Courage is yet still at a loss for words. He had still been recovering from the surprised priveledge of being led into a group when the truth of Kasha's turmoil came to light. Most of it, in any case. Though the more intellectual side of him might of lost itself pondering specifics, the whole part about Obsidian being not what he appeared to be got little more than a raised brow. So, he stood there looking in the direction Kasha ran off to until he felt gaze on him. Unfortunately, Yvan finds no answers in the tiefling's expression; only confusion, shock, and a visibly growing worry and even fear as the former two began to wear off.

"... Right.. right.." Courage responded barely above a whisper at Yvan's suggestion, still staring at Kasha's exit point. "I... I should... Someone should..." He continued after a long moment's pause, only to trail off again. It took overhearing the exchange between Stella and Alys to finally draw him out of some mental downward spiral as to look anywhere with intention. Without a word to the others after and with a determined set to his face, Courage marches out after Kasha..

A bush rustles and says, deliberately, "What..is it, Courage."

 Courage raises a brow to the bush, and gives it a long look. But then smiled softly and made his way closer to it. Just close enough to be within two or three feet of it, before then starting to unlatch the cooking pot he'd altered in backpack from his back. "Good morning, Ms. Bush!" He opened brightly. "It's been quite a long time since we last spoke, hasn't it? Or might've that been your sister I spoke to? If so, gosh! Quite embarrassing this is." He chuckled, but continued to idly with Souperb's help and some blankets turn the pot into a fairly comfortable seat.

"But if bygones can be bygones... perhaps you can lend this old soul some advice? Heard the most troubling news of recent from a... well... I'd like to think of her as a friend, even if its only one sided right now. Like to help her too through what she's told me, however I can... But... I'm not quite sure how exactly, ya know? Had a... I had a friend kinda like her before once. Real bundle of sunshine that one, and that's saying something for a gnome. She had a knack as well for turning to a great number of powerful beasts. Sometimes to play a prank on the rest of us or those we met. And sometimes to fight in the defense of those she loved." He explained nonchalantly. But then, he kind of hunched forward a little in his seat as the air turned more somber.

"That was until she lost her family." He admits. "And like that, things were different.... Soon she began to lose herself more and more in these other forms. Anything to escape the hurt, I guess. And I was never good at that whole... advice thing. Had my head too far up my own ass those days to be delicate. And I'm afraid that for all I've learned since then, it still isn't enough to keep history from repeating itself... But, I guess regardless of how I feel about it all, I.... there's gotta be a way, right? To help ease her pain so that she doesn't feel like she needs to run away from even the good things with her life, right?"

Stella looks at Alys with a small smile. "I'm gonna go talk to Yvan. You wanna come with me?"

From another bush behind you, it drolls, "Your gnome friend and I things in common, then. How exciting."

(But... I'm not quite sure how exactly, ya know?)
(But, I guess regardless of how I feel about it all, I.... there's gotta be a way, right?)

You get the impression she either doesn't know how to help you with your "advice predicament." (see above), or doesn't want to talk about it at this moment in time. You're not sure, and neither is she.

("But if bygones can be bygones... perhaps you can lend this old soul some advice? Heard the most troubling news of recent from a... well... I'd like to think of her as a friend, even if its only one sided right now.")

"Also, I don't have anything against you. In fact, I think I remember complimenting you back there."  A pause. "Yup. Pretty sure."

Alys would sink into Stella's hug, nuzzling her face somewhere to hide as she'd graciously accept her comforting hug. Gentle nodding could be felt coming from the elf, both in response to her wise words and offer to go check on Yvan. She believed he'd appreciate hearing Stella's words as she did. And she really wanted to give him a hug...

I wanted to thank her for her honesty... Remind her it's okay not to be okay... It's okay to have bad days... Her poor heart probably aches from all the change in her life... How could I even help Kasha without making it worse?

Peeking up a bit sheepishly from the rogue, Alys would look around. She'd notice Courage stepped away. Her heart would swell for the newest member. Despite being 'freshmeat', he was beyond patient and kind to their quirky group. The tiefling was perceptive and openly giving with his time and words, mediating as he could. The man deserved to be treated to a special meal for himself.

Catching quiet Vastra, Alys would briefly tiptoe away from Stella to slip arms around her mentors waist, burying her face in her chest for a quick cushy hug. "We'll be right back..." She'd muffle before returning butted up to Stella's side to follow her lead.

Stella gently wraps an arm around Alys's shoulders and heads up to Yvan's room, where she knocks lightly.

