Here Comes the {Sun} (open)

[strix]

He'd done it again. Same method, different end result. This time the prey hadn't gotten lucky. And, yet again, Seth didn't know why it had happened. He had just been so angry, so...vengeful. The fear and pain made everything worth it, but the blood this time made it better. Until, of course, the madness subsided again, and the alien was left with a body to hide. Jesus. What had happened to him? It was rare for Seth to get angry, much less violent. Two murders in two days was...well, unthinkable. And he had enjoyed this one's death, and his pain. And now, he was empty inside. And going to be sick.

Seth vomited into the same dumpster he had hidden the body in moments before. At least, he considered bleakly, there wasn't much of a mess to clean up. He was still pale, he knew, but he'd had the foresight to move the dead boy while still in alien form. No blood on his clothing, no sign that he'd just been part of a brutal murder. And there was no way he would be connected to the claw wounds. Not unless he turned himself in. He should; he deserved any punishment dealt out. Only one thing to do with mad dogs, after all. But what could he do? Walk into the police station, admit that he was a murderous alien? Wouldn't go over so well. If he incited a panic, there could be many more deaths. Seth knew several organizations existed that 'dealt' with alien menaces, but all of them were damned secretive. Well, if no one else would kill him off, then...

No. Seth forced himself up from the dumpster grimly, pushing thoughts of suicide out of his mind. Not yet, even if he did deserve it. Besides, he figured he'd have at least a few hours before the madness struck again. The large man stumbled away, heading out to no street in particular. Away from the crime scene. It was early morning now, and Seth could just see the sun coming up over the skyline. A pretty sunrise, not that he was in any mood to appreciate it, or the growing number of people on the street. He needed a place to sit down for a few minutes, like—ah, Starbucks. That would work.

Seth ducked into the cafe, going from Nervous Wreck to calm and collected with remarkable ease. A cup of tea would do him good right now, and get the bad taste out of his mouth. And, more importantly, give him time to weigh his options. The alien settled into a window table with a cup of Earl Grey and a newspaper. For a long moment he stared out the window blankly, then started when he realized he could see his reflection. Crap, had he missed a blood spot? Seth rubbed his forehead off with a napkin, surreptitiously glancing around to see if anyone had noticed. Good, maybe he was clear. Taking a shaky breath, he turned his attention back to the tea. Calm. Calm and logic.

[Elizabeth Wright]

Elizabeth walked into the Starbucks, for once totally calm. It was her day off work, and she had sworn to herself that nothing was going to stress her out. She'd spent the last few weeks on her toes, freaking out, adjusting to a new world that apparently, had been lying right next her old one, just out of site. It was a bit overwhelming.

Liz was fairly sure that she had been coping fairly well. Actually, she was loving all of it. It was exactly what she needed. Nothing like her old life, and that was what she was after. And the adrenilen rushes - you just couldn't beat them. She smiled under her breath at the thought.

But no. Look, she was already breaking her promise. Last night, they'd finished up late. A weevil had gotten into a primary school. Thank god it was night,and it was empty, but if the systems hadn't picked it up over the CTV, Liz shuddered to think what might have happened in the morning. Thank goodness she didn't have to. They'd gotten the situation cleared up a hole in the plaster, three broken desks and a tin of weevil spray later. At three in the morning mind you. She'd told herself then and there that today was going to be about her. Coffee at Starbucks, a new pair of jeans, lunch overlooking the bay and a Will and Grace marathon tonight. No aliens, no work, no stress.

Of course things don't always go to plan. Which is why when she saw the cute looking alien from the library, she slid into his booth with her double fudge thickshake.
"You know, there's nothing on your face." she said with a grin. "You can stop rubbing your skin off"

[strix]

Oh crap, someone had noticed. Seth tensed before noticing the familiar face. Elizabeth, from the library. She had seemed like a nice girl, even if she had called him out. Australian, and worked for...oh. The alien's gaze intensified as he watched her take a seat next to him. Why was she here? Had he been found out already? No, he considered, her body language didn't scream 'I'm sitting next to a man-eating alien'. She was acting...friendly, which was odd in itself. Was their meeting just coincidence, then? Was Seth just that damned unlucky? “I was—” he broke off suddenly, realizing what he was about to say. “Ah, thank you. Thought I saw something,” the alien gave her a tight smile, but several choice lines from Macbeth were coming to mind.

