#dad!agustus

it's only when she mentions her life before paradise city that he pauses, because as much as he loathes thinking about everything he's lost, having someone who he can talk to about it who actually understands to that extent is... nice. oddly enough. maybe he'll tolerate her.

agustus is another curveball though. he's so cautious at first, taking only the smallest amount of food from jonathan's supplies, only ever enough that could reasonably be brushed off. unlike chuck who makes his presence known, agustus is so subtle that jonathan doesn't even realise he's taking stuff until he actually catches him in the act. he chases him off, but doesn't pursue him. and after that, agustus begins to test his luck. he sees how much he can take before jonathan gets actually mad, what times he won't be around to notice, whether he'd do anything at all if he was caught. it's almost like a game, and it's clear he's winning!

from jonathan's perspective though, as much as he hates the guy, he can't help but feel a bit sorry for him. the first time he saw agustus, all he could see was another desperate survivor, malnourished and skittish like a cornered prey animal. so... maybe he isn't as mad as he acts. maybe he remembers being that scared, starving young adult with no one to rely on, and maybe he once was the kind to steal anything he could get his hands on too. (it isn't him going soft; he still yells at agustus every time they meet, he just... gets it. even if he doesn't admit it.)

he meets zora last, and surprisingly in the friendliest way... at least compared to the others. it's through squiddo, naturally, who introduces them in the same way one would introduce two kids expecting them to be best friends immediately. at the very least there isn't any yelling or death threats or guns pointed in any direction--only a lot of distrust. jonathan thinks she's lying and taking advantage of squiddo's goodwill, and zora sees him as just a paranoid old man. they don't particularly like each other, but that's unfortunate because they just. keep. meeting.

zora's on a supply run? jonathan just so happens to be in the same place. squiddo invites jonathan over to her place to talk about something important? zora was coincidentally just leaving. they can't even kill each other because squiddo is both their friend so they're at a weird impasse where they just have to pretend to tolerate each other. (until, strangely enough, it doesn't feel like jonathan's pretending anymore. but that's something he'll take to his grave.)

yet the worst part is that, much to jonathan's dismay, his church becomes a meeting spot of sorts for the group as they all become acquainted with each other too. it's easy enough to get to from all of their bases, it's well-guarded and always full of supplies, and jonathan himself couldn't keep them out if they tried. and he hates this, the first time he gets home to find zora and agustus hanging out on his rooftop, he almost pops a blood vessel. he wants nothing more than to be left alone, and he tells them as much, but it's too late.

eventually he reaches an agreement; they can visit, but they're not allowed to come empty-handed. at first, jonathan makes the rule with chuck and agustus' thieving hands in mind, but soon it just becomes standard practice, even if they don't take anything at all. even if he's not home to accept any peace offerings. sometimes he'll come back to find a few bullets tucked into his drawer and a fresh apple on his bed, and he knows immediately zora and squiddo had dropped by.

......and maybe, after a long time of being worn down, he starts to invite them in as well. when it's raining, and he knows agustus would be shivering in his tent, he offers for him to sleep there for the night. when it's clear zora's not doing well and squiddo asks him to keep an eye on her, he lets her stay with him for a few days. when chuck needs to ramble about his research to someone, he lets him pace along the pews for hours, listening even if he has no idea what he's saying. when squiddo is feeling homesick for a time she can barely remember, he lets her cry with him. and he comforts her, because he's the only other person who can remember a time before the infection.