12622/My keeper, brother.

My keeper, brother.
Date of Scene:	07 January 2021
Location:	Harry Dresden's Office, Kingston Falls
Synopsis:	Thomas comes to Harry asking for help with Buffy.
Cast of Characters:	Thomas Raith, Harry Dresden

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Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith hadn't given Harry allot of warning. Partially, if he was honest because he knew if he did that he minght back out. Still it's the middle of the day, the Club itself is closed. Buffy "the body" safely locked and tied up in his apartment, Buffy "the mind" safely asleep in vampiric slumber in his wine celler, and Crush "the huge black man who can turn into a huge black bear" standing guard over both of them. He normally tries to bring something for lunch when he visits... this time he simply brought a six pack of Mac's dark, ice cold. He lets himself into the office and calls out, "Harry? You haven't blown yourself up since I called, have you?"

Harry Dresden has posed:
Looking up from his desk, the Wizard seems to be doing the thing that everyone hates. Paperwork. Even wizards have to deal with it, especially when they also run a business. Nobody is safe from taxes. "No, but I wish I did. I can't believe how much I am going to owe...and I didn't even make that much."

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith takes a beer out of the six pack and sets it in front of his brother, scanning down at the files. "I can have my accountant go over this for you. Considering the...unusual nature of your business, you'd be amazed the sort of things you might be able to write off." He smirks a bit, "Out on a job for more then four hous? Your Whopper Combo meal is courtesy of Uncle Sam. Same for the fuel you put in that chimera made metal thing you call a car. A little creative book keeping I bet he can get your numbers down." He considers his brother's lover, and adds after a moment, "Maybe without even breaking any laws." He takes a seat in his brother's visitors chair and adds, "Can you take a break though? I need someone to talk to, and shrinks are too expensive.."

Harry Dresden has posed:
Glacing at the beer, then to Thomas, Harry reaches over and takes the offered beverage and takes a sip. "Your accountant huh? Are they buy the book? I can't afford to be audited...again. Turns out that you put your occupation as 'wizard' on tax forms, people get reeeeeeally interested in your taxes. Last thing Karrin needs it getting tied up with her boyfriend suspected of tax fraud."

Harry takes another sip of beer, leaning back in his chair as he brow arches up in a concerned fashion as he motions to one of the chairs on the other side of the desk, "Yeah. Sure. Everything ok?...Well as ok as they every are with our lives. Still having issues with Buffy?"

Thomas Raith has posed:
"Kinda... Before we get too far, have you had any luck with that Draconian katra thing? This Red Order that Tiffany pissed off already made one rather lame attempt on her... But you know how these people can be, and they only need to get lucky once." Yet that doesn't even seem remotely close to what is bothering him. He opens his own beer, but doesn't even take a sip, staring down at it and rolling the bottle between his hands. "Look I know you don't feel... comfortable... talking about...certain things... but I'm way out a limb here man and I don't know what to do.."

Harry Dresden has posed:
Watching Thomas, Harry takes another sip from the beer, "Yeah. Bob was able to give me information on it. I've been working on a spell that should be able to transpose the souls back, but that leaves the problem of Buffy and the memory loss. I don't know if transference like that while having the amnesia will permanently mess her up, and I don't want to risk that. We need to get her memories back first before I try anything else." Harry eyes his brother, brow raising. "Ok, now you have me concerned. This isn't like you to have worries like this. What is up? Did you get her pregnant or something?"

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith laughs a bit at that. "empty Night, no nothing like that..." He shakes his head slightly. "My kind are mostly infertal. My father has sired eight children in just under 400 years and is considered exceptionally virile." He waves it away shaking his head... "It's just... I had... fed well the night before this happened... with Buffy I mean... and so I was sort of... running on my reserved you know... But it'd been weeks and... Well there was a confrontation... between Buffy and Tiffany... I'm referring to them by who has the mind not the body, so as not to get confused... Buffy actually vamped out and tried to strangle Tiffany... who was still tied up mind you... I pulled her off of her... maybe not as fast as I could have, but I didn't want her to accidentally hurt the body, you know..." He sets his beer down and wipes his face with his hands as if scrubbing it... "She left the room fuming... I took care of Tiffany's body care... but... when I went out to my office she was waiting there for me and..." He half sighs, half laughs shaking his head. "We threw ourselves at each other. Her in that Vamps body. We may have even broken some furniture... I mean at the time it was good... I mean capital G good... but afterward... I keep thinking Did I just cheat on Buffy? Did I...violate tiffany in a weird way?"

Harry Dresden has posed:
Listening, Harry stops his arm from bringing the bottle of booze up to his lips about halfway along the trip as Thomas gets to the meat of the problem, only setting it back down once he has finished without a sip taken. "Well...that's a quandary...I'm not sure I am the one that has answers to those kind of questions. I mean, is it cheating because it was a different body? I mean, it was Buffy's mind... but she also has amnesia, right? So, since she isn't herself is that? What do you think Buffy would say? Or do you know, and that is what is eating you?"

