Chapter 120 - No Rest For the Morrigan

Morrigan slumped in the chair, her eyes heavy with exhaustion. She just wanted this to be over.

Miss Cheyenne, however, was nowhere near done. Arms crossed, voice sharp, she fired off her interrogation. “Where have you been? Who were you with?”

Morrigan exhaled slowly, resisting the urge to bang her head against the table. “Can this wait until later?”

“Oh no, you don’t.” Cheyenne’s glare darkened. “Mrs. Sarah will hear about this.”

“Please, anything but that.” Morrigan deadpanned.

Cheyenne’s eyes narrowed. “You really don’t understand your situation here, do you? We’ve given you countless chances, and you just keep bending the rules, pushing your luck.”

Morrigan rubbed her temples. “Listen, Miss—I’m really tired, can we just—”

“Miss Cheyenne,” she corrected sharply. “You will refer to me as Miss Cheyenne.”

Morrigan groaned. “Miss Cheyenne, can we do this later? Like, after I’ve had at least an hour of sleep?”

Cheyenne’s glare sharpened. “No, because who knows if you’ll even be here.”

Well don’t blame me for you being bad at your job.

Morrigan slumped dramatically in her chair. “Alright, let’s just get this over with. What exactly do you think I was doing?”

“I’d rather hear it from you.”

“I went for a walk.”

Cheyenne’s expression didn’t waver. “You went for a walk. In the middle of the night. And how, exactly, are you getting out?”

Morrigan shrugged. “I have my ways.”

Cheyenne pinched the bridge of her nose, breathing in sharply. “That’s not an answer.”

“Well, it’s the only one I’ve got.”

Cheyenne’s fingers twitched like she wanted to slam them down on the table. “You think this is funny?”

Morrigan met her gaze. “Not really.”

“That’s it. Empty your pockets. Now.”

Morrigan rolled her eyes. “I don’t have anything in my pockets.”

“That wasn’t a request. Now.”

“What, are you gonna strip-search me?”

Cheyenne’s patience finally snapped. She grabbed Morrigan’s arm, yanking her up from the chair.

“Woah, woah—hey! Hands off!” Morrigan shouted, twisting away as Cheyenne started patting down her pockets.

Yanking herself free, Morrigan turned her pockets inside out, using perception-blocking on her skeleton key so it remained invisible. “Look! There’s nothing in my fucking pockets! You wanna frisk me against the wall next?”

Cheyenne’s face flushed red, her anger boiling over—but before she could respond, the door swung open.

Sarah stood in the doorway, her gaze flickering between them with a mix of concern and exhaustion. “What is going on here?”

Cheyenne took a step back, fists clenched at her sides. “Miss Morrigan seems to think the rules don’t apply to her. She snuck out—again—refuses to tell me where she was, and now she’s acting like I’m the villain for holding her accountable.”

Morrigan crossed her arms. “Yeah, well, maybe you shouldn’t be putting your hands on people. Ever think about that?”

Sarah’s lips pressed into a thin line. Her eyes flicked between them, measuring the tension in the room. After a long pause, she exhaled. “Cheyenne, I’ll handle this. Your shift is almost over anyway.”

Cheyenne hesitated but ultimately gave a stiff nod before marching past Sarah and out the door.

Sarah closed it behind her, then turned back to Morrigan, arms folded, her expression unreadable.

Morrigan sighed, rubbing her face. “Look, before you say anything, I’d just like to point out that I am way too tired for a lecture.”

Sarah didn’t respond right away. She just studied Morrigan, like she was deciding what to do with her.

Finally, she sighed. “Sit.”

Morrigan hesitated before dropping back into the chair.

Sarah leaned against the table, arms crossed, watching Morrigan with an expression that wasn’t quite anger—just tired, worn-down disappointment.

“You’re running out of chances here, Morrigan.”

“So I’ve been told.”

“This isn’t a joke.”

“I know.”

Sarah’s gaze didn’t waver. “Do you? Because from where I’m sitting, it seems like you don’t take any of this seriously. You sneak out, you break rules, you mouth off to staff who are just trying to look out for you.” She shook her head, frustration evident in every clipped word. “We’re trying to help you, but you’re making it really damn hard.”

Morrigan looked away, jaw tightening. “I never asked for help.”

“No, but you still need it.” Sarah sighed, running a hand through her hair. “Look, I get it. You’ve been through a lot. You don’t trust people, you don’t like being told what to do—but the fact remains that you’re a minor living in a shelter. You can’t just disappear in the middle of the night and expect there to be no consequences.”

Morrigan stayed silent. She knew she was pushing her luck, but it wasn’t like she could explain the truth. Oh, I just have a job collecting souls with a walking skeleton. Don’t worry about it.

Sarah sighed again, her patience thinning. “What am I supposed to do with you, Morrigan?”

Morrigan frowned, shifting in her seat. “I dunno. Maybe let me sleep?”