Yvan had been sitting on his bed when the knock came, looking the memory gem Alys had gifted him sitting in the middle of his palm. He gives a look towards the door before getting up from his place to his box, to carefully set the precious gift back in where he stored it for safe keeping. Afterwards, he shuffles for the door and opens it, meeting Stella's eyes first, then settles upon Alys'. His heart aches for her, wanting nothing more than to sweep the cleric off her feet and pull her into a hug, but he pushes it back, and brings his gaze on Stella again.

"... Are we ready to go...?"

"Not yet. Mind if I come in?" Stella asks briskly, giving Yvan a very slight, soft smile.

The question takes him back slightly, but he recovers quickly and says, "Em... No... Not at all." The goliath opens the door wide for the two of them to come in, then asks, "...Should I close the door or..."

"Yeah, probably." Stella slips into the room with a nod, perching on the edge of Yvan's bed.

Once the door's closed, she speaks again. "I wanted to talk to you about what Kasha said."

When told it would be best to close the door, the goliath does so without a question. With the door closed, he turns towards the two, and seeing that Stella had already sat herself on his bed, he gestures for Alys to do that same. If she does so, he takes the chair from his work bench and moves it so he could sit and face them both. If she does not, he offers the cleric his work bench seat and stands. If she prefers to stand, he does so too.

Once it is revealed the reason for their visit, he takes a deep breath. "I had a feeling... What of it...?"

"We all love Kasha. And hopefully Courage is out there right now reminding her of that, and helping her as much as he can," Stella says simply. "But that doesn't make what she said in anger right. I...have a feeling that you two took her words to mean that you should pull your relationship back, or stop showing your care for each other in front of the rest of us." Her tone is serious and gentle. "But what you two have is so amazing, and precious, and I can see how much good it does you both every second of every day. It's not something you should be ashamed of, or that should be kept hidden and buried behind closed doors. You both clearly make each other so, so happy. I would hate if you both pushed that happiness to the side because of something Kasha said while lashing out in grief. Because you both deserve all the happiness and love in the world." She meets both Yvan and Alys's eyes as she speaks, trying her hardest to convey all the support she can through her voice and gaze.

Courage furrows his brow for a moment, and then cocks his head to the side. And then, he chuckles and shakes his head. "Well, while I'm glad to here you don't have anything against me, Ms. Bush, I'm afraid your memory must be going bad too. 'cause you see, it was a lovely, young half-elf lass to pay any compliments inside. She being the one I'd been hoping to get advice on from you in regards." He explained. With your passive insight, you get the feeling he's playing dumb on purpose. You might have some other ideas why that is, but the one to stick out the most leads you to believe it to be some attempt at being disarming and delicate, seeing as you hadn't come out the bush yet.

"But I get it though. It's not exactly an easy, uh.. situation to speak on. Too many hits at once is bound to leave quite the bruise, ya know? Or perhaps better yet a scar.... And I should know. Even now I know I'm little more than one giant walking scar just waiting to be reopened into a fresh wound." He admits, bobbing his head up and down absently as eyes grew glassy for a few moments. But then Souperb, who having partway through squeezed out of the pot, started poking his cheek, eliciting a somber smile. "But then I remembered the name I chose wasn't Liar. It wasn't Smoke or Coward or some other tom foolery either. When I was cast out of my own world by misfortune and left to fend for myself in some godsforsaken alien world, I chose to become something new. I chose to be more than what I once thought of myself... and was told I would by peers and kin alike before the incident."

"I chose the name Courage... But to truly live up to it, as I found out, I couldn't isolate or fool mislead myself. For that, I needed family. Family being more than just blood ties and shit, but a love for each other that transcends it all, ya know.  That way even on my darkest days, I never truly forget.... forget...." He frowns and scratches his chin for a moment, before then looking around in confusion. "I'm sorry, Ms. Bush, but I seem to have misplaced my wagon of thoughts. You wouldn't happen to know where they went woudl you?"

You hear a sigh come from somewhere, and the next thing you know, Kasha is standing next to you from a direction you least expected. She spits out a leaf and starts talking.

"Look." she explained. "I know what you're trying to do, ok? And, I appreciate it. But right now? I'm really hurting. Try to understand what i'm about to say. You see, when I was a child, I was a huge pain in the ass because I was wild and untamed. My father had to raise me by himself because my mother was a fae and was never around. It was only until very recently with my father's death that I discovered my mother only had me with him to fulfill some cosmic divine purpose that I don't want any part of. She never cared, she never loved me or him, and found those emotions trivial, and inconsequential. So, with my father's death, the only person who loved me in my family..is gone. And, to top it all off, Obsidian is not just a cat. During my last trip to the Fae, I took him with me, and something I can't explain happened to him so fast I couldn't even process it."

