.fuckstick

it wasn't like dax had a reason to fault meachum for their lack of contact. it wasn't exactly keeping someone at arms length if both parties, for their own reasons, simply hadn't spoken or reached out in a while. and the elder man did feel bad about that now that he was face to face with a friend. life, especially ones as busy as theirs', always tended to mean large gaps in contact. even with the people he and faith cared about.

lips quirk into a smile. ( he always smiles when talk turns to faith. ) and then he laughs a little. there was no one on the planet more formidable than his wife. she had proven herself over and over across the years, that if she wanted something, she would find a way to get it. heaven and hell help anyone in her way. "i don't even have to aim her your way, she'll do it herself the moment i mention you."

few files are picked through as he hums up at dax, grinning ear to ear when he mentions there's no escaping the redheaded terror of a wife of his should she get word he's around. and she will. if she hasn't already. how long's it been since he sat down with these two? too long. but, between his previous assignment digging out practically a year of his life and current.. matters? there's not much time for catch up..

..so he doesn't fault him.

says as much when he rolls his attention up from the pages back to the agent standing above him. "oh?" a brow creeps towards his hairline. "we're doing this tonight then? lucky for me then.. my dinner plans consisted of left over rice and chicken that may or may not've turned into a science project from a couple days back." not that he minds cooking. just hasn't had the energy time.

every free moment went towards stopping people like the one who took his sister all those years ago. so maybe the task force would be a good reason to put that work on pause, to take a break. even if taking a break came in the form of more work. but blythe wouldn't call anyone in for no reason, agent moreau is more than aware of this. but he's glad to see meachum again. wonders how long its been since he or faith have reached out. work gets in the way sometimes, he's sure mark knows that.

"she's good. head of her own department now - so i usually work for her," oh he's more than proud of his wife's accomplishments. "luckily for her, i'm getting too old to get into too much trouble," a joke at his own expense because it truly doesn't bother him. "i'll tell her you'll be stopping in for dinner sometime soon," which means there's no getting out of it. faith will show up wherever mark is and drag him home to dinner otherwise.

wouldn't have been much good to reach out considering his situation. course moreau doesn't know that. plus, mark gets it. and he's gotten used to keeping most people at arm's length, or then some, lately. they'll catch up, he's sure. kinda hard not to when the threat of the agent's wife tracking him down's made. he knows too damn well that threat has meat and bones. she'll track him down if she has to.

"don't have to threaten me with her. i know the red headed arsenal you got swinging behind you," a light laugh's directed towards his desk. green eyes search the clean, polished top of it before he meets dax's again. "i'm not gonna do a god damn thing to earn her anger aimed in my direction." shoulders hitch before he reclines back in his chair. "if dinner's all it takes? we'll set a night sometime after we find out why we're here. deal?"

with the task force newly formed, dax supposed it was at least a little nice to see a familiar face amongst the team blythe put together. it had been a while since he had seen mark - work for the fbi taking him here and there so much that taking time to see an old friend just rarely seemed possible. faith would be glad to know that mark was alive and seemingly well.

"i don't think it would go against any task force secrets to invite you to dinner," there was an open invite to mark, as there was to many of the moreaus' friends, "faith would be mad if she found out i saw you and didn't invite you to ours' for a meal."

first thing's first? a shower in his own house? after being holed up for nine months and being yanked out by his neck when he was on the cusp of nailing every god damn piece of information he was shoveling through one rotten meal, cell door slam, yard fights and all the fun of a max security prison stint towards. nothing over the top, nah. not when duty calls. least that's what he was told. what he keeps telling himself. so on and so forth.

mark took in the faces gathered, happy to see a handful he recognizes and curious about a stranger or two. when blythe puts a team together? there's always a story beind every person hand picked by the guy in charge. long as his stays under wraps? is all he cares about. digging up everyone else's? a hobby to pass the time with later. one he doesn't expect is dax. no one mentioned his name. then again? this whole thing's been wrapped up in so much secrecy since he was carted out of his assignment that he's just as in the dark as everyone else.

Jensen Ackles as Mark Meachum in Countdown S1E4