the K N I F E

You up for it, tiger? (Mara jokes before she’s even looked up to see who’s speaking. But when she sees her treasure picked up without permission, she narrows her eyes, her gaze following up a smug hand holding her candy bar, up a long arm, into the face of the man who seemed to know her. Her eyes soften and she quirks a smile, and if he knows her past the next bit might make him laugh, and if he doesn’t it’s still the truth.) It will cost you something.

{The comment has a dry laugh escaping him, but he doesn't follow up on it. The "I have a girlfriend" thing is only relevant if she's serious, and he doesn't think she is.} Oh yeah? We bartering now? {He smirks when he says it, and it doesn't escape him that she finds it funnier than he thinks she would've when they met a year ago. He leans against the desk, ripping the packaging open before tearing into it with his teeth.} On the other hand, stealing doesn't cost me anything.

(Mara’s been quiet most of the day. A police station. Of course. It’s probably fortified and safe, cleared out of any dangers, but there’s still an unease in Mara’s spine that comes from too many bad memories inside walls like these. Cheaper, dirtier, more poorly funded walls on the wrong side of town, but walls still that held handcuffs, lawyers, and assholes. And Mara can’t decide between turning up her lips and wanting to get out, so she settles for the satisfaction of rummaging through some of the desks and drawers, until she’s perched in an office with the bounty of handcuffs and a handful of candy bars, parsing through the latter and deciding which to eat first.)

{Logically the place was a good choice, safer than most of the buildings around them and a surprising amount still left behind. But beyond that there are a number of reasons for Eli to dislike the place, most of them tied too closely into who and what he used to be for him to want to waste too much time thinking about it. He's passing by when he catches a glimpse of Mara, and the collection next to her. He eyes the handcuffs with a raised eyebrow before shifting to the candy bars. He doesn't ask permission, picking one up off the desk before he gestures at her pile.} Now that just looks like a good time.

[She believes him when he says he’s ready for whatever is moving around inside the fog. It moans again, only this time it morphs into something more like a growl. It’s more frightening in the fact that she can’t see it. She can’t pinpoint what it is and that means she can’t trap it. He tells her to go back inside and she turns to look at the back of his head. Maybe she should. Maybe she would have before he’d gone and disappeared on her for a couple of weeks. But the last time he’d fought something while she’d been standing back and watching, she’d nearly gotten him killed. Taking a deep breath, she steps up to his side and lifts her gun to aim at the noise as well, tightening her grip when she hears scratches against metal as it draws closer. She says the next words with confidence, because she won’t ever let him down like that again.] I’m alright here.

{He doesn't argue her. Part of him thinks maybe he should, that he was used to working alone before and if anything that feeling's just intensified now. But he closes his mouth on the words and then slams the trunk shut for her. The noise isn't loud, not by any means, but it's loud enough and he can hear the scraping growing closer. The second he sees movement, everything else is forgotten. He's pulling on the power in his blood and on his skin, stepping through shadows and putting him close enough to put a bullet straight through it's skull. He can't tell if it's a shambler that's had a bad time or one of the mutants, but either way it collapses in a heap, brain matter and dark blood blown out across the asphalt. It might be a waste of bullets, but at this point he doesn't care. He knows how to survive without a gun, it's just the closest thing at hand now. The scraping doesn't stop though, and it has his head lifting to try and find whatever else is out there.}

[Robyn feels the hand on her back before she knows he’s behind her. She manages not to jump, but she leans closer to him despite it all. The hold she has on her gun tightens, because his is aimed at whatever is making the noise in front of them. He asks if she’s done and she is, she hadn’t been out here doing anything important really, just organizing and confiscating shotgun shells. She nods, hand reaching up to settle on the trunk, but she’s almost afraid to close it in case whatever is out there in the fog might come their way. Not that she doesn’t trust Eli, or even herself these days, to take care of it, it doesn’t mean she’s entirely brave in the face of all of it.] Yeah. Ready?

Always. {It used to be a glib answer, but it's truer than it ever used to be. The only way to never be caught off guard is to always be on it, and it keeps his grip tight around his gun, even if he doesn't think anything out there is something he can't kill. There wasn't much he couldn't deal with before he fell through a hole in the world, there's even less now. The fog only serves to irritate him, to mask however close something out there might be, and if she's hesitating because of noise he almost hopes it draws it closer. It has him glancing back at her briefly before his gaze shifts back down the barrel of his gun.} Go ahead and head back inside babe. 

[The move to the police station had been an unadventurous one. Robyn stands near the Lincoln outside, having found a box of shotgun shells that she’s trying to fit into the arrangement inside the trunk. A noise to her right has her lifting her head to turn and look out into the fog. There are several police cruisers parked near her, some of them with their windows smashed like someone had gone through them. She stays quiet for a moment, trying to see what had made the noise. It sounds again, a slow grinding or low moan and she swallows thickly, reaching into the trunk for her gun as she pulls it to her side, waiting for something to make an appearance.]

