every summer, ariana disappears for an unknown stretch of time. no explanations are given, and any discussion is discouraged--but people are people, and rumors run rampant throughout the base. is it some secret assignment? a favor for another executive? or just a way to stave off the inevitable burnout of a decades-plus career? (ask ari, and she'd likely say the latter before belladonna chases you out of the office)
regardless, she's never away from the nest for long, and her return is never celebrated...at least not in public (just another monday.) ariana always comes back.
a spotless office floor. a freshly dry-cleaned jacket. shelves of gleaming poisons and smaller shelves set aside for their antidotes. an orderly stack of documents, maintained by archer and the grunts. a refreshed ariana settles back in like she never left. door propped open, like usual. belladonna and huginn out causing chaos in the halls, like usual. a queen back on her shadowy throne.
like usual.