Sarah’s expression flattened. “You think this is funny?”

“No,” Morrigan muttered, quieter now. “I just… I don’t know what you want me to say.”

Sarah studied her for a long moment before shaking her head. “Alright. Here’s the deal. I haven’t decided what to do with you yet, but for now, you’re confined to your room while we figure it out. You’ll get breakfast there, and you can only come out for the restroom. Later today, I’ll have an answer about something more long-term.”

Morrigan narrowed her eyes. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means if you can’t follow the rules, you can’t stay here.” Sarah’s voice was steady, but there was no room for argument. “I’m sorry, but this is about your safety. We can’t guarantee your safety if you keep running off into the night, and that means this isn’t the place for you.”

Morrigan let out a sharp, bitter laugh. “Oh yeah, because you’re so great at keeping everyone safe. You think you can ‘guarantee’ anything? You can’t even stop Pepper from getting bullied, and she barely even leaves her room.”

Sarah’s expression faltered.

Morrigan leaned forward, voice edged with something sharp. “You don’t even know what goes on in your own damn shelter, do you? You let Jenna run wild for months. She was a complete psycho—hell, you practically empowered her. And now you want to act like you have everything under control? Please.”

Sarah’s lips pressed together in a tight line, but the hurt in her eyes was unmistakable.

Something twisted in Morrigan’s chest. Guilt? Maybe. Or maybe it was just the exhaustion making her feel weird about this whole thing.

Sarah took a slow breath, her voice quieter but firm. “Go to your room, Morrigan.”

For once, Morrigan didn’t have a snarky comeback. She just stood, dragging her feet as she headed for the door.

As she reached for the handle, Sarah spoke again.

“I do care, you know.”

Morrigan hesitated. Just for a second. But she didn’t turn around. Instead, she yanked the door open and stepped out into the hallway, letting it click shut behind her.

Once in her room, Pepper sat up and rubbed one eye with a balled fist. “Um… g-good morning.” She then glanced to the window as if to verify that it was indeed morning. “Is everything…”

“I got caught again,” Morrigan sighed as she kicked off her shoes then went to her dresser to pick out some basketball shorts to sleep in.

“Oh. Are you in trouble?”

“Sounds like it. I’m on room arrest for now, apparently and…” She glanced over to Pepper and frowned. “Hey… I uh… I don’t think I’ll be here much longer.”

Pepper’s eyes lowered and she nodded. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright.” She quickly exchanged her jean shorts with the basketball shorts then slipped into bed. She pressed a hand on her stomach, noting there wasn’t much pain anymore, just a dull ach. Hilda really worked her magic again.

Pepper sat cross-legged on her bed, her fingers nervously twisting the hem of her oversized pajama shirt. “Um… so… what do you mean you won’t be here much longer?”

Morrigan glanced over, then looked away. “Sarah’s probably gonna kick me out,” she admitted, voice flat. “They’re ‘figuring it out’ or whatever, but yeah.”

Pepper swallowed hard. “But where will you go?”

“Dunno what they have planned, but my friend Hilda is going to be petitioning to take custody of me. I’m not sure how long that takes, but I’m guessing they’ll have me go to some other facility while I wait for that to pan out.” She sighed. “I could just run, but I’m not going to. Better to play along until now until I can legally get into Hilda’s place.”

Pepper’s brows furrowed, and she hesitated before asking softly, “But… what if they don’t let you stay with her?”

Morrigan sighed, staring at the ceiling. “Then I’ll probably become a proper runaway again. I got somewhere I can stay. Uh, well you met Death. I’ll just stay with him.”

For a moment, the only sound in the room was the soft hum of the shelter’s cooling system.

Then, Pepper spoke in an even smaller voice. “I… I’m going to miss you.”

Morrigan blinked up at the ceiling. Visiting Pepper wouldn’t be easy in that scenario. She definitely wanted to stay in contact with her, and maybe once Pepper was older that would be easier, but that did little to ease the guilt Morrigan felt right now.

Finally she smiled and turned towards Pepper. “I’ll miss you too, but it’s not like we won’t see eachother again. You know… even if I can’t do it right away, I’ll come visit you again some time.”

Pepper smiled softly. “I’d like that.”

***

Morrigan wasn’t sure when she drifted off, but before she knew it she was just vaguely aware of the house waking up. Pepper softly nudged her at one point and asked if she was coming to breakfast. Morrigan just muttered something about house arrest and rolled over.

Thus, her last day at the shelter was panning out to be completely out of routine. They eventually brought her food, but made good on their promise to keep her confined to her room.

This might not even be my last day. If it was that easy to get rid of me I’d probably be gone by now.

She wondered about how to deal with her list tonight. She’d have to sneak out again, of course, no choice there, or find a way to slip out of whatever alternative housing option Sarah may or may not come up with before then.

Later in the day, some time after noon when she was a little more awake she had an urge to call her mom. When Sarah came to check on her—to make sure she hadn’t preformed the disappearing act she was becoming infamous for—Morrigan asked her about it and Sarah agreed to see what she could do.