{There was a point where the police station behind him would've been some kind of temptation, when the promise of whatever's locked away in evidence would've made his skin crawl. It doesn't have the same hold over him that it used to, but it's still enough to make him prefer outside to inside. That Robyn's out there is just a good excuse, and he's already walking across the pavement when he hears the noise. It doesn't matter that he can't see anything, his first assumption is automatically that it's something that needs killing. His hand settles on her lower back, gun up and pointed into the fog in case anything makes itself visible. That guns haven't been his weapon of choice in a while doesn't matter, it's a tool, he'll use it if he has to.} You almost done?

{Josie’d like to stab him for the pet name, even though she had spouted one out first and there’s a double standard she can silently acknowledge to herself. But Eli’s the boss’s brother. Fighting with him is asking for trouble in this group. Her fists clench by her sides as she grits her teeth and tries to smother the bubbling temper inside her. The gaze she casts upon him is dark and suspicious, but still slightly bored, as if she could only bother to be a little less than mildly interested in the world around her.} So, how did you really get the busted lip?

{He lifts an eyebrow because he's not sure whether he should still be annoyed or amused that she bothers to ask again. He doubts she cares, doubts she's that interested in playing nice, which to him just leaves stubborn. He shrugs it off regardless of the answer.} If I redirect with another joke are you just gonna keep getting pissy? 'Cause if you are I could spare us both the time and go straight for something really offensive. 

[Robyn looks back over at him when he says that he doesn’t want her to know. There are a couple ways she could take it, but there’s no question how she should take it now. He’s protecting her. He’s keeping it away from her. It has her scooting closer, just a loving smile on her face as she watches him.] I’d be willing to know if you ever need me to. [She reaches her fork over to steal some of the soup from his can.] I lived off soup for a week once.

{He believes her on that too, but he still doesn't give her an answer. There are a thousand things he could tell her and not one of them's nice or pleasant. And while he doesn't think telling her unpleasant things is a dealbreaker at this point, it doesn't mean she needs to hear it. He watches her steal his soup with a playful smile, but she's not getting mad and she's not pushing. It has his arm looping her waist, dragging her over to him.} Why are you so nice to me?

[The answer makes him snort, but not because he finds it all that funny. Mostly he just thinks that Eli already knows that he’d never hate him for that. He’d never hate him for anything. They’d already been through the worst sides of themselves with each other, there’s nothing in the world or the next that would make Samson hate his brother.] Never going to hate you. And I still want you to be my eyes, if you want that. 

{He doesn't smile, but it helps ease the tension in his shoulders and etched in the lines of his face. It's a little funny to him that Sam can make it sound like Eli's doing him a favor, but that he offers that to him counts for a lot. He would do what he wanted anyway and they both knew it, but it was easier and hurt a lot less when they were on the same page.} So what you're saying is you do want me to head out tonight.

[He answers quickly and closes up after that. It has her pausing in what she’s doing to watch his face. With gentle motions, she reaches out to run her hand across his shoulders, along his back. Her voice is lower, understanding.] If you ever need to, I’m here. [She follows it up by leaning forward to press her lips to his shoulder before she leans back, withdrawing her hand and going back to the can in her hands. She points her fork at his, in answer to his question.] Minestrone soup concentrate.

{He believes her when she says it, believes she'll listen to whatever he wants to say about it even if some of it he thinks might give her nightmares. Or at least it would've before. Now he can't tell, because he thinks she can imagine all kinds of things to fill in the spaces, but she's not the one who can't sleep through the night. He wants to keep it that way.} I don't want you to know. {He shifts easily back and forth between that and the mundane, because what he used to like doesn't matter when this is what they have.} You know I never even really liked soup? 

[Samson sighs and he really doesn’t know how his brother’s going to react. Neither of them are saying what they want to say, that much is obvious, so he shrugs a little bit, opening his mouth to say one thing, but he closes it in the next because Eli deserves just being asked flat out something. He thinks they’re both adult enough to be able to do so.] Guess what I’m really asking is if you’re going to hate me if I send other scouts out. 

{He doesn't answer for a moment, but it's not because he doesn't know the answer. He'd never hate his brother and he'd like to think he knows that, even if he doesn't say the words. He just hates the idea of it, however Sam sees this going, but he doesn't voice that either. This is his brother's group and he'll do what he wants with it. He thinks Sam would be happier if he brought a friend, but it's nothing that's ever going to happen.} As long as you don't hate me if I want nothing to do with them.