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith shakes his head. "She's got most of her memories back... at least enough that I feel comfortable calling her Buffy and thinking of her that way." He says softly. "Before that it was easy, because I would never take advantage of Buffy or abuse her trust like that. But how fucked up is it that..." he pauses looking at his brother and changes what he was going to say for the sake of his audience, "That one of the most intense sessions we've ever had...happened when she was in another body? I mean your one of the most decent men I know... How would you feel if, forget the amnesia for a bit, if Murph got Body swapped into some random porn star. I mean knowing that it was her mind but in this other body..." He takes a long pull off his beer, mostly subconsciously. "I thought...when I started dating the Slayer of all people... someone who could single handed keep me fed with almost no downsize to her that I was done with having hangups..."

Harry Dresden has posed:
"Well shit," Harry says picking up the bottle and taking a swig, "Then that answers your question right there doesn't it? If she is Buffy, and she didn't complain about you and her having wild monkey sex while she was in someone else's body, why are you having a hang up over it man? She obviously didn't see it as cheating, or she wouldn't have gone through with it." The wizard shrugs at the later question, "I guess that would all depend on Murph. If she wasn't comfortable with it, then sure it would be messed up. I mean, either way it would be weird, don't get me wrong, but if she was ok with it..." he shrugs a shoulder. "I guess it comes down to asking this question...what makes the person? Is it the body or the mind?"

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith nods a bit and says "But what about Tiffany though." He says, and really that is what is bothering him. "I mean do not get me wrong. I would stake her in a heart beat. Plan to as soon as we get their bodies swapped back in fact... but it /is/ her body that I," He pauses to get the phrasing just right "Was having wild monkey sex with."

Harry Dresden has posed:
Harry Dresden purses his lips and sits back again, steepleing his fingers together in front of him as he thinks, "Ok...I see your point." Harry is quiet for a long moment before he finally shrugs a shoulder, "I really don't have a good answer for that one. Now, Tiffany is a demon, so the body is really nothing more than a shell. No soul or anything, so whoever Tiffany was as a person is long gone. You could....think of it as a very realistic blow up doll?

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith blinks slowly at that, and then begins to laugh. It's one of those rolling things that no sooner does he start to get it under control the next wave rolls over him and it starts up all over again. Maybe just the tension breaking but he finds the remark coming from his normally so repressed brother hilariously funny... "When he finally calms down, even hicupping a bit he says "I...I am gonna...save your life and /never/ tell her you said that. Empty Night..." and then he starts laughing again.

Harry Dresden has posed:
Harry grins sheepishly, "Well...at least I got you to laugh. That is a start. Hell's bells, there is nothing sadder than a depressed Incubus. Seriously though, I really don't have a good answer for you. Maybe talk to Buffy about it? Or...Tiffany?"

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith snorts a bit, "That would be an interesting conversation to have, wouldn't it?" he says shaking his head slightly and running his fingers through his long dark hair. and shaking his head slightly, "But yes as I said, Buffy's got most of her memories back... and I think the sooner we can get them switched back the better... being a Vampire is strting to affect her mental state... she's losing herself in it in a way... You know how new vamps get." He sighs and then gets a wicked grin on his face and adds "Apropos of nothing... What would it take to make a batch of polyjuice potion that would make someone look like...say Westley from the Princess Bride?" he asks with a wolfish grin.

Harry Dresden has posed:
Eyeing his brother, the wizard gives Thomas a hard stare. "I am not making you a potion so you can have roleplay fantasies, Thomas. Nope. Not going to do it." He adds, in a more joking and jovial tone, "You disgust me..."

Holding back a smirk, he continues, "On the other hand, with her memories coming back we can likely get the ritual done sooner rather than later. I just need to double check a few things."

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith grins wickedly, "Harry, not /my/ roleplay fantasies. Relationships are a two way street after all.. Why would /I/ fantizie about being Westley?" he shakes his head amused. Still he smiles a bit and nods. "I'll tell her you said that... The sooner the better honestly... She's scared of loosing herself Harry... And it's starting to scare me."

Harry Dresden has posed:
Harry just eyes his brother for a long moment, quiet, and then just shakes his head. "I just learned more about you and Buffy than I /ever/ wanted to know. Ew." However the wizard can't help but grin slightly until he gets serious, "I'll set it up as soon as I can, but I don't want to rush it either. If I rush, I may miss something, and that could be worse."

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith laughs and nods a bit at Harry's reaction, smirking slightly. "Varity is the spice of life after all. I mean if you prefer I can just ask Bob about it. Can't be too difficult, pour a bunch of stuff in a pot, boil." He says grinning but nods. "Alright, She'll be glad just hearing that you're working on it..." he takes a piece of paper from Harry's desk, walks across the room, and turns on his cellphone before copying down a number. "Ask for Maurice. Use my name. He'll get your taxes all worked out. All above board, I promise." He says mildly amused. "And seriously, Harry, I respect your job and the statement you are trying to make, but why wouldn't you at least put your occupation as Paranormal Investigator rather then Wizard on IRS forms?