Not even ten minutes later, Sarah came through for her with a cordless house phone in her hand. “Here you go Morrigan, it’s your mom.”

She sat up straighter in bed, back against the wall, and put the phone to her ear. “Hey, mom?”

“Hey kiddo. How are you doing?”

“Ah, alright I guess.”

A silence hung in the air after that.

Wow, ten seconds in and we’re already out of things to say.

Morrigan cleared her throat. “Uh… so… Hilda mentioned you’re getting out of the hospital.”

“Yeah, I’m home now, actually.”

“That’s good. So um… how are you doing?”

“Good enough. They got me on some happy pills. So that’s something I guess.”

“Oh. Is it helping?” Morrigan didn’t know why everything she thought of to say felt like it just sounded stupid.

“Yeah, try not to worry about me too much. I’m alright, kid.” She paused, Morrigan could hear the heavy breath on the other side of the phone. “Look, I’m sorry about putting you through all of this.”

“It’s alright.”

“No. It’s really not. I scared you, I know I did, and… you know, I really am sorry.”

Morrigan stared down at her lap, picking at a loose thread in her shorts. She really didn’t know what to say to that. She was just glad that her mom was still alive.

Eventually, she just muttered, “Yeah. Well… don’t do it again, alright?”

A weak chuckle came from the other end. “Don’t worry, I promise. I can’t do much, but I at least owe it to you to keep my shit together, alright? So I’m going to do that.”

Morrigan nodded, even though her mom couldn’t see her. “Good.”

Another silence stretched between them. Not uncomfortable, just… uncertain.

“So…” Morrigan started. “I might be getting kicked out of this place soon.”

“Kicked out? You mean literally?”

“Yeah.”

She could hear a softly humored scoff escape her mom on the other end. “Alright, what did you do?”

“Snuck out a couple… uh… well, a bunch of times really.”

“Well, glad to know I’m not the only one who can’t keep track of you. So what were you doing?”

Morrigan hesitated. “Just seeing a friend.”

“Emma?” her mom asked, and Morrigan was surprised that she knew about her at first. But it was actually obvious how she knew. “Hilda’s younger cousin, right?”

“Ah… heh, yeah.”

“Hilda says you two get along pretty well…” Then something more conspiratoral entered her voice. “More than friends, right?”

Morrigan felt her face flush at that. “Uh, yeah. I guess so.” This is not something she was expecting to talk to her mom about.

“Well good for you kiddo. If Hilda’s anything to go by, I’m sure she’s a real winner.”

“Yeah. She’s great.” Morrigan said, scratching the side of her neck. For all her mother’s other short comings, at least being judgemental wasn’t one of them. Morrigan guessed coming out of the closet came with a little more drama for most other people.

“Glad to hear it,” her mom said, her tone relaxed. “You always were a bit of a lone wolf. I’m glad you’ve got someone like that in your corner. Oh right… speaking of Hilda. What do you think about living with her?”

“Yeah, that’s what I’m hoping for right now.”

“Yeah, well motherly advice incoming. Try laying low for a bit and stop getting into trouble. Got it?”

“Easier said than done.”

Literally don’t have a choice if I don’t want the reaper police coming after me again, she thought.

“I’m sure it’s not. But sometimes the best thing you can do is just keep your head down until you’ve got a real plan. Sounds like Hilda is really trying to help you out, so don’t make it harder on her.” She paused as she let out a breath on the other end. “And listen, kid… whatever happens, you can always call me, alright? Even if I can’t do much. Even if I’m still trying to figure my own shit out. You don’t have to go through everything alone. I’ll try to be in your corner too when I can.”

Morrigan stared at the ceiling, feeling something tight in her chest that she didn’t quite know how to deal with. She swallowed it down. “Yeah. Thanks, Mom.”

Another pause. Then, her mom snorted lightly. “And tell Emma I said hi. Maybe I’ll get to meet her one of these days.”

Morrigan made a face. “Uh… yeah, we’ll see.”

Her mom laughed. “I’m not taking no for an answer on that one, kiddo.”

“Yeah, yeah, I get it.” Morrigan couldn’t help smiling and shaking her head. 

“Anyway, I'm going to let you go now. Call again soon kiddo.”

“Alright. I will.” Morrigan hesitated before adding, “Take care of yourself, Mom.”

“You too.”

The line clicked, and the call ended. Morrigan lowered the phone to her lap, staring at it for a few seconds before handing it back to Sarah, who had been waiting nearby.

Sarah took it without a word, but her expression was softer than before, lacking the exhaustion and frustration from earlier. “Everything alright?”

Morrigan nodded. “Yeah.”

Sarah studied her for a moment like she wanted to say something else but ultimately sighed. “Get some rest, then. I’ll let you know when we’ve made a decision.”

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Chapter 121 - Sixteen Years Late