{Her lips might be set into a firm line, a small sign of annoyance from Josie, but she doesn’t say more on the matter. Joke or not, it had set her on edge, a slight paranoia that he had been speaking about Cian, or him and Robyn got into a more physical fight. If she had hit him, fine. But if Eli had laid a finger on Robyn, then Hell would be a vacation compared to Josie Jones. Her gaze shifts to her fingers, picking at her nails in idle thought, but it’s possible she’s cleaning them to lay a swift swing at Eli’s jaw.} Don’t care about your sex life, tiger.

{He scoffs at that, a sense of rising annoyance, because she asked the question in the first place. And whether his sense of humor just isn't what it used to be or she's just that touchy, either way he's not interested in dealing with the mood swings. He's got enough of his own to deal with.} Which is why I didn't tell you who was on top, princess. 

I know you do. [It’s all she says about it, pulling her hand away from his shoulder and just sitting there with the can in her hand. She takes another bite before crossing her legs and sitting quietly. She keeps the smile on her face as she looks out at the winery behind them. The question has been on the tip of her tongue since he’d come back through the rift.] Do you want to talk about what happened to you, with me?

No. {The question has his expression going blank, already his attention shifting anywhere else. He looks down at the can after he says it, staring almost blankly before he finally takes a bite. He doesn't say anything else and he doesn't snap, but he doesn't want to talk about it and he wants to keep her as far away from what happened as possible. Instead he just points his fork at the food in hand.} This doesn't suck. What did you bring me?

I figured. [Samson nods at that. He hadn’t really thought Eli would go for it, hadn’t thought he would go for it. Didn’t think Eli would want anyone to go with him, but he wasn’t sure what he’d think of sending out a scouting party to run side by side with Eli. Two separate parties, and Eli’s on his own. He licks his lips, keeping careful eye on his brother.] What do you feel about a second scouting party? 

{His lips press together to keep him from telling him flat out 'no' because he's not really interested in a fight with his brother. But it feels like Sam's tiptoeing around something and he's not sure what it is, if he just doesn't want him to go, or doesn't want him to go alone, or if Robyn's right and he's just scared.}  What are you asking, exactly?

[She looks up at the question, watching his face. She can’t tell if he’s getting defensive or just honestly asking. Giving a smile and finishing the food she has in her mouth, she reaches over to rub his shoulder because she’s not going to doubt what she has to say to him and she’s not going to be offended when he gives her a hard time over it.] Just remind him that you’ll come back. 

Because climbing out of a fucking rift wasn't proof enough? {He shifts, pressing his back against the wall next to her as he glares down at his food. It bothers him today, and whether it's just the restlessness already eating away at him or just this quiet he can't take, it still leaves him frustrated. He doesn't push her away, doesn't try to shrug off the hand on his shoulder, but he doesn't know what kind of words she expects him to offer his brother to make it easier for him.} I always come back. 

Presumed dead. [Jen corrects after a moment.] I mean… everyone thought you were dead but here ya’ are. So you weren’t like dead you were just… not here. [Jen says with a shrug, and she might be totally wrong but she had just assumed he’d been stuck in Hell, not dead and back to life. At least that’s what she had figured once she heard that he’d come back.] Or I’m talkin’ outta my ass. Also a huge possibility here.

Well, yeah. I know that. {He says the words more calmly than he thinks maybe he feels them, because it's nothing she needs to point out to him. He knows where he was. He also knows no one else does, because the one person who'd flat out asked him had gotten the equivalent of a 'fuck off.' But he's not sure that's really the point.} And now you all know that. Doesn't mean my brother didn't already mourn me. 

{Josie smirks at Eli’s retort. There’s only a few people in this group that could take her in a fight, and even fewer who had markings. But maybe that’s one reason why she doesn’t mess with Eli as much as she does others she deems weaker. It would be bloody and who knows how it will end. Both dead. One dead. Both laughing. Friends? Shit. But his next comment wipes the smirk from her lips and she’s glaring at him coldly. What the hell did that mean? Is it some sort of jab at her or is he just being an asshole? She couldn’t help but feel suddenly paranoid. And while her first thought is Eli means it sexually, there’s another thought that he doesn’t. And so help him, if he had laid a hand upon Robyn…} The fuck is that supposed to mean?

{That she doesn't argue is good enough to keep him amused, though he doesn't try to follow the thought to any kind of logical conclusion. He knows what he's capable of, and he knows his line involves killing monsters, not people. But the sudden shift in her mood and expression takes him almost off guard. He frowns at the response, staring at her for a moment in mild confusion. He's aware she's volatile but he doesn't really care because the same can be said about him. But while he's generally aware when he's being a dick, this time he's not sure what he said that pushed her over into what he can only read as quietly enraged.} Supposed to be a joke. Should I have added 'in bed' to the end? Hear it makes everything funnier.