"I KNOW the Misfits love me. But no one...LOVES me. Do you see the difference?" she cocked her head and eyebrow ever so slightly as if she's made a point. "I am a freak. I am a misfit. And..even thought I have a "family"..I feel alone. That's the best I can do to explain all of this. I have trouble putting thoughts into words sometimes, so that's going to have to do."

Alys would peek over Stella’s shoulder when Yvan would open the door. Her heart aches as her eyes and ears take in Yvan’s withdrawn nature, but would do her best, offering a timid smile of reassurance. Stella was here, with her insight and words of wisdom. She knew them best. The wizard would tip toe in after the rogue. 

When the door would close behind them, Alys would hold her hands in front of her as she’d watch Stella take a seat. In the classic pairs fashion, Alys and Yvan, the two would stand awkwardly. They were waiting for each other to take a seat first. The elf honestly just wanted to snuggle up into his lap like she does, to tuck herself in to him. So when Stella started her speech, and her familiar words to Alys came out to share with Yvan, the wizard would glance up to meet the rogues gaze when she’d look to her. And bit by bit, Alys would side step closer to the goliath with each word, occasionally peeking his way. 

There are many moments in which Yvan forgets just how insightful Stella is, especially when it came to him and Alys. While he wasn't sure on the cleric (though he had a feeling they were both in the same boat), she read him like a book, even if there was some tone of uncertainty in her words. When she explains their relationship and how good it was for the both of them, he glances over to Alys who slowly looked to be inching her way closer to him. 

"... You're right, Stella. I thought it may have been... for the better we hide our affections to avoid something like this from happening again..." As he speaks, he takes a side step himself, lightly bumping into the wizard. "But I don't think I can..." His hand carefully reaches for Alys', interweaving their fingers. "I don't want to. We've worked hard to get to this point and I... I don't want to go back for something that was said in grief." His tone is firm and serious, though it drops to a softness when he brings his gaze upon the blonde and her baby blues. "I care a lot about you, Alys, a great deal. You've shown me and taught me so many things, and I want to be able to express my gratitude openly. You've become my happiness, and I... I refuse to hide that now, and... I hope you can too."

Courage feigns a surprised gasp, and even looks back and forth between Kasha and the bush as if unsure how to explain his current position. However, any thought of maintaining the gag though vanishes the moment Kasha began the explanation. While being mindful not to interrupt by accident, the tielfing turned around in his seat, and with his elbows resting upon knees, steepled his fingers together and rested the lower half of his face behind it. (Look up Gendo Ikari for a loose visual)

After she finishes speaking, there's a moment of silence at least on Courage's end. The gears seem to almost visibly turn behind his eyes, before with a short chuckle, the silence is broken. "Sorry. Not laughing at you. I just have a similar problem with putting thoughts it no words. Sometimes it feels as if my mouth can't quite keep up with the brain, leading to some odd moments." He admits. "And I believe I understand where you coming from for the most part. Not... entirely sure why Obsidian not appearing as a cat in the Fae is that big of a surprise. Unless of course he looked kind of like your father, then in which case... yea, that'd mess up anyone pretty bad." Souperb pokes at Courage's cheek for attention, and then once he had it, made the motion of coughing awkwardly behind a closed fist.

"Ahem. Right. Getting off track a bit...Where was I again?" While Souperb pantomimed facepalming and shook his head in disappointment.

"Not... entirely sure why Obsidian not appearing as a cat in the Fae is that big of a surprise."
Kasha scoffed like it was obvious. "Uh..because, he's a fae cat? Or something? Not a man? He's Stella's familiar, not a shapeshifter of some kind."

She begins to stare at you impatiently, as if she's not exactly getting her message across.

Courage smiles sympathetically. "The Fae -- at least some, in any case -- are more than capable of assuming various different forms as suit their whims. There are even legends that your own people, er.. those of elven bloodline at least, were capable as much, before they got too wound up in the rigidity of the material plane." He explains simply. "But if he appeared as a 'man' man, then.. hm... there are stories about that too... Not very pleasant ones." He added with a grimace, then shook his head. "In either case, I'd advised not getting to wrapped up in the nuances there, but something tells me the mystery has you hooked good." Courage half-halfheartedly smirks and crosses his arms.

"Back to the other matter. I know you need to grieve, and I should leave you to it, if you truly don't want the company. But... never let yourself think you are truly alone in all this. Sure, it may feel as if there are some parts or moments that each side can't quite comprehend. But given enough time and effort, the cogs can be realigned so that all is well in the great construct that is relationships." From his shoulder, Souperb gestures to his own head before motioning away from it like some slo-mo explosion. "Also, never be afraid to experiment a little if you feel like your stuck in some rut in regards to what your capable of. Give yourself some credit."