and attempted murder under the influence of a curse/alter mind.

RachelShe nodded semi-genially to the celled girl and sighed, padding back out into the main Bar. She had things to

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[watching_you]

The cells are comfortably bland. Veronica spends the entirety of the first night sleeping soundly and enjoying it. It's been a while.

Sometime into the day two she asks for a deck of cards and spends a couple of hours playing solitaire before turning her focus towards the construction of a house of cards. It's slow going, but the process doesn't bore her - it's been a long time since her mind was free for her to use however she wished.

[watching_you]

Veronica glances up when she hears someone come in, and hesitates in her card-stacking when she realizes who it is. Behrooz doesn't say anything and doesn't meet her eyes, so she takes this as signs she should probably just continue.

The house is three levels now. Since it's that or be idle, Veronica has even color coded it, red-black-red.

She adds another two cards, holding her breath as she leans them against each other. She removes her hands: it stays. She exhales.

"Hey."

[watching_you]

"Um. Yeah. It's not bad, as far as jail cells go."

She's not just saying this! She has a basis for comparison!

"How's your head?"

[watching_you]

Veronica nods, slowly.

"I don't know everything, so I can't tell you everything. But I'll tell you all that I know. Would that be good enough for now?"

[watching_you]

"Okay."

She crosses her legs.

"Um. I don't - I'm not sure when -" She coughs to clear her throat. "I don't know what caused it. But I think it has something to do with that black place. I came back and... I don't know. Since then it's been different. It's all felt different. It's like - you know sometimes you get that little voice in the back of your head that tells you to do crazy things? Like someone's being an idiot and you just want to haul off and punch them or something but you don't? You stop yourself? I came back and it was... stronger. Harder to ignore. It would say things and I would just do them, I couldn't not. And I would try to... focus, try to be myself, but I couldn't. And eventually it just took over."

She bows her head.

"I could see myself... doing things, sometimes, and I'd think - no, stop - but it wouldn't matter. It was like I was a passenger. Like I didn't have any choice anymore. Everything I did would be the worst possible thing I could have done, the worst version of myself. And I didn't

[watching_you]

"In the - the dark place, you mean? That weird house? Yeah, there were some other people from the Bar..."

Closing her eyes, she remembers.

"Dale Cooper, Charlie McGee. Someone named Crowley. And there were - others, I think, afterwards, but that was... later. I was alone for a long time. I don't know how long." She looks down at her hands. They're trembling. "I know names but I don't think I would... recognize anyone. It was dark in there. Black."

[watching_you]

"I don't know. But it's my best theory at the moment. I know some people in the bar deal with magic on a daily basis but it's never been my thing. That's the last time I've had to deal with something like that, and that's around when it started."

[watching_you]

She looks up at him sharply. "No, it's - it wasn't your fault. Don't be sorry. I'm sorry, for bashing you in the head."