But how bad would it be if she did find out? It was unlikely Torchwood could actually help him, but they could definitely prevent a third victim from appearing. Not like anyone would miss him, either. Seth gripped his cup of tea tightly, eyes on the table as he weighed his options. He'd known—he'd always known—that one day he'd get caught. Never had he pictured turning himself in. But this was the best option, it had to be. He fully deserved whatever they chose to do with him. In that case, how to say it? There's a body in a dumpster a few blocks from here, where I left him? Didn't want her to panic, not for his sake. The alien sighed quietly, eyes still fixed on his cup of tea. “Elizabeth...where did you say you worked, again?”

[Elizabeth Wright]

Elizabeth smiled again, wrapping her hands around her drink and raising it to her lips, watching Seth with interest. He seemed tense. Mind you, he might always be tense. He wasn’t exactly relaxed last time they’d met, in the library. Boy, that had been weird. A time-lord, a shape-shifter, an alien and the person that was supposed to catch the unhuman things of the town, all settling down and talking. Well, it had been her day off. They were making a habit of running into each other on her days off. Better than on her shift – then she might just be cuffing him and taking him back to the cells under the hub. And she didn’t want to do that. For an alien, he was cute.

Wait. Was that weird? Thinking that he was cute? Him being alien and all, and her knowing it. But then again, he looked human. If she had met him in the street, under normal circumstances, she wouldn’t have thought anything of it. What was she talking about? She was allowed to critically examine his appearance, and reach the conclusion that he was visually appealing.

She was pulled from this confusing train of thought when Seth spoke.
“Please, don’t use my full name. Anything but the four full syllables.” She smiled again. ”Torchwood. But it’s my day off, I’m still not going to arrest you. Not unless you’ve gone and done something silly like kill someone.” she added with a raised eyebrow, and a hint of the smile remaining.

[strix]

Seth felt the girl's eyes on him, but didn't look up from the table. This wasn't exactly the easiest of conversations, and he knew that the minute he made eye contact it would all be over. She was easy to talk to, as far as humans went, but, well, he wasn't talkative at the best of times. And although it would have been easier to confess where he was sure no one could overhear, it would mean less witnesses if It happened again.At least, he considered silently, he wasn't about to go crazy and slaughter everyone in the Starbucks. Or he didn't think he was going to, anyway. How could he know, for sure? Didn't exactly come with big warning bells, and he couldn't even feel the nagging in the back of his mind any more.

But panicking wouldn't get him anywhere right now. He took a sip of his tea, and nodded as he looked up to the girl. “Liz, then. And I apologize if I spoil your day off, but that arrest might be necessary. I--” Seth broke off, sure for a second he was about to lose it. He took a deep breath, recomposed, and set his face back into a calm mask. “There's a body in the dumpster two blocks from here. It might be best if your team finds it before the police,” he added, voice lowered to an intense murmur just in case they had picked up an eavesdropper. Well, it might not have been the most tactful of deliveries, but that wasn't his main concern right now.

[Elizabeth Wright]

Liz looked at him, and grinned as he apologised for ruining her day. She was about to tell him that he’d done no such thing. She was actually pleased to see him. She didn’t know many people in this town, and although she’d never been much of a socialite, it could get you down when you didn’t know anyone. When there wasn’t even the occasional smile, or at least acknowledgment. She didn’t even have the emails from her parents to rely on. Not that she wanted emails from her parents.

As he continued about an arrest, Elizabeth was drawn back to his words. What was he talking about, an arrest. Why would she arrest him? He’d not done anything wrong. But as soon as this thought appeared in her mind, another followed right in its path that made her stomach twist. What had he done to be arrested?

