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Marion eyed the bottle of cheap whiskey on her table.
Prohibition was over, but she was fairly certain this particular bottle had been sitting on the bar shelves far before it became legal and had more or less questionable background. Not that Marion had suffered through prohibition. She had lived deep in the Nepal mountains back then, where booze had flowed freely.
Nepal.
The Raven Saloon.
Marion walked to the small dresser in the corner of her one-room apartment and reached into it.
She pulled out the small bronze disc.
Indiana had returned it to her. Mailed it to her in fact, not even given it to her in person. Marion wondered what she would have told Indiana if he had.
She ran her fingers on the cold metal. It was the only thing she had left from the Raven Saloon...
Fuck, why am I nostalgic for that time?
She had felt trapped, then. And miserable. Even before her father had died she had been all alone, and it had felt like the only thing she could do was drink and let days drift by.
She set down the medallion and turned to look at the bottle on the table.
It might have been cheap, but it would get her drunk.
Why am I even bothering with the cheap stuff? I could afford getting sloshed on the high-end wine and spirits.
Indiana had actually come through and given Marion her cut. That's how Marion was paying for the tiny apartment. But she could effort splurging a bit...
Just drink my money.
There was a knock on the door. Marion frowned.
It turned out to be Willie.
"Can I come in?"
"Wait, give me a minute." Marion closed the door.
She did a quick overview of her apartment. It was relatively clean, though mostly thanks to her not having many possessions. She grabbed the shirts and underwear on the tiny bed and pushed them in her closet.
She moved the whiskey bottle under the sink, out of view. She felt a sting of guilt, maybe for hiding it-
It was ridiculous, she was an adult woman! If she wanted to drink, she was allowed.
Marion opened the door. "Sorry, I wasn't expecting company."
Willie stepped in. This was not the first time she was visiting Marion's apartment. Ever since Indiana had introduced them to each other the two had struck something like a friendship, and when Willie was in town she would visit Marion. Usually she called beforehand though...
Marion wondered if she was in town because she was visiting Indiana. Marion had never asked directly but it was clear Willie and Indiana at least had a past.
I should probably be more bothered by it, Marion thought.
She had not seen Indiana in a few weeks, and wasn't certain what their relationship was at all.
She had felt so elated when they had arrived to the States from Egypt. So certain her life was going to change.
Indiana had crashed through her life and set her old cage on fire, and now she was free.
But nothing had truly changed.
For a while there, Marion had stopped drinking. She had stayed with Indiana in his small house. But things hadn't worked out, all it seemed like they were constantly arguing. And Marion had refused to get trapped again, and had moved out, getting her own apartment in the same city.
And for a while things had been better. Distance was just what they had needed.
And Indiana would call, or appear on his doorstep, occasionally bleeding, and drag Marion on his stupid dangerous adventures. At least for a while Marion would feel alive.
But always afterwards they argued, Marion would retreat to her home and get drunk.
And now Indiana hadn't been around in some weeks.
"So, what brings you here?" Marion asked.
"Oh I was in town, Indiana mentioned- You had talked on the phone."
Marion frowned. "Maybe. Recently?"
"The day before yesterday."
Marion had been drunk enough not to remember. There was a vague recollection-
Willie reached a hand to stroke her shoulder. "You okay?"
Marion looked at her. She wanted to kiss her.
She looked away. "Why wouldn't I be? Just bored."
She had known for some years now that sometimes she had these urges towards other women. They had been easier to ignore once.
And she realized what was different now. Back in Nepal, there had been no way out for her. But now, if she reached out-
But of course she wouldn't do it. She was still trapped.
She looked at Willie's painted lips. She wanted to pull her to her and kiss her-
Marion was disgusted with herself. If Willie knew she would never want to see her again.
But the way Willie was running her thumb on Marion's bare arm was maybe implying things-
That maybe if Marion pulled her close, she would smile, and kiss her right back...
Marion stepped back. "Just been... Tired."
"Would you like to go out? To a park?"
Marion realized it had been days since she had been outside.
She wanted to do so many things.
But the things she genuinely wanted were impossible.
She looked at the other woman and for a fraction of a second she could see it. The possibility of something new.
She nodded. "Yeah just let me get my coat."