His next words confirmed his fear, and the grin dropped off her face as she frowned, a mixture of confusion and disbelief. She’d not thought he was like that. How could she have been so completely wrong?
“ Why did you do it?” she asked, although it was more exasperated than questioning. Her mind was already running with thoughts, each a different plan of action. She would have to take him back to the hubs. He would have to go into the vaults. She would have to call someone to deal with the body. She didn’t know what went on about that. As she went through these things, she dug her comm. out of her bag, and switched it on. When Ianto answered – did he never turn it off? – she gave him the location and turned back to Seth, her blue eyes searching.

[strix]

Watching Liz's face was almost as painful as the murder itself had been. She was a good person; she didn't deserve this. And, in all honesty, he didn't want to be the one to bring bad news. But what he wanted didn't matter any more, did it? He'd pretty much given up that right two days ago. His stony expression almost slipped, and he wished he could take it back, tell her to go enjoy her day off. But no, this was necessary. Why did it have to be her, though? Not that he knew other members of the secretive organization, granted, or where their base was located. This...had to be for the best, right?

Seth paused at her question, trying to decide what to say. He couldn't honestly say that he didn't know; he knew exactly why, it was just unthinkable. Well, not entirely—his feelings might have been...enhanced...but he'd always had at least a little resentment towards humans. It was just now that his feelings were coming clear, for whatever reason. He started to feel a touch of nausea again, and automatically took a sip of his tea. Even thinking about it made him sick, still.

Liz's brief exchange over the com was welcome, and Seth waited silently for her to finish, taking the time to consider his answer. Her eyes met his, expectantly, and his gaze dropped back down. “It doesn't matter, does it?” he asked, perhaps a bit harshly. “It's the crime that matters, not the intent.” He wasn't looking for help, or even sympathy. Didn't deserve either. Telling her that it had been out of his control, or perhaps temporary insanity, would do little but gain pity that he didn't warrant.

[Elizabeth Wright]

Why did it have to be her? No, that was stupid. She would rather it was her, when she thought about it. She might be able to get to the bottom of this. Gwen, it would have been okay, though even in Liz’s short time at Torchwood, she could see her doe eyed colleague getting harder. Ianto and Jack she loved, but they had an undeniable coldness to them. They were more likely to just throw him in the cells to rot, rather that try and find out why. Maybe it was this job that did it to people after all.
“It's the crime that matters, not the intent.”
Liz shook her head. Intent was everything. Intent was why. And everything had a why. All her life, she’d wanted to know the why’s behind everything, and her adult life had been no different. But emotions weren’t as simple as biology and chemical reaction. You often couldn’t get a straight answer. Didn’t stop her trying.
“Intent is everything.” said Liz running a hand through her blonde curls, pushing them away from her face. She leaned forward. “Please. There has to be reason”.

[strix]

Seth wasn't a big fan of the prying. Liz had a right to know, of course, but it was...uncomfortable. The alien had trouble talking about himself when he wasn't going crazy. Wasn't exactly the easiest thing to describe. But he knew this would have to happen, and if—oh, how he hoped it wasn't—the rage was contagious, somehow, then she needed to know. Others would get hurt. Although, granted, others would get hurt if he stayed here talking with her. Seth couldn't feel it coming on yet, but his control had been tenuous over the last few days.

Seth gave her a sideways look as he answered. “I'm not entirely sure, myself,” he replied, honestly, still not quite sure how to get his meaning across. “I'll explain what I can, but...perhaps it would be better to do it somewhere else?” Like with some bars between them, and perhaps some sort of weapon. The possibility of eavesdroppers was making him increasingly nervous, and the fact that he might turn into a monster and kill them wasn't helping much, either. Was it bad, that he thought being in a cell might calm him down?

[Elizabeth Wright]

Elizabeth bit her lip, looking around. She opened her mouth to apologise, then shut it again, realising that he was the killer, and she was merely asking a simple question of why. Not a crime, not by any means. She couldn’t say the same about what he’d done.
She nodded, then bit her lip again, unsure of how to approach the next thing. She thought it better just to say it straight.
“Subway probably isn’t the best place for it” she said, standing up, the smoothie sitting abandoned in the corner of the booth. “Look Seth, I’m going to have to take you back to the Hub anyway, so we might as well talk there.” she leaned forward, chewing her lip again. “Please, I would really appreciate it if you don’t freak out and try to get away.” she said, her eyes pleading.